For my latest Pacific Horticulture article I had the pleasure of talking with seven different designers and gardeners about their public-facing, community-engaging projects. Read Garden Design for the Greater Community to hear their stories. You’ll learn how your own efforts to reclaim vacant ground, even if that’s just your own front yard … more
To create a contemplative garden, focus on sensory experiences, species diversity, and generously scaled beds. Your need for peace at the end of a hard day could shift from cracking a beer or mindless scrolling to a moment of immersion in the healing complexities of nature. Whether you have a disciplined … more
“The Kalapuyas had originally a six month calendar that organized the spring, summer, and fall according to the camas growing cycle. The winter did not have any particular months as it was a long period where it was best that people stayed indoors because of the extensive rainfall.” -David G. Lewis I … more
The first key to low-maintenance gardening is a fundamental perspective shift: embracing a bit of debris, learning to see dead stuff as beautiful rather than as work. The standing dead snag is an easy place to start. You know that’s a favorite spot for the woodpeckers and cavity nesters. On a smaller … more
“If beauty’s understood as a form of order, its elements perfectly self-regulating, then an orderly day is not a worn circuit, or rote, but a haven and a habitat.” Lia Purpura Too often the habitat garden, the wildlife garden, the native garden appears a mess, chaotic and uninviting to the human animal … more
pal-imp-sest n. A manuscript that has been written on more than once, with the earlier writing incompletely erased and often legible. n. An object or area that has extensive evidence of or layers showing activity or use. I scale the thin soil of Skinner’s Butte daily, birdsong and Leela dog … more
Many years ago, with a basket hooked in one elbow and my young son’s small hand in the other, I walked through the welcome sun of a February day. Neighborhood drifts of green-hearted leaves, dotted with purple flower faces, our destination. The small patch of sweet violets in our home garden … more
It’s our goal to design and build landscapes that invite you to open your doors to Nature’s beauty. What happens when you open your doors? In the words of William Blake, “If the doors of perception were cleansed everything would appear to man as it is, infinite. For man has closed himself … more
Symmetrical and informal, straight lined and naturalistic, light and intimate: given these potentially opposing aesthetic preferences by a design client recently was really energizing. As I looked at their site and imagined the layout of paths, patios, and plantings, these design parameters guided my process toward something so “right” that it surprised … more
This past spring I was delighted to return to the garden of one fantastic woman where we worked last year. Here are some photos I took on my visit: The entry garden plantings have filled in beautifully. Ajuga spills over the mixed basalt wall with Oregon native kinnikinnick (Arctostaphylos uva-ursi) at it’s … more
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