DROUGHT-TOLERANT GARDEN IN SAN MARCOS

This landscape saw a very satisfying transformation: From a static space centered on lawn it was transformed into a living drought tolerant garden that is designed for water conservation and low maintenance and allows many outdoor activities with room to play, garden, relax and re-energize.

The homeowners desired a re-hab of their developper-installed landscape that was centered on a large lawn, both in back and the front.  The lack of any other significant plantings made the residence appear rather boxy and ungainly.  This front yard was also very “public” and did not invite the homeowner to spend much time here. It made more sense to opt for lawn-removal in front and keep only a minimum in the back yard for the children to play on.

With this landscape re-do, the homeowners have reclaimed their front yard and created a private “bufferzone” at their front door. It has also increased their garden space where they can enjoy exceptional water-wise plants since they are passionate gardeners.

As the trees grow, they not only cool the entrance and protect shade loving plants, they also complement the horizontal lines of the architecture, anchor the house to its site and “shrink” the home to a more human scale.

The homeowners requested a more inviting terrace, shaded from the sun.  An existing play structure needed to be integrated, and a play lawn, walk ways and low maintenance/ low water-use plants were also on the wishlist.

We replaced the paving material of the existing terrace with a tumbled paver placed on sand, and added a shade structure.  Although the terrace was reduced in size, it is comfortable for the many uses of this family, and the large shade cover creates lovely dappled shade in this space. A wrap-around seat wall invites to observe plants and fish in the small pond placed at the edge of the terrace for close-up viewing .

Although still young, the Tipu tree is an important element in this landscape: It repeats the vertical lines of the house, balances the plantings and promises  cool and shady areas in this sun-lit garden.

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To allow more water to penetrate into the subsoil, compacted pervious DG (decomposed granite, a local material) was used to create paths through the garden.  They lead to benches and arbors and provide a clean, fast-drying surface to walk on or ride a tricycle.