Sustainable landscape design Archives - Christiane Holmquist Landscape Design

Rediscover the Connection with Nature with Beautiful and Undemanding Plants

June 7, 2016 By Christiane Holmquist Leave a Comment

I hope spring has revived your gardening interests to rediscover your connection with nature, and that you have been well. My spring clean-up is not done yet; I’m still finishing bird netting over my strawberries, refreshing mulch, and getting my irrigation in shape.

In my last two posts, I was considering how hardscape has come to dominate many of our landscapes, and how the beauty, intimacy and romance has gone out of them. Today I want to show how well-selected plants can balance out the hard structures making our gardens softer and more welcoming.

[I’ll be speaking about this topic at the Water Conservation Garden on June 11, from 10-12 a.m. Come and join me and see more in-depth information and examples. I’d love to see you there!]

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This pool deck feels hot, and even in the water I imagine needing sunglasses to tolerate the glare from pavement and walls.

This design looks like many prized landscapes that boast a lot of flawless architecture; an artful pool, perfect stucco’ed retaining walls, a big deck with BBQ and Palapa dominate this backyard. Naturally we are proud of the beautiful materials used in these designs, but to me these landscapes look overdesigned and lifeless; I feel that they miss the opportunity to provide a true connection to the land, our family, even ourselves.

However, our gardens can be ideal vehicles to give our lives greater depth when we give plants greater importance and let them enchant us, when we let them make our gardens softer and more welcoming. Here is a list of plants that have presence in the garden, have in their combined use strong emotional impact and fulfill many of the functions that we have handed over to the “hardscapes”. Most of these are very drought-conscious or drought tolerant, so not only do they serve our immediate needs, they also help conserve water…

TREES

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This house begs to be dressed up and anchored to its place, with the help of trees.

Most gardens, even the smallest ones, need at least one or two trees. Trees shelter a garden space; anchor a home to its site by giving it the right proportions; they can frame a view, impart age and “wisdom” and provide needed shade and well-being. As architectural elements, they provide a “vertical element”; give a sense of place.
The following lists are by no means exhaustive; they only give a glimpse of what’s possible.

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The trees play a big role in making this front garden much more welcoming.

Obviously, a good choice unites the site conditions with the tree’s character as well as the likes and dislikes of the person who will live with the tree.

Also, consider that a tree that naturally suckers can be trained into a “multi-trunked” tree that offers the opportunity to enjoy its trunks better, show off its shape and create an open, airy screen. A multi-trunk Crape Myrtle comes to mind…

Medium to large deciduous trees: canopies for shelter and shade
Chinaberry Melia azederach
White Empress Tree Paulownia fortune
Chinese Pistache Pistachia chinensis
Chinese Flame Tree Koelreuteria bipinnata
Mesquite Propopis spp.
Mimosa or Silk Tree Albizia julibrissin

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A tree’s foliage softens the many stone elements in this design; its canopy hugs the entrance into this garden.

Evergreen trees
Strawberry Tree Arbutus ‘Marina’
Texas Olive Cordia boissieri
Sweet Bay Laurus nobilis
Phoenix Date Palm Phoenix
Oak (many species) Quercus spp.
Magnolia
Acacia & Wattle (many) Acacia spp.
Primrose Tree Lagunaria patersonii

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Instead of gate columns, a duo of Floss Silk Trees frames the entrance into this garden. The Mimosa in the center will soon shade even more of this welcoming entrance.

Small deciduous, attention-grabbing speminen trees
Paperbark Marple Acer griseu
Chinese Fringe Tree Chionanthus retus
Crape Myrtle Lagerstroemia indica & Lagerstroemia hybrids
Palo Verde Parkinsonia aculeata
California Buckeye, Horse Chestnut Aesculus californica

Trees with distinctive foliage and/or attractive fall foliage; or with great winter silhouette
Crape Myrtle Lagerstroemia spp.
‘Forest Pansy’ Redbud Cercis Canadensis ‘Forest Pansy’
Locust Robinia pseudoacacia
Mesquite Prosopis spp.
California Buckeye Aesculus californicus
Cork Oak Quercus suber

ENCLOSURES & SCREENING (TREES & SHRUBS)

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If it weren’t for the view of the ocean that we want to preserve, the shrubs and trees would soon hide all surrounding roofs and structures and reinforce the feeling of private sanctuary.

Let plants do the screening and enclosing (or at least hide the hard materials). The enclosure responds to an ancient desire for protection, and screening out an unwanted view or our neighbors’ homes and windows creates the best environment in which we can feel completely at ease, relax and connect with ourselves.

Camouflaging the boundaries to our private “universe” creates the sense that we are surrounded by nature which can make our gardens feel larger. Hedges of mixed plantings can provide a good screen or enclosure that requires only minimal pruning and shows off a variety of textures and colors.

Screening Plants (some might need gentle pruning to integrate into the hedge)
Toyon Heteromeles arbutifolia (a California native)
Yew Pine Podocarpus macrophylus and P. macrophyllus maki Shrubby Yew Pine
Oleander Nerium oleander
Bamboo Bambusa spp.
Lemon Bottle Brush Callistemon citrinus
Bay Laurus nobilis
Boxwood Buxus sempervirens (when left unclipped as it is rarely seen, it develops a form that is sensuous and curvaceuous)

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Bamboo is on its way to hide the tall house in the background.

Exclamation points & Beacons; “Power Plants”, & columnar/fastigiated plants
These are plants with strong presence that replace gate columns or other devices of directing traffic; they also impart a very personal character to the garden.

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Iconic Italian Cypresses give this garden a Mediterranean feel (10)

Cedar Cedrus spp.
Boxwood Buxus sempervirens
Greenlee’s Blue Rocket Cupressus guadalupensis ‘Greenlee’s Blue Rocket’
Tecate Cypress Cupressus forebesii
Italian Cypress Cupressus sempervirens
Bottlebrush ‘Sim’ Callistemon vimiminalis ‘Slim’
Icee Blue Yellow-Wood Podocarpus ‘Icee Blue’
Kohuhu Pittosporum tenuifolium (various)

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The flowering Bromeliads Vriesea imperialis tower like exclamation points in this plant scene and give this garden an exotic feel.

THE FOREGROUND

Some form of pavement might be welcome for certain activities in the garden, such as dining, lounging or hanging around a pool. However, many plants can be employed to soften the edges of pavement, to connect spaces, and to break up large expanses of pavement.

They can also guide our paces and allow rich encounters in the garden. Their closeness to the visitor demands a variety of textures and colors.

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A narrow path invites an intimate and casual journey of discovery.

Low-growing, softening perennials
Trailing Buttercups, Sundrops Calylophus drummondii (or Calylophus hartwegii)
Little One Verbena Verbena bonariensis ‘Little One’
Stalked Bulbine Bulbine frutescens
Ground Morning Glory Convolvulus mauritanicus (C. sabatius)
Woodland Strawberry Fragaria vesca F. vesca californica (fruit bearing, excellent groundcover for shady situations)
Pink Spice Cranesbill Pelargonium ionidiflorum

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For less-often used paths, you could use just mulch, no edging needed.

