Christiane Holmquist Landscape Design

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“Trees in my garden?…. No tree, please!”

August 8, 2010 By Christiane Holmquist

Front yard before re-landscaping

Front yard before re-landscaping

I never thought I would have to come to the defense of trees in the landscape.  One of the most perplexing moments in my profession happens when a client says that they don’t want trees in their garden. Upon my rather baffled question why, their response is usually “too much water use”, “too much maintenance”, “not needed” or “just too much trouble”.

Hearing this makes me cringe, but I imagine what might have caused their feelings: High maintenance (such as pine needles in their pool filter), nuisance (like olive stains on the pavement), or danger (such as a branch dropping out of a Eucalyptus tree). With these images in mind, trees are for them undesirable members of the plant family that they don’t want in their garden, and they don’t share the notion that “trees are deeply rooted into the human psyche; in a hectic and chaotic world, greenery provides you with a safe, nourishing haven”. (Fran Lambert, Consulting Arborist, in “Trees and Turf”, April 2006).

Front yard after introduction of trees and other colorful plants

Front yard after introduction of trees and other colorful plants

I am passionate about good design as well as about plants, so remaining calm in this situation and not becoming “preachy” is a challenge. The role of trees in the landscape seems uncontested, but when you think about them, what comes to your mind besides beauty, shade, stature?

For me as landscape designer, I am foremost interested in the architectural aspects of trees. First of all, their size and mass establish the overall framework of the spatial composition; in this way, they are among the most important landscape design elements, creating floor, walls and ceilings of “outdoor rooms”. A vegetative ceiling can provide a sense of vertical scale in an outdoor space, a feeling of comfort and shade.

Trees give a house scale and place it in proportion with its surrounding; a house without trees therefore feels like a box that isn’t grounded, like a container that hasn’t settled into its site.

Back side view of house with tree

Back side view of house with tree

Back yard without trees

Back yard without trees

Trees can act as windbreaks or screen of an unsightly view, or frame an attractive one like a picture frame. With their color and structure, they can be used as an accent point in your landscape picture.

Besides being indispensable parts of a design, trees play a great role in human as well as the environment’s health: Their canopies contribute to air quality by filtering dust; they also provide some noise reduction (the tall, densely planted trees with fleshy broad leaves do the best job). And, as a tree provides nesting and shelter for birds, they assist in insect control, and listening to the song of birds is usually very pleasant.

Shady pond

Shady pond

As energy consumer I consider also the energy savings through trees, and last but not last SHADE! “It never rains in California”, and the whole world envies us for it, but to have endless sunshine in a garden would be like living on a sunny plaza that has no shelter from the sun. A man-made shade structure can be a great element in a landscape, but it doesn’t quite have the same effect as the dappled, cool and moist shade of a tree! Summer shade from the deciduous trees placed on either south or west sides can lower utility cost by amazing 10-15% (and allow for solar heating in the winter months).

These are measurable benefits that we gain from trees (not to mention the delight that a tree in full bloom can create). And the cost of trees, you may ask? Of course, there is some maintenance: A young tree will benefit from yearly inspections and minor corrective pruning during its infancy to assist it in growing into a well-shaped healthy specimen; this way a costly restorative pruning can be avoided when the tree is much older.

And water needs? Of course you will need to water your trees; even trees indigenous to our dry Southern California need water during their establishment phase which can last a couple to 3 years depending on the amount of rain during the winter months and other factors influencing establishment.

Weighing the investment in trees against their benefits, consider this:  The National Arbor Day Foundation states that “A well placed and properly irrigated tree will have a measurable return on investment”: In deed, the Foundation estimates the value that trees add to properties at 15-20%!

In order to assure the most pleasure out of your trees and the least trouble, here are some suggestions how to avoid problems with your trees:

Select trees that:

– are in the most natural state as possible and have a good trunk taper

– have juvenile branches spaced throughout the trunk (until trees are anchored and established, lower juvenile branches need to remain on the trunk and main stem and therefore looks more like a shrub)

– are appropriately sized for the container

– have branches with wide angles of attachment (larger than 45 degrees)

Avoid trees that

– have been pruned into a lollipop shape

– are supported by a nursery stake (whenever possible)

– have pot-bound or girdled roots

– appear weak, sick, or unhealthy

– show mechanical damage or other wounds

And don’t plant trees too close to power lines, nor closer than 10 ft to permanent structures. (Check also on proper guide lines for tree planting in fire-prone areas).

There are great resources in our County for people that want to learn more about trees: The book “Ornamental Trees for Mediterranean Climates; the trees of San Diego” is a colorful guide and compendium of a host of trees that thrive here, with descriptions, photos, and even addresses where the photos were taken. The Water Conservation Garden in El Cajon (more info at www.thegarden.org ) showcases many suitable and lovely trees for our area. And of course there is Balboa Park with its trees, and the San Diego Botanic Garden (formerly Quail Gardens at www.qbgardens.com ).

I don’t think I’ll ever be detached and impartial when it comes to trees, but armed with the above list of arguments and paybacks I hope to be more neutral and professional when explaining how trees will benefit my clients and how fundamental (could you say imperative?) they are for their home landscape. Despite of their initial rejection none of my clients has yet refused to concede interest in trees, and fortunately, I haven’t yet had the commission to design a “tree-free” garden. That would be the saddest thing, and I hope it will never happen.

