Landscaping
The second backyard seating area centers around a gas-burning, smoke-free outdoor hearth that was built into the low retaining wall that runs along the property’s back border. The hearth, measuring 10 feet wide by 5 feet tall, serves as a visual anchor for the backyard and an inviting spot for parents to kick back and relax while still keeping an eye on their little ones.
A 6-foot-tall hedge planting of Indian laurel (Ficus microcarpa var. nitida) and attractive, low-water plants sit far off the street. Plants include pillars of waxleaf privet (Ligustrum japonicum ‘Texanum’), spiky ‘Blue Glow’ agave (Agave ‘Blue Glow’), dwarf pittosporum (Pittosporum crassifolium ‘Compactum’), ‘Golf Ball’ kōhūhū (Pittosporum tenuifolium ‘Golf Ball’) and ‘Morning Light’ coast rosemary (Westringia fruticosa ‘Morning Light’).
As with fruit trees, Templar advises mixing compost with one-third grit sand before placing it in a container. Don’t forget to boost drainage and stop the soil from running out of the pot’s holes by adding gravel to the bottom. When watering, Templar says it’s best to allow the top surface of the soil to dry out, then drench. Reynolds says a layer of mulch on top will help retain the water and that feet beneath the pot are a good idea on patios, so water can drain easily.
Can Fruit Trees Be Grown in a Container? Dwarf varieties of plum (pictured), apple, pear — even peach and apricot — make good container plants, though soft fruit trees will need winter protection. “Fruit trees will need good, free-draining compost, a sheltered, full-sun spot, frequent watering during hot spells, and fertilizing,” Prouse says. Templar advises: “Fill your container with good-quality compost mixed with one-third grit sand, position the pot in full sun, and feed with a high-potassium feed [every two weeks] during the growing season.”
Beds filled with low-water plantings surround the courtyard with mounds of green and the occasional hit of orange from Euphorbia tirucalli ‘Sticks on Fire’ succulents. “The garden has a slightly arid plant palette without being a cactus garden,” Fenmore says. “I call this a foliage-based garden. We relied on foliage, not flowers, to gain interest.” Plants featuring a variety of foliage colors and textures include Little Ollie dwarf olive (Olea europaea ‘Montra’), ‘Smokey’ coast rosemary (Westringia fruticosa ‘Smokey’), ‘Morning Light’ coast rosemary (W. fruticosa ‘Morning Light’), ‘Golf Ball’ kōhūhū (Pittosporum tenuifolium ‘Golf Ball’) and ‘Blue Glow’ agave (Agave ‘Blue Glow’). Low-growing silver carpet (Dymondia margaretae) blankets the ground between shrubs, keeping down weeds.
How Should Container Trees Be Fed? Container trees need a bit more attention than trees in the ground. All our experts underline the benefits of repotting every other spring and replacing around one-third of the soil with fresh compost to provide a nutrient boost. Templar advises mixing the new soil with a slow-release fertilizer. “I’m a fan of blood, fish and bone,” Prouse says. “It promotes healthy root growth and is a long-lasting feed.”
Citrus (Citrus spp.) Orange, tangerine, lemon, lime, kumquat and other citrus trees all take a bit more care than most landscape trees, but they offer tasty rewards. Citrus thrive in mild climates with well-draining soil and appreciate regular water and doses of organic fertilizer during spring and summer. Where they will grow: Hardy to 25 degrees Fahrenheit, or minus 3.9 degrees Celsius (zones 9 to 10) Water requirement: Moderate; high in extreme heat Light requirement: Full sun Mature size: Varies by variety; many grow between 12 feet tall and wide and 25 feet tall and wide; dwarf varieties are also available
Frost-resistant Polystone planters grow herbs close to the home. “They contain thyme, parsley, sage, rosemary, chives and oregano — all pretty hardy herbs,” Howard says. The low planter next to the containers features pruned Ilex balls, often seen with boxwood. The planter also features golden male fern (Dryopteris affinis), wire vine (Muehlenbeckia sp.) and grasses, including orange New Zealand sedge (Carex testacea) and ‘Evergold’ sedge (Carex oshimensis ‘Evergold’). “In a lot of our schemes, we start with the evergreens – that’s your structure. You might not be out there all year round, but you’ll see the plants from your living room or kitchen,” Howard says. Floor lights in some of the paving stones and decking on the other side of the yard add atmosphere after dark.
