Formal axes, xeric plants in the Barrett Garden: GWA Pasadena
October 22, 2015 The second private garden I toured during the Garden Writers Association symposium in Pasadena, California, last month turned out to be my favorite. Owned by Ann and Olin Barrett, the garden’s formal layout with cross axes and focal points is made California friendly and contemporary with bold, ...
Colorful LA garden of Potted maven Annette Gutierrez
September 25, 2015 I was in Los Angeles/Pasadena last weekend for the annual Garden Writers Association symposium, and boy oh boy, do I have some cool gardens to show you! Not all were on the GWA tours, which were limited to 3 private gardens and one public garden (the fabulous ...
Modern gravel garden sips water, amps up architecture
September 25, 2015 Succulent and cactus gardeners and fans of modern design, you’ll want to see this garden on the upcoming San Antonio Watersaver Landscape Tour on October 24. I recently enjoyed a preview visit, thanks to an invitation from Shirley of Rock-Oak-Deer and Heather of Xericstyle. This contemporary garden ...
Sedgey evergreen garden of Pat Mozersky for Foliage Follow-Up
September 16, 2015 Austin designer Mark Word (see my profile about him) designed this serene, green San Antonio garden that you can see on the upcoming Watersaver Landscape Tour on October 24. I got a preview last Friday thanks to Shirley of Rock-Oak-Deer. The garden belongs to Pat Mozersky, the ...
It’s not hard to enjoy the Big Easy
July 29, 2015 If you want to feel that you’ve traveled to a foreign city without leaving the country, visit New Orleans and stay in the historic French Quarter. We made the 8-hour drive from Austin a couple of weeks ago — our first stop on a family road trip ...
Lively formality in the garden of Deborah Hornickel
July 06, 2015 If you admired the beautiful details of James David’s grand Rollingwood garden, which I had the privilege of visiting last spring, you may have wondered what a smaller, more economically built garden of his might look like. And I’m here to show you, thanks to James’s longtime ...
Storybook garden on Algonquin Island: Toronto Garden Bloggers Fling
June 25, 2015 Tell me this doesn’t look like a Thomas Kinkade painting, but in the best sense — light gleaming in the window of a picturesque cottage — without the kitsch. With rain clouds darkening the sky, this was the last island garden I visited (see my Toronto Islands ...
Garden is But-A-Dream on Algonquin Island: Toronto Garden Blogger Fling
June 24, 2015 While exploring the Toronto Islands (click for an overview tour) during Toronto Garden Bloggers Fling, I happened upon a cheery yellow cottage near the Algonquin Island harbor. Adorned with a black unicorn and a sign proclaiming the garden’s name — But-a-Dream — it was irresistibly charming. You ...
Geometric design creates modern garden for entertaining
June 03, 2015 I’ve been lucky to visit a number of new-to-me gardens this spring, and I have one more to show you: Jennifer Lingvai’s contemporary, designed-for-entertaining garden in Austin’s Hyde Park neighborhood. The talented B. Jane of B. Jane Gardens designed and installed it for Jennifer, who requested a ...
Art and design intrigue in the garden of Syd Teague
June 01, 2015 Once a month the Austin garden bloggers gather at one of our gardens to socialize, talk plants and design, and do a plant swap. Last Saturday we met up in Rock Rose/Jenny Stocker’s garden, which despite a recent hailstorm and torrential rains was absolutely beautiful. But we ...
Before and after: 6 years making a garden
May 25, 2015 Bluesy garden: our upper patio, just off the living room and master bedroom It’s always eye-opening to see how much a garden has evolved by comparing before and after images. We moved into our current home in October 2008, and I started tinkering with a few beds ...
Feeling blue? This contemporary garden is designed for sunny relaxation
May 10, 2015 Recently I was invited to visit a brand-new contemporary garden designed by Fertile Ground Gardens. Co-owner and designer Alexa Villalobos gave me a tour, explaining that the two-tone, blue-painted house is a vacation home for Portland photographer Ray Hendricks. The interior of the new home is all ...
Rock Rose garden abloom before the hailstorm
April 27, 2015 Two weeks ago my friend Jenny Stocker, blogger at Rock Rose and gardener extraordinaire, offered me a division of a water iris for my pond. When I arrived, mid-morning on a sunny, warm day, Jenny gave me a tour and then kindly set me loose to wander ...
The art-adorned, water-saving garden of Mireille Engel
April 24, 2015 Last week I had the pleasure of visiting a new garden, that of Mireille Engel, a French-speaking Swiss native turned Texan and longtime gardener, whose garden helper, Kathy Christian, introduced me and gave me a tour. Located in the Cuernavaca neighborhood and perched on the edge of ...
Steel walls and soft grasses in travel-influenced Mirador Garden
November 04, 2014 A week ago I had the opportunity to photograph another of landscape architect Curt Arnette‘s gardens. Frothy, rose-colored clouds of Gulf muhly, tawny spikes of Lindheimer muhly, and a chartreuse Habiturf lawn wrap the large front garden in a cozy quilt of softness that counterbalances the flat ...
Hill Country style and a downtown view in the garden of Ruthie Burrus
October 30, 2014 I see a lot of gardens on public tours, which I enjoy tremendously. But being invited for a private tour of a new-to-me garden is a special treat, especially if the garden happens to belong to an avid gardener making the most of a beautiful, hilltop site ...