THE MID GROUND

Mid ground shrubs anchor the design, provide longevity and structure; they serve as also fillers; some can do double duty as accents. For these, I like to use shrubs with woody character; they are needed to “ground” the soft and inherently ephemeral perennials. In most designs, I prefer evergreen shrubs; they need not be shrubs with attractive bloom.

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The pavement echoes the sinuous forms of plants that work together to create the experience of discovery on approaching the hidden sitting area.

In landscapes with more succulents, I like to use shrubby succulents that keep their form and their ‘leafy’ or fleshy foliage (Senecio, Aeonium haworthii).

Mid-ground shrubs
Dwarf variegated Myrtle Myrtle Myrtus communis ‘Variegata’ compacta
Creeping Barberry Berberis repens
Hummingbird Sage Salvia spathaceae (California native plant)
Rockrose ‘Sunset’ Cistus ‘Sunset’ 2-3 x 6-8 ft; evergreen, magenta flowers
Senecio amanensis
Aeonium haworthii
Geraldton Waxflower ‘Purple Gem’ and ‘Purple Pride’ Chamaelaucium uncinatum
Blue Bells Eremophila hygrophana
Grevillea rosmarinifolius ‘Scarlet Sprite’ , foundation shrub, 4-5 ft,

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Plants invite the path to curve around them, creating suspense and making you wonder what’s behind them.

Cacti, succulents, yucca-like plants: Plants with striking foliage and/or form
Century Plant Agave spp.
Aloe spp.
Candelabra Cactus Cereus peruvianus
Sotol Dasylirion spp.
Dragon Tree Dracaena draco
Barrel Cactus Echinocactus spp.
Beargrass Nolina spp.
Prickly Pear Opuntia
Yucca
Clumping Bamboo Bambusa spp.
Sago Palm Cycas revoluta
Chamal Dioon spp.

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A Vriesea imperialis Terrestrial Bromeliad is a dramatic accent here – but just wait until it’s in bloom! (see above)

THE LARGE STUFF: Accents & “signature”

Sometimes it’s useful to employ shrubs that draw the eye, perhaps in order to distract from an unwanted sight behind it… These shrubs can be “signature” plants that enhance or underline the character of the garden: Subtropical, or Mediterranean, or California native, or Urban/modern.

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A Yellow Bird of Paradise sets the theme in this garden where succulents, drought tolerant perennials and grasses create an entertaining variety of undemanding plants.

Tecoma ‘Solar Flare’
Texas Ranger Leucophyllum frutescens
Baja Fairy Duster Calliandra californica
Brazilian Copper Tree Euphorbia cotinifolia
Arabian Lilac Vitex trifolia ‘Purpurea’

Large backround shrubs
Some shrubs are needed to simply give the illusion of being surrounded by endless nature, as back ground plants.
Griselinia Griselinia littoralis
Sweet Olive Osmanthus fragrans
Toyon Heteromeles arbutifolia
Bay Laurus nobilis

EMOTIONAL IMPACT, NOT ARCHITECTURE

I believe a garden, in order to enhance our connection with nature, to nurture us and to be memorable, needs to appeal to our emotions, whether is has a modern geometric design or is more free-form, naturalistic in character. I’d do this by making the garden look “grown” and casual, not forced, like in this example: When creating a southwest garden and imitating the desert floor, consider a mix of several sizes and textures of that hard material: A desert floor is made up of fine textured sand, coarser gravel, and small and large pebbles interspersed with rocks. A groundcover therefore made of a uniform cover of gravel would look unnatural.

Placement and size of plants: When placing a bold grouping of, say, Barrel Cacti, make sure the placement is asymmetrical, in order to achieve a nature-made effect. Introduce these plants in different sizes, not all the same which would look contrived.

Mix textures: Avoid making a garden with only strong textured plants; in nature, those plants are always surrounded by more ephemeral, fine textured plants.

In other words, study how plants and landscapes grow… disguise the hand that is designing the garden, and aim for the emotional impact that a naturalistic garden can impart, even when it is a geometrically organized, modern design.

Look to my next post for more on how plants can help us create living designs.

How to Escape the San Diego Garden Doldrums

December 22, 2015 By Christiane Holmquist Leave a Comment

Integrate your garden into the larger xeriscape that is our San Diego County.

(It could spell more fun and savings than you expected.)

Grounded: Desert plants evoke our Anza Borrego desert; DG and boulders connect with the Mission Hills behind the house

With approaching retirement and more time to travel, Jeanie and Jim realized that their traditional garden didn’t seem to allow them much time away; it just didn’t respond well to weeks of absence. When they called me, I found that they begun to add to their traditional home landscape design many new-found loves: Various Aloes and Sticks on Fire Euphorbia, Organ Pipe and Barrel Cactus, ‘Bells of Fire’ Tecoma, Crown of Thorns and other xeriscape plants.

With their list of collected plants I was handed a clear mandate: Remove the old lawn, the worn-out shrubs and even the Queen Palms; create a drought resistant landscape, lively and evoking our local Anza Borrego desert, yet not too spiky and withered looking, that would be easy to maintain and allow them weeks of absence without needing human intervention.

Front yard Before

Here’s their testimony about our adventure together:

What was the biggest motivator to transform your garden?

“We have always enjoyed succulents and the desert landscape, so we wanted both our front and backyards to look like the desert that we love. Also, due to our continuing drought situation, it made sense to convert to a low water landscape to save water. Additionally, the biggest motivator was to reduce our work in the yard: mowing would no longer be necessary. As we travel and are gone for extended periods of time, we wanted a landscape that was virtually maintenance-free during our absence.”

Above, the old lawn is more or less gone, with palms being ‘statuesque’

So where do I begin a landscape design renovation?

I imagined the entire garden as ‘playground’ for all the exotic drought resistant plants that Jim and Jeanie dreamt of. To display these plants to their fullest, the tilted surface of a mound would be useful; also, the mildly undulating terrain would bring some movement into the “flat” scene.

The new back Yard design provides more entertainment space and greater visual pleasure.

During our brainstorming the desire for ‘more entertainment’ were mentioned, so for the backyard I designed an extension of their patio, surrounded by seat-walls for casual overflow seating. Behind these walls, the terrain was also be mounded to give the planter bed here greater movement. Many of their desert plants were put here to which I added a few well-tested perennials and grasses: Sundrops Calylophus, Verbena ‘De la Mina’, California Fuchsia Epilobium and Angelita Daisy Hymenoxis. While the textures and forms of the desert plants are more permanent, the perennials and grasses would add a notion of seasonal decline and re-growth.

To these I added various Agaves, Rushes, grasses and Red Yuccas; also fluffier and softer foliage plants, such as Emu Bush Valentine Eremophila, and Texas Ranger Lynn’s Legacy’ Leucophyllum, chosen for its silvery foliage and light purple flowers that would offset well against the yellow and orange flowers of Senna, Tecoma and Palo Verde. I used creeping Elephant’s Food Portulacaria as an attractive groundcover and the grass-like Bulbine because of its flowers that attract bees year-round.

