Fear not your hedges: the Bandock Project

Our friend and fellow yogini, Ms. Bandock, is an avid gardener.  However, her Queen's Anne Lace hedge was infested with poison ivy.  Every time she attempted to prune or weed she contracted the rash.  Stink.

Thankfully, Kevin has pretty much self-inoculated against poison ivy given how much he's been exposed!  He's also adept at getting rid of the poison ivy.  Soaking the roots allows you to get at the base of the plant & prevent years of regrowth, as Ms. Bandock had unfortunately experienced.  This method eliminates the need for harmful chemicals!

She is now poison ivy free!  And happily enjoying her Queen Anne's privacy hedge again.

She also wanted to enjoy a fire pit with her guests in the backyard.  Kevin suggested a circular irregular slate patio, to not occupy the entire lawn, but to give her a safe place to enjoy evening fires.

Voila!  Around the periphery, fresh grass seed.  The grass will grow up to the edges of the patio.

More enjoyment from her own backyard.  This is what we love-- making your home suit you!

From row-home concrete backyard to private oasis: the Conrow project

Our friends, the Conrows, have a fantastic house in downtown Collingswood.  For years, they've had a backyard concrete patio that didn't do much to inspire outdoor fun.  It was practical, sure, but didn't reflect either of their design inclinations, nor offer much privacy.

Kevin and I spent some time thinking about the options (there are so many!).  With a project like this, there are also a lot of unknown variables.  How deep is the concrete?  Is there re-bar laced into the poured concrete?  Ultimately, we found a solution that worked for us and the Conrows.  We'd outsource the concrete removal for an optimal price for them and let our energy be focused on what we do best: building something beautiful.

Concrete begone!  Kevin and his crew began lowering the ground level and getting everything nice and even.

Mike even has a passion for geology!  We felt even more excited to secure the most beautiful slate flagstone.  This is where the project becomes art-- lots of time and attention to create a secure and attractive jigsaw patio.

Space allotted for the beds.  Right now, you see there's no screen between the Conrows and their lovely neighbors.  While these people are all fantastic, we all know the allure of a private oasis.

We wanted to maximize patio space so that the Conrows could fit their table, fire pit, and a few other items that live in the back patio.  Instead of creating a living privacy screen, we installed a cedar trellis.  It's thin, durable, affordable, and as the plant-life establishes, a vibrant screen that's appealing for the Conrows and their neighbors on either side.

As this photo demonstrates, there's a fair amount of shade.  English ivy is a highly successful shade vine, but it's also pretty opportunistic and requires a lot of maintenance. The Conrows are like many Rooted clients-- they prefer low-maintenance.  For those reasons, we elected to plant a shade-tolerant variety of clematis.  It's a little slower to establish, but once it does it offers beautiful purple/blue flowers that are consistent with the larger color palette of the planting.

When we met to do the estimate, we walked through the Conrow's home.  It's a beautiful reflection of both their tastes.  I noticed lots of cool greys, purples, and earth tones.  We wanted a sense of continuity as you enter the outdoor living space, so the planting also reflects a variety of purples with some bright green ferns for contrast.

Love it!  Full privacy, an enchanting patio that directs drainage away from the house, and a perennial, low-maintenance planting.

Secret Garden: the Patio Project

Rooted Landscaping was recently asked to offer a design for a patio garden.  Upon visiting the patio in full daylight glory, I immediately (& excitedly) conceived of a mediterranean-inspired garden of tall, glazed ceramic pots over-flowing with espalier trees and fragrant herbs.  The stucco and brick automatically reminded me of cliff-side dwellings and rosemary breezes.

I requested photos taken throughout the day so I could get a handle on how much sunlight actually reaches the patio.

Oh.  Not so much.

I tried to reconcile this reality with what I remembered visiting.  It occurred to me-- there is full sun in the middle of the patio but most of the edges stay shaded.

We were looking to create something lush and low-maintenance, and now primarily working with shade.  I went back to the drawing board.  Obviously, we need some height and some recurring themes to pull the area together.  The wire furniture made me think about wrought iron hooks for hanging baskets and wrought iron trough window boxes.

Upon further inspection I realized that one wall did get more sunlight.  The espalier design sticks!  A fig tree steps away from the kitchen.

Given that this is an entry way to the home and a home office, I still wanted fragrance.  More sun arrives by the front steps.  We decided potted rosemary should go there.  It's perfect to trail your fingers through or dab a little behind your wrists.  A little scented sigh as you enter the space.

(Years ago someone planted rosemary behind the yoga studio where I teach.  It's become perennial.  Everyone loves pressing some of the herb behind their wrists as they walk in for class.)

I hunted and found some great big ceramic pots at HomeGoods on the cheap!  To cut costs, we transplanted some cuttings of rosemary from the vegetable garden we'd installed previously.  We added some trailing sweet potato vine & some flowers to add color with scent as you enter.

We decided to center window boxes on the brick wall.  The patio needed height and some wall cover to feel more lush.  Not that it was easy anywhere, but affixing window boxes to only brick as opposed to brick & stucco simplified the process, made the boxes more secure, & is visually appealing.

A lot of the existing furniture had sentimental value.  That bench is over a 100 years old!  We moved it under the low wall and surrounded it with herbs.  Rosemary as you first step onto the patio, mint behind, and basil on the other side of the bench.  Sitting on the bench you're surrounded by fresh scents.  Also, the kitchen is steps away.  Another nearby planter has chives.  Plenty of flavors to incorporate into dishes-- all without getting your feet dirty!

The planters will be mainly shaded so we chose fuscia on top for height and drama, lots of variegated and traditional wandering jew, and several varieties of coleus.

There are hanging baskets throughout the patio, tying together to give it a "room" feel.  In the corner nearest the kitchen we installed a simple, Eastern-influenced fountain.  The bamboo fountain offers the sound of soothing running water on the patio or in the home if the window is open.

We used existing pots to house these gardenias.  I pulled them further from the door to be sure they got rain when it falls!

A repurposed wine cart & fountain are now planters to more shade plants.  We chose similar varieties to the window basket plantings to create continuity.

Piece de resistance!  My favorite.  This wall does get full sun & it's south-facing & it has wind-barrier!  Text-book perfect conditions for a fig tree!  I found a black turkey fig at Greensgrow and brought that bad boy over.  Kevin built the trellis to begin training the fig towards espalier, so that the tree won't enter too far towards the center of the patio.  Rather, it will go broad, offering cover for the blank wall, fruit, and enchantment.

Training branches.  Wouldn't you want to take your morning coffee gazing at a fig tree?  Makes me want to read Homer.

Planted on a rainy day (happily, for the plants).  Stay tuned as the patio receives the full glory of summer sun!