Berkeley Backyard Retreat: Japanese-Inspired Garden with Waterfall

Lisa and Tim Goodman (landscape designers/contractors) transformed their Berkeley backyard from lawn-and-flowers to a Japanese-inspired retreat with a rock waterfall, stream, subtle foliage plants, and two vine-covered a

Garden as Gallery: Artful Plant Combinations by Little and Lewis

Since 1992, George Little and David Lewis have created bold garden art. Davids guidelines: Take risks, have fun! Combine strong textures. Go for height; use tall plants, elevate containers. Partially hide objects for my

Edible Entry: Front-Yard Vegetable Garden in a Formal Design

Colleen and Byron Arndt replaced their front lawn in Medford, OR with a formal vegetable garden complementing their 1920s Dutch colonial. Landscape architects Kerry KenCairn and Laurie Sager identified the sunniest area

Desert Oasis: Indoor-Outdoor Living in Paradise Valley, AZ

Andrea and Thomas Kotoske remodeled modestly to maximize outdoor space. Walls slide open to fan-cooled terraces. Bright walls and contemporary water features backdrop desert plants. Large palo verde trees shade roof and

12 Steps from Paper to Party: Garden Design Process Overview

Draw a basic design with zones for dining and relaxing. Order paving, plants, furnishings. Remove dead/unwanted plants; strip old sod. Pagination note: original article continues on next pages.

Kensington, California: A Plant Collector's Paradise

Janet K. Anderson renovated her 1920s East Bay hills gardens with designers David McCrory and Roger Raiche. Over a year, they added 500+ plants: bamboos, cycads, geraniums, palms, 35 sages and roses, hundreds of perennia

Elements of a Habitat Garden: Food, Water, Shelter for Wildlife

As development encroaches on wildlands, gardens can provide critical resources for birds and other creatures. Food Offer year-round supply via native plants (or natives mixed with non-natives). Create a living smorgasbo

L.A. Story: Bold Garden Renovation in Bel Air

A spectacular Bel Air makeover by Mia Lehrer, Alan Bernstein, Tim Parker, and the owner. Jurors praised the seamless marriage of house and garden. Highlights Stone path with creeping thyme leads through a curved wall e

Summer Lawn Care: Mowing Heights and Patterns for Common Grasses

Mow at the right height with sharp blades for a clean cut. Recommended Cutting Heights Common Bermuda: 1 inch Hybrid Bermuda: ½ inch Bluegrass & Perennial Ryegrass: 2 inches Tall Fescue: 3 inches 1/3 of the blade. Don

Poolside Patio: Saltwater Lap Pool and Multifunctional Hardscape

Designer Lesley Mansur fit a saltwater lap pool, built-in bench, underwater chaise, separate spa, outdoor shower, and converted-shed beach cabana into a 1940s Tucson tract backyard. Three Great Ideas Diagonal pool: Max

Hillside Hideaway: Reclaimed Slope Becomes a Destination

Shelly Coglizers Lafayette backyard was too small. She moved a pool fence 25 feet back and hired Freeland Tanner to reclaim an overgrown hillside. Tanner cleared blackberries and ivy, built large steps to the summit, and

Northern California Garden: Wisteria-Covered Arbor and Purple Spring Show

Shelly and Bill Coglizers Lafayette garden centers on a wisteria-covered iron arbor with precast concrete columns (Napa Valley Cast Stone). The spring purple burst is spectacular; summer foliage provides shade for dining

Old-World Kitchen Garden: A French Potager in California

Linda and Steven Brombal created a classic French potager at their Provençal-style Newport Beach home. Geometric beds (rectangular, square, circular) separated by generous paths make chores easy and add visual order. Bri

A Magical Hillside Terrace: Dining Above the Garden

Millie Livingston wanted outdoor dining at house level despite a downhill garden. Designer Jay Ferguson widened a path into a 9-foot circular flagstone terrace fringed with shade/sun-tolerant plants: golden fullmoon mapl

Pollinator Pots: Container Gardens for Bees, Butterflies, and Hummingbirds

Fill pots with nectar-rich California natives to attract pollinators. Contractor Steven Rowland (Villa Park, CA) finds natives low-water, low-feed, and nearly care-free. Bees are the most important pollinators; shrinking

A Welcoming Front Yard Garden in Grand Junction, Colorado

Bob and Nancy Hackett enlisted landscape architect Bob Arcieri to create a welcoming front yard. Colorful planting beds flank a wide walkway to a covered porch with ivy-draped pillars. Beds feature flowering ground cover

Desert Pool Oasis: Hybrid Bermudagrass Softens the Hardscape

In Anne Mariuccis Phoenix garden, landscape architect Christy Ten Eyck used hybrid bermudagrass lawn around a rectangular pool to counter the desert glare and heat of extensive hardscape. The lawn is soft on eyes and toe

Topanga Hilltop Haven: Naturalistic Pool Design

Ralph and Deborah Weisss backyard pool, designed by Nick Williams, mimics a natural watering hole in the Southern California hills. Boulders, flagstone, and native plants edge the pool; a sandy beach entry enhances the i

Surprising Garden Art: Concrete Sculptures by Little and Lewis

George Little and David Lewis (Bainbridge Island, WA) create botanical concrete sculptures that delight viewers. Two pieces in Ed and Harriet Vincents garden: a 22-inch pomegranate (Brobdingnagian) and a 60-inch Gunnera

California Scenario: Isamu Noguchi's Sculpture Garden at South Coast Plaza

Behind a TGI Fridays in Costa Mesa lies California Scenario, a 1.5-acre sculpture garden by Isamu Noguchi portraying Californias diverse landscapes—redwood forests to desert. It evokes nature in an unlikely urban setting