Still in their infancy, plants begin to take their place in this scene.

For me, Jim and Jeanie’s project was very satisfying; having clients who so clearly appreciate where they are, love region-appropriate plants and are open to a professional landscape designer’s suggestions makes always my job most pleasurable.

DG as top dressing, boulders and xeriscape plants give this garden a strong regional and authentic character.

Here’s how Jeanie and Jim think about the experience:

What was your biggest and best-appreciated result?

“With careful plant selection, hardscape, lighting and other elements of the garden, we feel it was a success and we’re proud of having a really great yard. An unexpected bonus is the many compliments received from neighbors.”

To this I would add: With the boulders and the mounds as top dressing Jeanie and Jim have expressed their appreciation for our dry environment, but foremost they linked their garden with the rugged hills of Mission Trails Park across the canyon. The plants they love and the chip seal (a coarse DG) do another to give their garden a strong regional and authentic character.

What is your greatest pleasure now, or the thought or feeling most often felt when walking through your garden?

“We really enjoy the variety of our plant selection with the many colors, textures and shapes. Using DG (decomposed granite) as topdressing mulch allows the plants to really “pop out.” Over the last year we have witnessed the growth and color changes of the plants realizing that the landscape feels more alive and ever-changing than just a static lawn. We also appreciate the hummingbirds and bees that visit regularly.”

Paddle Plants hugging a boulder

Any lesson learned or any other thought that you care to share with the readers?

“We learned: In drought situations, drip irrigation is the best way to conserve water. Landscape lighting is extremely important. Anyone undertaking this type of project should get the best lighting they can afford since it makes the project exceptional as the landscape is not only admired during the day, but it is just as impressive in the evening. (We highly recommend Volt LED lighting (available on the internet.) Also, it cost us twice as much as we originally thought during the early planning stages. Hardscape, lighting and other changes made during construction drove our costs up, but we are so pleased with the results that we would do it again. “

Colorful and interesting; lawn-be-gone!

Looking back at this project and considering the short time in which this garden has continued to grow, another idea comes to mind:

In southern California, it is sometimes hard to remember what time of year it is, but it is especially important to do so now: days are getting shorter and cooler: we need to remember how our bodies respond by storing more food, by changing sleep patterns and energy levels, by changing moods. A garden should be a natural environment, one that changes with the seasons and reminds us of our place in the web of life and of its cyclical nature. Those clipped lawns and shrubs surrounding our office buildings may provide us with a glimpse of green, if we are fortunate enough to have a window to the outside, but they leave us with little comfort and warmth when our lives change. If we get married, or divorced, have an accident, grow old, start a new career, buy a house, lose a friend etc., a static landscape may feel even more alien and uninviting if it mocks our changing natures.

What we seek in a garden is a reconnecting with the relish we relive every year, in the first days of spring when plants are just beginning to flower again, or on a warm day in fall, out at the edge of a clearing in the forest, that fills us with peace and amazement at how beautiful even small things can be: it can be a great comfort in times of change. Building a drought tolerant landscape is an opportunity to connect with the beautiful natural environment of San Diego County, and to let the seasons and change back into our lives.

Colorful, virtually no water nor maintenance – mission accomplished

Endless Summer: Landscape Design With Water Conservation

July 31, 2015 By Christiane Holmquist Leave a Comment

A journey to transform a garden and find beauty, serenity and sustainability.

Problem:

An East-Coast garden under a California sky; Soulless, uninviting, and thirsty.

Solution:

Start with a blank slate.

Welcome with a lively tapestry of fascinating, region-appropriate plants that put nature back into the garden and help rediscover its soul.

At some time after purchasing this Southern California home, it occurred to the homeowner how unwelcoming its existing landscape was:

The East-Coast landscape with lawn and roses didn’t work for this Ranch-style house, nor did it respond well to the need for water conservation.

This home, whose architecture, materials, and siting have more of a Frank Lloyd Wright feel to them, invited a simpler and serene landscape that would thrive even with parsimonious amounts of water and would incorporate California landscape elements: Clear skies and brilliant light, rugged nature with canyons and arroyos, boulder-strewn mountains, deserts, and a host of interesting native plants that are known worldwide.

Designed by Ken Ronchetti, whose architecture has “a soft strength in its simplicity”, the homeowner was ready to explore how to make her garden more inviting and how to capture its soul: Could succulents, California natives and other water-wise plants, until then unknown to her, complement and hold up to this architecture?

The first priority was to integrate the existing Live Oak and Paperbark Trees; both have reached a beautiful maturity. The stone cladding of walls and pilasters create a strong element, and we knew that incorporating boulders would play up their strength and be part of the landscape.

Knowing the client’s love for plants, I subdivided the area into separate spaces to be discovered on a path. This path is important to put the visitor into the landscape, not just view it from the edges.

She’d be able to wander through individual garden rooms and planting scenes or stop at the bench under the Oak tree, inviting rest and discovery of a tapestry of perennials, woody California native shrubs, and succulents that are endlessly entertaining and consume very little supplemental water.

The courtyard is walled in, resulting in the need for the landscape to be open and allow a feeling of depth. Therefore the plant compositions stay mainly low so that the can eye can wander across the tapestry of interesting plants.

Visible here are Sundrops Calylophus drummondii, Agave ‘Blue Glow’, Blue Bedder (Beard Tongue) Penstemon heterophyllus ‘Margarita BoP’ , against the foliage of Velvet Elephant Ear Kalanchoe beharensis, and Golden Breath of Heaven Coleonema pulchellum ‘Sunset Gold’.

Many beautiful boulders now echo the rugged stone element used for walls, walkways, and pilasters. Among them a bubbling boulder is the focal point upon arrival. It is surrounded by plants that highlight its beauty and ruggedness.

The heavy downpour during a recent thunderstorm tricked a Mountain Lilac here into re-bloom several months after its first bloom this spring. It makes a lovely companion to other drought tolerant plants: Agaves, Sundrops Calylophus drummondii, Crassula coccinea ‘Campfire’, Echeveria Ruffles, and Blue Oatgrass Helictotrichon sempervirens, Silver Spurge Echeveria rigida, Aloe Little Gem Aloe rudikoppe.

It is a balancing act to create harmony and cohesion with a limited plant palette, but limiting it is important to avoid a hodgepodge and mere plant museum. Here, drought resistant ‘Pink Spice’ Geranium Pelargonium ionidiflorum mingle with Echeveria ‘Ruffles’, Verbena ‘Little One’ Verbena bonariensis ‘Little One’, and Sundrops Calylophus drummondii.

Always conscious of sustainability, the existing picket fence was kept; Although more befitting the previous Victorian landscape style rather than the new one, it was found useful to accentuate the feeling of intimacy and keep rabbits and raccoons out as much as possible.