Underplant — even in a tiny space. Part of what helps a garden feel like a secret oasis is a sense of the plants dominating the space and nature being at the forefront; when you think of what makes the great outdoors such a good antidote to modern life, it’s about exactly that sense of feeling small and insignificant in comparison to Mother Nature. So pack in that foliage for maximum escapism! And it’s possible even in the smallest spaces to max out on foliage, and underplanting (cultivating smaller plants around taller plants) is a great way to increase your greenery — even if you have space only for pots. The plants in these containers burst out in all directions, adding a lovely, unstructured aesthetic to an otherwise ordered and contemporary backdrop, in terms of the wooden raised bed and brickwork. Keeping all the plants green also makes for a lush and wild jungly effect.
Glazed containers and attractive trellises provide growing space for a trio of pepper and cherry tomato plants. The potted gardens seen here, by landscape designer Pamela Crawford, are just as decorative as ornamental-only versions yet offer the sweet rewards of a summer harvest. The bright zinnias that fill in around the edges attract pollinators — great for producing high tomato and pepper yields — and beneficial insects like ladybugs. Water requirement: Moderate to regular Light requirement: Full sun
Even if space is limited in your garden, there are plenty of ways you can bring in water. Rather than installing a feature on the floor, use vertical space. This mirrored waterfall panel has been tucked into raised beds that surround a seating area. It’s the ideal spot for enjoying the gentle trickle of water, and the mirrored surface helps to bounce light around.
Design tip: Squeeze in extra seating. Instead of extending the counter of the outdoor kitchen, Wood used the few square yards of extra space under the shade structure to add built-in seating. Adding permanent seating in the outdoor kitchen — where guests often congregate anyway — was a smart way to provide yet one more hangout spot in the backyard and to capitalize on the shade.
In addition to casting shade, the structure also serves as a mount for outdoor lighting, speakers and heating units, bringing the comforts of dining indoors to the outdoor space. The pergola’s louvre roof system can be opened and closed with a remote control to allow more or less shade or to keep rain out, as needed.
The LED-powered BEGA bollard luminaires seen here have a simplified geometric shape, echoing the proportion of the home’s rectangular windows. They project light from two sides onto the lawn and the pathway.
Wood ceiling.
Cedar ceiling.
Wood paneled ceiling with heater inset. Retractable sliding doors.
Sunken seating around a fire pit.
Comfy sunken seating.
Custom-made swing. The seat cushion is a crib mattress. Tongue-in-groove pine ceiling cladding and fans add a rustic touch.
Swings! Wood wall with planters.
Love!!
Love all the outdoor seating types.
Reclaimed wood beam over fireplace.
48" - $240 We have installed these outside without a problem. Usually the mantel will extend out 2 or more inches past the fire box. You can brush on a coat of Thompson's Water seal or if you don't want a coated look then just leave it natural. The mantel is made of pine. We do not make corbels but we do sell invisible brackets to hang it with.
Wood beam mantel on fireplace was attached with a steel plate embedded into the stone. The stone is South Bay Quartzite from Connecticut. For the ceiling beams, the contractor carefully skim coated the ceiling and walls up to the edge of the beams.
Love this stone with the wood.
Like the smooth stucco with the poured concrete cap and the white rock in the background. This would look nice as the seating area and fireplace materials. Also for the front wall.
Floating wood bench with rocks underneath and a smooth stucco wall. Should we do planted pots on ends like this?
Slant the back slightly for more comfort!
Polished concrete countertop and smooth stucco front. Also like the succulents in front and plants behind.
Bocce ball!
Bocce court and Stepstone pavers to match.
Decorative concrete balls for by the bocce court.
Concrete pavers, large beach stones, plants lining the wall.
Like the tall potted tree.