Filed Under: Gardening tips, Landscape Design, Trees Tagged With: architectural aspects of trees in the landscape, drought tolerant gardening, drought tolerant plants, drought tolerant trees, dry climate design, Energy savings in the landscape through trees, gardening ideas, good landscape design principles, landscape design with trees, landscaping in San Diego County, landscaping with trees, limited water resources, low maintenance plants, return on investment in the residential landscape, role of trees in the landscape, the role of trees in the environment's health, trees adding to air quality, trees as landscape design elements, Trees as windbreaks, trees facilitating insect control, trees in the residential landscape as ROV, trees in the spatial composition of landscapes, trees providing noise reduction, trees providing shelter for song birds, trees supported by the National Arbor Day Foundation, Use of trees in the landscape, useful tools for the water-wise gardener, Water Conservation, Water Conservation Garden, xeriscape

Soil Probe and Mulch – Two essential tools to help you conserve water and keep your landscape healthy

September 24, 2009 By Christiane Holmquist

water feature pond and sage appeal to hot gardensI am fortunate that I can experiment to some extent  in my own garden with  layouts and plants touted  “drought tolerant” and “water wise”, and that I can practice the techniques of planting, maintenance and water conservation that I explain to my clients.

Plants have always been my passion, but in our hot inland valley during the long hot summer months and no rain in sight until late November or December, and with fast draining DG soil  (decomposed granite), proper watering becomes important, and determining the right irrigation amount, frequency and duration is an on-going task.

In the past years our reservoirs have emptied to very low levels and water prices have shot up. First I learned to recognize drought stress, and then it became obvious that my planting design needed to become more sustainable:  I had too many plants with greater water needs than I felt was warranted, and the remaining ones were too close together, requiring more water and more maintenance to remain tidy.  Out came many popular plants, such as as Garden Penstemon, Kangaroo Paw and Lamb’s Ears, and most of my roses were sacrificed as well (I’m down to one that can do with less water - the climber Mermaid). unthirsty climbing rose Mermaid adorn hot landscapes

Although it may sound like a painful sacrifice, it was not:  On the way to that easier-to-maintain and less thirsty garden I am discovering many beautiful plants that are doing very well here, like Flannelbush or Mountain Lilac from California, Proteas from South Africa,  Texax Ranger from the Southwest and Northern Mexico, succulents from South Africa or California itself … the list is long and exciting, and I will be writing in more detail about some of these exceptional plants in future posts.

inviting resting place under shade treeHere are some tips and techniques to keep the ornamentals and the vegetables in your garden healthy and good looking through these hot months:

Lots of mulch:   I try to keep the layer at least 3 inches thick,  on top of the soil around trees and shrubs and in between my perennials; even in my vegetable garden I try to apply it where possible.  I prefer a medium textured bark or similar mulch with pieces of about one-inch in size; this will allow water to pass quickly through the mulch into the soil instead of being retained by the mulch.   My irrigation system applies water infrequently and deeply; this keeps the mulch dry and optimizes its water-saving potential.  Every year I replenish a good inch of this layer as it decomposes slowly, enriching my soil.

Mulch is probably being put to good use in your garden, too:  The multiple benefits of this material can hardly be gained otherwise.   But you might have some areas where mulch is difficult to apply, as in a vegetable garden.  Here shallow cultivation between watering cycles, with a hoe to 2-3” deep, loosens the soil, destroys weeds, aerates the roots and assists in reducing water needs. (Be careful not to injure delicate surface roots around tomatoes and corn.)

Soil Probe (soil tube)My most practical, diagnostic gardening  tool is a soil moisture probe:  This is a stainless steel tube, about 24 inches long, fitted to a comfortable T-handle.  When pushed into the soil and pulled out again, a partial cut-out  in the long end of the  tube lets me check the plug of soil in the tube:  I can see how deeply my watering has penetrated, or how much remaining moisture is in the soil if I am unsure whether it’s time to water again.  It also allows me to see how deep the roots have grown and, subsequently, how far down my watering should penetrate.  If I suspect a disease, such as a fungus rot, the roots in the soil plug tell me how healthy they are by their looks and feel:  If they are grayish, soft and mushy, they are ‘sick’ and unable to perform their job.  The smell test is important, too:  a healthy soil has a good earthy smell, so if that’s off I know that a soil-borne disease is troubling my plant, or that the roots have died because of too much water.

In my landscape design work and horticultural consultations, too, this probe is invaluable:  Together with a drainage test it helps me determine my client’s soil type and guides my selection of the plants that will grow in this soil (usually we send a soil sample to a spealized laboratory to be analyzed for its texture and nutrient content).  This tube is well worth its cost of around $65 (check with the irrigation and landscape supplier Hydro-Scape, 5805 Kearny Villa Rd,  San Diego at http://www.hydroscape.com/ )

Christiane Holmquist Landscape Design.     [P] 760-586-6065

Filed Under: Gardening tips Tagged With: benefits of mulching, determining soil type, drought tolerant gardening, irrigation of the low-volume garden, irrigation restrictions in Southern California, landscape design, landscaping in San Diego County, soil analysis, soil diagnostic, soil moisture tube, soil probe, useful tools for the water-wise gardener, Water Conservation, water-wise landscape

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Christiane, your design is beautiful. Viewers love the design and color. Thank you so much for all your support while the project was being developed. It would have been more stressful for me had you not held my hand regularly.

Rachel Michel

CHRISTIANE HOLMQUIST LANDSCAPE DESIGN


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Phone: 406-246-6065

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