This garden is very much an experimental site: It is growing, evolving and confirms our trust in the future as the plants mature. Some of these plants, such as Blue Sedge Carex flacca have shown to be the wrong choice for this garden (they never stopped sprawling).

Finding the right amount of supplemental water is a bit of a challenge as with varying sun exposure, tree canopies and roof overhang there are more individual watering zones than one might expect.

I’m passionate about juxtaposing different textures and forms to create tension and interest, so placing a wispy grass or delicate perennial next to a heavy boulder is a knee-jerk gesture.

Also appealing to me is placing a fleshy succulent next to the rugged mass of a boulder; I feel that both complement each other, and although the Sunset Jade Crassula argentea in this picture can’t hold up to the sturdiness of the rock, its equally robust and ‘weighty’, and both plants heighten up their individual qualities.

Evoking the mountains and their delicate windswept plant companions, Agave ‘Blue Glow’ and Foothill Penstemon Penstemon heterophyllus ‘Margarita BOP’ nestle between these boulders.

Against the canopy of the Paperbark Tree Melaleuca quinquenervia the perennials,grasses and succulents, this feels like the relief of a sunny clearing in the forest.

I am very happy that the owner has asked me to keep an eye on this garden and help it mature with monthly maintenance. Looking at these photos and considering the time that has elapsed since the garden was first planted, I’m struck again at how exciting it is to care for all these plants.

What will the garden mature into? Will the plants keep their promise?
I’m delighted by the garden’s serenity, and the homeowner’s words give me great joy: “You couldn’t have captured my vision any better.”

Photography courtesy of Emma Almendarez.

Fun Things To Do In The Spring Landscape

April 23, 2015 By Christiane Holmquist 1 Comment

(Early spring edition of Garden Design magazine)

With my latest edition of “Garden Design” in hand and another beautiful spring just begun, I thought I’d let you know about this exciting magazine and share some ideas and finds that I hope will energize and enthuse us for many months to come.

(Pitcher Sage in full glory at Santa Barbara Botanic Garden)

After a break of several years, Garden Design has been re-launched in a much improved version. The sheer volume of the latest and hottest plants, examples of contemporary outdoor furniture and amazing garden art, must-reads about design- or plant-related literature, fascinating interviews with design experts and beautiful photography makes me enthusiastic about my profession, and many ideas in this magazine can be applied in the garden or spring landscape. Here are a few that I picked up this time:

(A working concept drawing)

Landscape designer Rob Steiner muses about the “Rules of the Game” of garden design. He makes the point that although we all have very individual ideas of what our dream garden should look like, and that although one could assume that garden design is too much a personal expression of one’s likes and dislikes, there are fundamental rules of how to organize the space, enclose it, find the right proportions, determine the right size of plants, and take into consideration that gardens evolve.

Although I myself was taught these rules, it is easy to treat them in a theoretical way, or assuming that we can tweak or ignore them, and so it’s helpful to reflect on them again once in a while. His first rule is “Obey the ‘law’ of significant enclosure”, and he calls it not only a rule, but a law: It “is absolutely critical in creating a sense of refuge and of feeling oneself within nature’s embrace”.

(A working concept drawing, in colored version)

For me, this rule is very important as it’s rooted in my personal experience: It was in the tall hedged seclusion and privacy of my parents’ garden that I fostered the deepest emotional connection with nature that allowed complete abandon to a fantasy world.

Rob goes on to postulate that “we feel enclosed when the vertical height of an elements is at least one third the length of the horizontal space”. He then describes how he applies this rule to a patio that needs screening from a play area: As the patio is 17 ft wide, he determines that the screening hedge needs to be at least 6 ft high.

Another few pages that I flagged in the latest edition showcase “Great Gardens Across America”. Here I find plenty of examples of contemporary design style: Outdoor spaces used as extensions of the home and seamlessly connecting them; “simple and refined” spaces; emphasis on beautiful accents and details, in materials and garden art; distinctive and unfussy furniture and accessories, and successfully blending different styles.

(Great flowering meadow at Santa Barbara Botanic Garden)

For those shopping for exceptional, modern, perhaps whimsical furniture, there are plenty pictured here: The almost retro-looking /mid-century modern chaises by William Haines Designs; also Hive Modern; or Design Within Reach.

Malibu Chair from the collections at William Haines Designs

I also enjoy the “unfussy”, succinct interviews with designers from different parts of the country who talk about their design inspirations and share their favorite new things, what to read, or what’s going on in their part of the gardening world.

There’s an Earth Day at Descanso Gardens in La Canada Flintridge on April 25; there’s the Butterfly Festival at the Water Conservation Garden El Cajon on May 9; also the Spring Garden Festival on April 25 at Cuyamaca College across the street.

Over 40,000 blooming bulbs will be on display including Allium, Camassia, Cardiocrinum, Cyclamen, Muscari and more at the Blooms and Bulbs Festival in Salt Lake City, UT, April 10-26. These are only a few picks from a much longer list of fascinating events in the design and gardening world.

Mt. Cuba Center, Delaware, created by Doug Tallamy

To me, most thought-provoking in this edition was the article, “Professor of Biodiversity; Doug Tallamy teaches America how to restore habitat for wildlife – start in your garden”. The main photo shows a sun-lit pond where the surrounding trees and wildflowers at the water’s edge are reflected. This is a scene in Mt. Cuba Center in Delaware, where Doug Tallamy has created a habitat for wildlife.

Trees of varying heights create a protective, delightful canopy under which chairs have been placed, in viewing distance of the shore, where water tumbles, through a stone bed, into the lake, past stands of wildflowers and patches of meadow. The hand of the designer is definitely visible, but the setting is so carefully created that is feels like each design element has been carefully investigated before execution to assure the least interference with nature.

(Beetles on California native milkweed)

Here, Mr. Tallamy has restored several acres to their natural beauty, by removing all “aggressive alien plants” and replacing them with local, native trees, shrubs and wildflowers that, within a decade, have lured back a thriving population of graceful, boldly striped swallowtails and native birds, their songful predators that in our traditional gardens, filled with many exotic and nonnative ornamentals, provide neither food nor shelter for animals.

(A bird perched on a branch of Rhamnus Redberry)

The message is clear, and Mr. Tallamy repeats it on lectures and even in his writing: You can do a lot to conserve and restore biodiversity in your own garden.” The secret is the recognition that it is the native plants that are eaten by the local native insects, and once their food sources have been restored, the birds will follow!”

Mr. Tallamy’s current research focuses on the “impact of non-native plants on the terrestrial food chain”, quantifying how much alien plant species are reducing populations of native insects and the creatures that depend on them. “Grow the native plants that insects in your area depend on”. (See also his book ‘The Living Landscape: Designing for Beauty and Biodiversity in the Home Garden’, Timber Press 2014, co-written by Rick Darke).

(Bee on Live Oak flower tassel)

(Monarch Butterfly on host plant)

His ideas make complete sense, and I feel motivated to make my message about designing with California natives stronger and more convincing. But that’s food for another article.