Podocarpus 'maki' trees lining back wall. There' are 4 commonly found types of Podocarpus on the market. P. gracilior is the one that is commonly grown as a tree, but may be espaliered or made into topiary form http://selectree.calpoly.edu/treedetail.lasso?rid=1114 P. macrophylla has shorter, stubbier leaves http://selectree.calpoly.edu/treedetail.lasso?rid=1116 P. m. 'Maki' only grows to around 8' or so and is good for small places. http://www.magnoliagardensnursery.com/productdescrip/Podocarpus_Maki.html P. henkelii which has lusher leaves and rarely grows over 30'. http://www.plantzafrica.com/plantnop/podocarphenk.htm All of them are fairly slow growing.
Tree with foliage underneath. Synlawn artificial turf.
Love the mix of materials and small strip of wood like this in the grass.
Tumbled travertine pavers from Home Depot. Cemented in like tile. Love the mix of materials: concrete, wood, stones, grass (we'd use fescue). Also love the extra seat at the end of the bench. Is that artificial turf in the rectangular insets? If so, what brand? Ravenscourt Landscaping and Design LLC said: It is artificial turf. I checked with our wholesaler and they recommended Syntheticgrasswarehouse.com as a source. We don't know the brand name.
Love the groundcover.
Gorgeous colors and plants. PERFECT for the front.
Lamb's Ear, Iceberg Roses, Snow in Summer. Great for the front around the wall.
Love the softness of the plants in the raised planter. Mexican grass and Kangaroo's Paw. Also the floating wood bench.
Native no-mow grass and poured-in-place concrete pavers separated by gravel and edged in steel.
This is a varity of Zoysia grass, left unmown - I beleive we used Pallisades.
Carolina laurel cherries are small evergreen trees that are densely packed with little glossy leaves, which makes them a great choice for a privacy hedge. They’re also drought-tolerant.
Fern Pine (Podocarpus gracilior) Here’s a plant so malleable, so Gumby like that you can shape it into all sorts of things: a shrub, a hedge, an espalier, a small tree. As a patio tree, trained with a single trunk and a roundish top, it’s delicate, weepy, graceful, deep green and very easy to grow. It's not actually a fern or a pine; the name comes from the lacy leaves that are so slim, they look like needles. USDA zones: 8 to 10 Water requirement: Moderate Light requirement: Full sun to partial shade or almost full shade Mature size: 20 to 30 feet tall and 10 to 15 feet wide when trained as a tree Growing tip: Maintain a tree shape by pruning off side branches from the lower trunk and letting the top grow bushy (snip off the top to increase bushiness).
Pennisetum a. 'Hameln' and Pennisetum a. 'Little Bunny' grasses.
Synlawn and 12"x12" Stepstone CalArc pavers.
Purple Echeveria and Riverstone pebbles between Stepstone pavers.
Breeze mat rush grows best in well-drained soils but can tolerate both sandy and clay soils. It withstands coastal wind, salt and other difficult environments. In fact, it’s so tough that it’s widely used in freeway median strips in Australia — now that’s a testament to its resilience. In shade, it tends to take on a brighter green tone and often appears a bit more lush. Trim back the spent flower stalks to keep it looking its best year-round. Unlike many grasses, Breeze mat rush doesn’t need to be cut back annually, and some growers have stated that pruning is required only every three to four years, or more. I planted Breeze mat rush in my personal garden four years ago in a partial-shade location — it has never been trimmed and still looks great. No wonder it is named Breeze.
Blue Chalksticks (Senecio serpens) The lovely blue-gray and upright 1-inch leaves gradually spread to create an attractive ground cover in frost-free areas. The flowers range from white to chartreuse and appear in summer. Blue chalksticks is ideal for creating color contrast when used next to plants with bright green foliage, such as kangaroo paw (Anigozanthos spp.). It’s a good choice for areas with mild Mediterranean climates. In addition to making a great ground cover, this beauty is often used for erosion control, in containers and as a fire-wise plant. Here, blue chalksticks grow between Furcraea macdougalii in the background and ‘Elijah Blue’ blue fescue (Festuca glauca ‘Elijah Blue’) in the foreground. Origin: South Africa Where it will grow: Hardy to 20 Fahrenheit, or minus 6.7 degrees Celsius (Zone 9) Water requirement: Low Light requirement: Full sun or filtered shade Mature size: 1 foot tall and 2 to 3 feet wide
Low wall in front. Like how it's a white smooth stucco with a grey toned cap. Don't need posts.
Low wall up close.
Pineapple guava shrubs in planters
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