Get ready for a promising planting season: Here are some beauties for plant-aholics to drool over Part I

October 4, 2014 By Christiane Holmquist Leave a Comment

Roger’s Red Grape

The recent untimely heat wave is barely forgotten, but I‘m noticing the first signs that many of our water-wise plants have awakened from their summer beauty rest: Their green branch tips and new leaves are proof that they are actively growing again.

With the cooler nights and fresh breezes announcing fall, my impatience is growing to be out in the garden; I’d want to be planting and trying out some of the exciting plants that I have noticed in the recent months and that I could barely stop myself from buying.

The gardeners among us know that there’s always room in our gardens to improve and tweak, to improvise and create, or to replace those plants that have proven to be not so sturdy or are otherwise unsatisfactory. This provides us with a welcome excuse to compile our wish list, research these plants and see which ones we’ll fall for this year!

With plant sales happening now and some great growers offering their new releases, it would be easy to get carried away and come home with trunks full of exciting plants. I have done this myself and given in to plant cravings that I later regretted: A garden that is a collection of plants can look really disjointed, and I have come to prefer a garden that shows a theme and some continuity, and repetition of colors and textures does make for more soothing calm.

So with the following list I hope to highlight a few of the plants that make me drool. Besides drawing from my own notes, I have asked a couple of landscape designer friends to share their favorites.

All these plants have many wonderful attributes in common: They are xeriphytes from all over the world that share many desirable attributes: They are drought resistant plants (also marketed as “waterwise plants”), hardy, with a good structure and undemanding in maintenance (that includes fertilizer and pruning) and provide year-round interest.

Landscape Designer Marilyn Guidroz of Marilyn’s Garden Design says:

Leucophyllum langmaniae ‘Rio Bravo’ Texas Ranger ‘Rio Bravo’

‘Rio Braco’ Texas Ranger is a fast growing, dense screen shrub that needs no pruning after the initial shaping to become established. At maturity it reaches 5 ft ht x 5 ft wide.

This is a drought tolerant shrub that only requires a once a month deep watering in the summer months once it is established.

The lovely lavender flowers cover the shrub in intermittent waves during the hot humid months of summer and fall. [In my experience in dry summers, the flowers are more sparse.] The evergreen foliage is a soft mint green all year long.

I like to use this plant as a dry garden border, a screening shrub and a colorful focal accent.

Vitex californica ‘Rogers Red’ Grape ‘Roger’s Red’

This is my favorite fall color plant. It is great as a screen on fencing. It takes moderate water and can even handle regular water if in an area that receives more. It is best in full sun and can handle partial shade. A deciduous native plant that has edible fruit and climbs by tendrils. Has gray-green leaf color all summer and then turns brilliant red in fall.

Owner/landscape contractor Mark Sterk of Columbine Landscape Inc. recommends:

Rosmarinus ‘Roman Beauty’ Roman Beauty Rosemary

Rosemary ‘Roman Beauty’, dwarf to 2’, they say, and grows in an upright, roundish form that is consistent and easy to keep in place. It also has a more graceful appearance and a bit of a different color than the usual look.

Here’s more about ‘Rosmarinus officinalis ‘Roman Beauty’ (‘Roman Beauty Rosemary):

A compact and slow growing semi-upright Rosemary with slightly arching stems bearing narrow mid-green leaves and violet-blue flowers in late winter and spring. This plant will likely get somewhat larger but 2 year old plants only measured 16 inches tall by 12 inches wide. Plant in full sun. As with other Rosemary it is resistant to deer and rabbit predation, tolerant to salt spray, alkaline soils and drought. Hardy to 15°F.

This shrublet could add that “needle-like” element that coniferous plants introduce (great contrast to a rounder, fleshier foliage), or allude to a classic Mediterranean landscape. I’d use it as an important connector and “glue” that, frequently repeated, can hold all your other plants together. (See my previous post about the role of shrubs: Better Beds with Shrubs).

Abelia x grandiflora ‘Kaleidoscope’ Glossy Abelia Kaleidoscope

Mark goes on to recommend:

“Abelia ‘Kaleidoscope’ — variegated, dwarf, same kind of form as the Rosemary, but grows to 4-5’, I believe. White flowers, gold variegated foliage — good pop! Not sure if it’s low water, but we’re using it that way and it seems to do well.” (San Marcos Growers list this plant as needing ‘moderate water’.)

Please keep an eye out for my follow-up post where I share more exciting plants that promise to make a great show in your gardens next year.

Rhomneya coulteri Matilija Poppy

Also: Next month, October 13, at the monthly meeting of the San Diego Horticultural Society I’ll be one of three landscape designers giving a presentation about design options for those who are considering removing their lawn.

Here’s more information: http://sdhort.org/

I’d love to see you there!

DIY Landscape Design: Breathe New Life into Your Garden, Part 2

January 31, 2014 By Christiane Holmquist Leave a Comment

Boundaries – Defining your space

A fence encloses, shelters and says “Here I’m safe”

As mentioned in the last post, the word ‘garden’ means enclosure. You are perhaps among those that enjoy a front lawn that is shared with their neighbors…

Other people need more of it, telling the world “This is my space” and “This is where I create my personal world.” To them boundaries imply that this space could be defended; they feel their personal space is intimate only when it is enclosed and when the fences or hedges restrict the access to their home. For them, even the front garden needs to be delineated, marked and enclosed, even if it is only with the hint of an enclosure, such as low fence or a row of shrubs.

If you feel more comfortable with an enclosure, consider that its type depends on your need for privacy or protection, as well as the style of your home. It should complement the house and garden that it protects, in design, scale, level of formality, materials or overall character.

This could also be the opportunity to show off your creativity or personality with some whimsical or artful accents.

Your outside living rooms

Isn’t a pond so much more interesting than a lawn?

Rather than seeing your garden as a static picture from inside your breakfast nook or from your patio, it might be time to view your landscape as an opportunity to create “rooms” for different purposes:

Perhaps you could have a private reading nook? A hammock under a tree might be all that’s needed… Or you have dreamed of a yoga/meditation nook? A small deck or paved area hidden away behind some large bushes might work for that. Or you have fantasies of loosing the old lawn and creating garden scenes that you can discover on an meandering pathway? If there’s too little room for separate spaces, perhaps it’s time to create your dreamy and forever soothing and entertaining pond, right next to your patio?

Now add personality and character (Accents & plants)

A bench placed under a tree and surrounded by foliage and flowers promises relaxation and comfort.

In shaping your garden, your fantasies and desires should be your guides: Now is the time to dream and then figure out how to bring your vision to reality.

You might have already assembled many cut-sheets, photos and magazine articles on landscape scenes that have appealed to you, and it will help to examine them for a common theme. I’d note why these images speak to you: Is it the intimacy of a space? The romantic feeling of a nook? The privacy of a green arbor? The intriguing textures of a plant scene? The playfulness of a whimsical fountain and a bench nearby inviting you to sit down with a magazine?

What object can give a garden a greater personal touch than your own fountain design?

By looking at these images, you can better evaluate your own garden and improve it by giving the whole your personal stamp and style.

For example, a stone ball could be an energetic and self-contained sculpture that’s a whimsical and a forever appealing counter point in the midst of your flowers. A glass ball could add a gleam of light among them, too.

Strolling past a whirligig, or a found object, or … (you fill in the blank) would be fun. This special thing will make you happy and will reveal just a little about your personality to the visitor.

Here, succulents and water-wise perennials surround the play lawn.

Ideas for colorful plantings abound online or in print in plant books and beautiful gardening magazines, or you can find them in botanical displays (such as the Water Conservation Garden in El Cajon , or the San Diego Botanic Garden in Encinitas), so I’d like to add mainly these ideas:

Shrubs make good “bones”: they are part of the backbone of a garden, can provide privacy and screening; they add the permanence to the otherwise ephemeral plant material; Smaller shrubs and perennials then provide the décor, color, more temporary interest; they remind us of the passing of time and the never-ending cycle of natural processes.

All of these plants are vital to our gardens; but none should overpower them.

Time to plant a tree? (Or: Anchor your home to the environment; it might “fly off” otherwise…)

A tree can balance the proportions of a house, and “anchor” it to its environment

One of the most overlooked features often missing in gardens, especially in front yards, is a tree that embellishes the home. I don’t mean a tree that’s growing into the power lines or breaks up your driveway… nor a Eucalyptus long forgotten in the back yard, or a Pine tree that’s shedding needles onto your porch or roof either. I don’t mean a monster that has been topped and that can’t throw any shade on your home, in summer.

Trees organize, give structure and reinforce the character of a garden

Trees provide structure and organization to the garden, they add “weight” and character. They give shelter and shade to people, animals and plants; they screen out unwanted views or frame desirable ones.

Here’s what I would look for: A tree, in proportion to your home (for a one story home that means a tree that doesn’t get bigger than 25-30 ft), placed where it cools your home in summer. I would choose a deciduous tree: In winter then the sun will warm your house.

Don’t forget that the height of a tree, say 25 ft, usually means that the roots will spread AT LEAST as wide, but most trees’s root systems spread 1-2 times that far… It’s therefore very important that you plant the tree at a distance of at least half of its height from any structure (foundation walls, patios, walkways, driveways) that could restrict its growth, or where the roots could do damage later down the road.

A tree like that can ‘anchor’ your home to the surroundings and firmly ‘plant’ it in its environment. The tree’s canopy will be a shelter for anybody walking under it; which is why I would try to plant it close to porches or terraces.

Now you’re (almost) there: You can already look for the new hammock to hang in that tree…

Dynamic Family Garden in La Jolla

November 28, 2013 By Christiane Holmquist

This “outdoor home” has it all: Outdoor living areas; complete privacy and lush plantings.

The backyard was redesigned as intimate “outdoor home” with several usable spaces, inviting privacy, color and and interesting textures. Its muted tones, the weathered-looking hardscape materials and a colorful xeriscape design give this garden a beautiful matured feeling.

The garden achieved a 2013 “Gardens of the Year” award bestowed by San Diego Home/Garden Lifestyles magazine. (Read “On Key”, by Eva Ditler; with photos by Martin Mann).

(Before)

The existing backyard landscape design had an impractical layout: A planter bed chopped up the main patio, and the oversized pool deck left no room for plants that would give this garden life and interest.

The goal of the landscape renovation was the creation of several distinct use areas, in style and design harmonizing with the textures and colors of the contemporary California home; plants would be colorful, unfussy and low in their water needs.

This project was a great opportunity to balance the hardscape materials with the plant-scape while applying a modern design palette to the overall composition, always pursuing the idea of weathering and maturity.

The pool and spa look like a modern lagoon, adding to the feeling of peace and tranquility.

Besides being a fun retreat, this hammock allows viewing the garden from a different angle.

A double layer of pale green sails provides cool shade to a new dining and lounging area.
The layout and blend of the materials harmonize well with the tones and architecture of the residence: Matte concrete, rusted planters, mottled copper, faded wood and living bamboo.

The old cluttered garden was turned in a sunny, dynamic yet restful ‘outdoor home’, organized to allow for entertainment, relaxation and play.
Despite the many built elements such as pavement, steel edging, naturally rusted planters and light troughs, the hardscapes do not overwhelm the garden.

The original overgrown tropical plants were replaced with subtropical low maintenance plants, in the owner’s preferred color palette of chartreuse, black-purple, and pink or yellow/orange: Dark Forest Pansy Redbud and “Ti Ruby” Cordyline; magenta Rock Purslane and golden Kangaroo Paw; also pink Echeveria to which Carex Evergold and Aechmea blanchetiana provide the yellow and orange contrast.
These are mostly drought resistant plants that provide a long-lived, elegant plant scheme whose interest is kept alive through their colorful foliage that will keep its strong presence in the garden throughout the seasons.

One of the landscape lighting ideas was to fill steel troughs with lava rock and place them strategically within the garden to act as beacons in the night and to prolong the outdoor entertainment after nightfall.

The steel fountain is a serene visual and audible treat.

Halfway through the installation, the construction of an over-sized home in the neighbor’s yard was a big concern.

We resolved the challenge with a Black Timor Bamboo hedge that creates an intimate space and helps re-direct the eye inwards to vivid plantings and a synergy of all materials employed. It’s exciting to see how the black Bamboo stems echo the dark pavement in a wonderful contrast to the surrounding green foliage.This San Diego Landscape design is a joy to live in.

As Fall Brings Harvest, and Score Yields Music, So Does Design Yield Award!

September 28, 2013 By Christiane Homquist 15 Comments

(Regarding my “Gardens of the Year Award” in Eva Ditler’s article
“On key”, in San Diego Home/Garden Lifestyles, September 2013.

Photography by Martin Mann, Patricia Bean/Expressive Architectural Photography and Christiane Holmquist

Finding the beautiful photos of my award winning design in the San Diego Home/Garden Lifestyles magazine and reading Eva Ditler’s melodic description of the garden gave me a jolt of pride and delight. It’s with amazement that I realize how many talents went into the creation of this article: My client Melissa’s almost lyrical explanation of the garden and reference to the music she “hears” in it and that went into its creation; the writer’s skill that gave such a pleasing and expressive rendering of it; the photographer’s craft in capturing the light and atmosphere of the garden; and the experience, focus on detail and enthusiasm that went into the design.

Yes, and music (as the article refers to): Perhaps, with my love for it, I grasped what Melissa had in mind and was able to create a “melodic landscape garden that takes its cue from music” and that is so enjoyable. And during the creation I enjoyed the exploration of exceptional materials, the symphony of colors, and the concert of ideas between me and Melissa like two instruments playing together.

I deeply appreciate the opportunity to work with her, as I appreciate the award and the coverage of it in San Diego Home/Garden Lifestyles.

All of this is impacting my understanding of what I do and where I have arrived, after 15 or so years in this craft. Designing a garden is risky endeavor: When I design something, I base it on the client’s mostly verbal description of the desired garden. At the time of presentation of the design this vision exists only in my own mind; by sharing it with the client, I hope to communicate this vision to her, and, in doing so, expose myself to her “verdict”: Did I capture her description and the desired mood? Can I communicate, with my craft, my vision, and will she agree with it? Can I then follow where she wants me to take the design and get even more into her head, while applying my own design principles?

The present design is one very individual response to a particular set of challenges and demands. However, its results and appeal are based on the same principles that must be applied to all designs and that, as they are applied to a different set of challenges and demands, will create a very different garden and feel: It’s the balance of hardscapes with living plantings; the juxtaposition of delicate foliage and intriguing materials; the functionality of spaces and the harmony of colors that result in a garden that is useful. This will be a garden that is deeply satisfying to live in, and that everybody can enjoy.

A big thank-you to the judges that voted for me!

Read more about this garden in my earlier post “Joint Venture in La Jolla”.

MORE GARDENING & ENTERTAINMENT NEWS:

The Water Conservation Garden in El Cajon/CA is a place that I cherish as place of fun, entertainment and education on water conservation and sustainable landscape design. It offers 5 acres of displays that are easy to walk and explore and that are filled with great drought resistant plants and educational displays of landscape materials. It offers classes on all manner of landscape issues. Other events offer landscape design help that can make life easier for novices or those that are into DIY landscape design.

The WCG will celebrate its “Fall Plantstravaganza” on Nov. 2, 2013, from 9 a.m. to 3 pm. These events have always been highly educational and entertaining to all gardeners and those who love plants and landscapes. You can even buy exceptional drought tolerant plants here and bring your questions to the horticulture “experts”, such as vegetable and Master Gardeners, arborists, and representatives of water authorities; and you can schedule a low-fee consultation with a design professional. (“I’ll be one of those professional landscape designers here; I also offer classes here and 1 hr consultations.)

Don’t forget to mark your calendars — hope to see you there!

The Eye-Catching Bromeliad – No Tenderfoot in the Drought Resistant Landscape

August 30, 2013 By Christiane Homquist 4 Comments

In my previous post I wrote about terrestrial bromeliads, a group of plants that can make beautiful, even majestic attention-grabbers in your garden while being perfect companions to many drought resistant plants. Their form, foliage and colors lend themselves very well to be paired with succulents, cacti and other low water plants in the sustainable landscape design.

Bromeliads can be attractive specimen in the difficult areas of your garden, such as in hot reflected light or one that hardly sees any as on the north side of a house, under the eaves.

With this ability to do double-duty they can therefore be a great help with the tough spots when you design your landscape.

They all prefer these growing conditions:

Good drainage
Overhead watering
Full sun or partial to full shade
Frost resistant to about 20°
Resistant to salt spray
Low in fertilizer needs (which will speed up the growth at the expense of some of the leaf color; in general it will make the leaves greener)
Moderate watering: overhead; 1x/week, sometimes more in hot weather (or hotter location, as an inland valley); 1x/month in cooler areas

Some noteworthy peculiarities of the bromeliads:

Most of the bromeliads that people grow only bloom a single time; some re-bloom. (The process is explained in detail at the site of the Bromeliad Society International.)

However, it can take years before they reach maturity and bloom; some produce flowers that stay on the plant for months or even years. Some grow “pups” or “offsets” before bloom; others grow these after the mother plant is done blooming and can now direct “her” energy into producing pups (some bromeliads also grow seeds). So for the one mother plant, you’ll probably end up with between 2 and 5 smaller plants once bloom has finished,.

These offsets can be cut or dug up and re-potted. For some of the bromeliads, especially the larger Vrieseas, I’d suggest to buy a larger plant to replace the mother plant as it take a few years until the offsets have reached the parent’s size..”.

Here now are the ‘toughies’ that I was talking about and see whether you can’t find one that would bring pizzazz to your garden.

The Vriesea imperialis in bloom is an unforgettable sight.

The Vriesea imperialis (now classified as Alcantarea) is regal bromeliad with leathery, green strappy leaves with a deep wine-red tinge to it that intensifies in the sun. It is spectacular plant even when not in bloom because of its perfect form that relies solely on its rosette, and is as such a good companion to a modern/contemporary design.

It will develop, with several years of growth, a giant rosette, 4 to 5 ft large. It can tolerate full sun, even in my Ramona valley, but also tolerates partial shade. (When the temps reach 100 ° consistently, it’s better to give it afternoon protection.)

When it has reached its mature size which can take several years, it produces a giant inflorescence (flower stalk) that reaches up to 10 ft into the air and lingers for 4-5 months.

The New Zealand site “Bromeliads online” says about the Vriesea imperialis:

“In the garden these stately plants are easy to grow and trouble free. They will grow in virtually any soil, but prefer free draining soil. Application of fertiliser will certainly get them growing faster and bigger, but a reduction in leaf colour in the red types may result. They are completely resistant to salt spray and wind, coping with near cyclone conditions even when planted in an exposed position. They are surprisingly cold hardy, coping with up to frosts of several degrees. However young plants may be frost burnt. Full sun produces the best leaf colour and form, even with the green types. In tropical conditions some burning may occur in the middle of summer, but in temperate climates burning is rare, unless the plants have not been acclimatised before planting out.”

Here are more bromeliads for the full sun:

Neoregelia compacta

Neoregelia ‘Fireball’

More bromeliads for the sun are the red Neoregelia ‘compacta’ and Neoregelia ‘Fireball’; they won’t get bigger than 1-2 ft wide and tall, and it’s the sun that brings out their red coloration, but they can also tolerate partial shade (which will make them greener).

Neoregelia pauciflora

Neoregelia pauciflora is nice and apple green that stays the same in sun or shade in cooler/more moderate climates; in a hot inland valley it will probably prefer the dappled shade under a tree – you might find it’s worth a try in your location.

For these bromeliads applies that the sun brings out their coloration. They can reach up to 2 ft across, spreading slowly by “offsets” (called “pups” with succulents) their flowers are short in the cup. They have most spectacular colorful foliage.

Aechmea blanchetiana

The Aechmea blanchetiana is a striking one with its apple-green foliage forming a rosette, up to 2-3 ft tall and 3-4 ft wide, slowly widening. Its “sister’ Aechmea blanchetiana ‘Tangerine’ will intensify its orange hues with more sun exposure.

Aechmea cv. ‘Prietro’

The Aechmea cv. ‘Prietro’ is a bromeliad with almost black foliage black that produces striking orange red flowers. This would make a great companion to purple or chartreuse and yellow succulents, and it likes the full sun. Size: smallish, 15-18 inches tall, by 18×18 inches wide.

Aechmea comata ‘Lemon Lime’

Aechmea comata ‘Lemon Lime‘: This is one that can take any exposure and has the perfect size of 2-3 ft x 2-3 ft.

Aechmea recurvata

Aechmea recurvata, another one for the sun, short 1-2 f x 1-2 ft. Beautiful and striking when planted in masses.

Bilbergia Baton Rouge

The Bilgerbia Baton Rouge is one for the worst sites: heat (even reflected), sunny. It can therefore be easily paired with cacti and some succulents. It will grow with vase-shaped rosettes that are about 12 inches across and to 24-30″ tall, and will slowly form an ever widening clump.

SHADE bromeliads

Vriesea sanguinolenta

The Vriesea sanguinolenta is also a stately plant. This one prefers the dappled shade. It can grow to 3 x 3 ft.

Vriesea fosteriana

The Vriesea fosteriana is another interesting one,with its marbled strappy leaves. It forms a rosette to 2-3 ft large.

Neoregelia ‘Magic Star Mint’

Here’s one that can do both: Shade or sun. Is the modest sized Neoregelia ‘Magic Star Mint’. Its size is 1-2 ft x 1-2 ft (with slowly ever widening clumps).

Dyckia fosteriana hybrid ‘Brittlestar’

From the Bromeliad family: Dyckia fosteriana hybrids ‘Brittlestar‘. It’s suitable for bright light, full sun or shade. Dyckias are succulents from the bromeliad family that form small clumps to about 8 inches by 8 inches, slowly widening, that bloom with orange flowers on a 2-3 upright, slightly branching inflorescence (here: flower stalk). With stiff and thorny leaves, prefer rocky and/or sunny areas and have a natural tendency to clump leading to thick, large mats. It’s cold hardy to 20-25 °.

Don’t forget that all these bromeliads are un-demanding in their water-needs and fit beautifully into xeriscape designs.

I thank Eric from Rancho Soledad and deeply appreciate his generous help with this article!

Is Your Front Yard the Final Frontier? Conquer Your Home Landscape Design with These Distinctive Exotics

August 29, 2013 By Christiane Homquist Leave a Comment

Vriesea imperialis is a regal presence in this garden. Greene garden, Encinitas

Vriesea imperialis is a regal presence in this landscape. Greene garden, Encinitas

Searching for unique and exceptional plants that could be worthy complements to the striking and curvilinear architecture of a client’s home in Carlsbad, I visited Rancho Soledad Nursery in rural Rancho Santa Fe/CA. This grower specializes in unusual specimens and is responsible for many exciting plant innovations in the plant world.

The plants that I was after would also need to fit other important requirements: They needed to be non-fussy plants, fitting into a home landscape design, and be low water landscape plants.

After describing to Eric, one of the sales managers there, what I was after, he led me to a group of plants that grabbed my fantasy immediately: All had a round form of fleshy, almost leathery leave rosettes reminiscent of a pineapple plant; some had dreamy marbling and textures on their leaves while others stood out by their foliage color. Some would bloom repeatedly, and others would develop majestic flower “inflorescences” that would stand out in any garden for months. What were these, I inquired, and what were their growing requirements?

Vriesea imperialis makes a good companion to other low water plants

Eric explained to me that these subtropical plants were terrestrial bromeliads, relatives of the Pineapple family (Bromeliaceae), native to the Americas from the southern United States all the way to the tip of Argentina, and growing from near sea level up to 14,000 feet. The ones that grow in the open on rocks or in soil are very drought resistant plants. (Other ones called epiphytes grow on trees, and then there’s a genus of bromeliads called Cryptanthus that is not drought tolerant.)

Because of their striking, sometimes spectacular form these bromeliads would make great additions to any modern garden design with their forms ranging from small prickly agave-like plants, to spectacular basal rosettes open to the sky; some have narrow pointy, spiny-toothed leaves, others grow strappy ones like a New Zealand Flax, only with a softer, more arching and less stern appearance.

Vriesea imperialis inflorescence

Some produce drooping clusters of showy bracts and tubular flowers; others send out an upright stalk decorated with the most striking and brightly colored inflorescence that makes a giant focal point in the landscape. All are easy to grow, requiring well-drained soil and only average watering; it is important for water to collect in the cups or center of the rosettes.

Aechmea recurvata, tolerant of full sun with only little water

As the Cactus and Succulents Society of America recommends, “Division of rosettes is the standard method of propagation, though of course new hybrids must be started from seed-it’s fun to plant seeds and see what develops. Some plants cluster very quickly and can give the grower a real problem when it comes time to divide or re-pot them. I recommend a pair of long leather gloves (sometimes sold as “rose-pickers”) and a sharp knife plus some sort of pry-bar. Weeding around them is best done with the “cactus-grabber” (actually a fishhook-disgorger) that most of us who grow spiny plants have bought in self-defense. The plants do not seem to be subject to many pests or diseases, though some from Brazil, as mentioned above, may be sensitive to low temperatures. Many are really beautiful and a great asset in the plant collection. “

Aechmea cv. ‘Prietro’ : Its dark foliage would make an eye-catching contrast to any fleshy or feathery foliage, or a pleasing complement to any orange, red or yellow color.

Bromeliads have great color, ranging from grey to bronze to almost black; other ones sport blades or straps from chartreuse-green to orange to flaming red. Some of them can tolerate bright hot sun (that actually brings out their flaming color) while others ones prefer the shade, perhaps under a canopy of a tree, or even on the northside of a house, under the eaves.

Aechmea comata ‘Lemon Lime’ — more striking and softer than New Zealand Flax

These xeriscape plants are entirely compatible with succulents and other drought resistant plants in low water landscaping. In the design that I was preoccupied with they would make exceptional companions to the other architectural plants, such as the exotic looking Silk Floss Tree Ceiba speciosa and the bold Small Cape Rush Chondropetalum tectorum…

Aechmea blanchettiana. Design by Glorious Gardens, Encinitas

Aechmea blanchettiana makes a fine centerpiece in this succulent arrangement.
Design by Glorious Gardens, Encinitas

Since I have a penchant for extravagance and am always on the look-out for unusual plants, I’m happy that with these Bromeliads I have found a group of plants that will grab anybody’s attention. With their resilience in hot sun or dry shade and their low maintenance or water needs, they seem to fit the sustainable landscape design needs. And with their strong form, their intriguing coloring and exciting textures they make upstanding elements of any landscape design that wants to stand out and hold your attention for a long time.

I’m happy that these plants seem to fit the needs of any lover of plant exotics AND plant lover the bill of any sustainable landscape design and since I have a penchant for extravagance, I’m sure I’ll be using these whenever They fit into my , are tough and beautiful, and that integrate well into the sustainable landscape design. Since they perform so well in tough spaces, hot sun or dry shade, I’m sure to see more of these in my designs and expect them to perform well in difficult places, whether tough hot spots or dry shade.

I’ll describe some of these in the 2^nd part of my post “The eye-catching bromeliad – No tenderfoot in the drought resistant landscape”.

Sources:

You can admire many beautiful terrestrial bromeliads at these locations:

San Diego Botanic Garden, Encinitas.

The Botanical Building (or Lath House) at Balboa Park, San Diego, features many shade loving bromeliads.

Here’s where I photographed most of these bromeliads:

Rancho Soledad Nursery, Rancho Santa Fe, CA

A Glorious Garden Garden and Design Center, Encinitas