On the face of it, a person could deem this a pretty attractive patio. The alternating exposed aggregate and broom-finished tops of the finished panels looks interesting and even somewhat unique. The few flaws it began with never really amounted to anything spectacularly bad and so it served as a great outdoor environment for this nice couple for a few decades.
Eventually, however, things began breaking down. Especially when wood products are used in conjunction with cement such as this place, the eventual deterioration of the organic product is simply inevitable no matter how much sealer or preservative is used. Being as this is in Reno, there is also the deleterious effect of the constant onslaught of sunlight. The UV ratings for Reno off simply off the charts. The sun can act as well to hasten the effects of constant drying and wetting of wood from sprinklers and the washing of the patio. Add snowfall effects and the salty and chemical additives to the snow removal process and you have a perfect storm for concrete deterioration.
The bottom line came when the residents began tracking deteriorating pieces of material into their house with regularity. The cement was crumbling and deteriorating after the long years and the floor in the kitchen was showing it all. Where the wood partitions in some of the cement panels had worn down, their edges produced a fairly constant source of gritty dust and chunks of cement. They decided they wanted to redo it all, in short, so they called us. We agreed on a product and a price as well as a schedule and began the work. Our first order of business was to take out the old patio. Jackhammer in hand, we went at it.
It was actually not bad work, as these things go. Yes, it was constantly in the upper 90’s at the time - even past 100 degrees later on in the project - but, as can be seen here, there was ample shade from a monster European Birch nearby. Having that tree was pretty fabulous. This work is hard and when it’s over 100, something more than hard, moving into dangerous. Did I mention we liked the tree?
Anyway, we finally cleared the existing mess then excavated down a ways (the cement has been set on soil, as we had expected) - this way we could establish a sub base of our own compact able rocky material, standard in all our paver installations.
There were the usual abundance of items to watch out for below the surface, from irrigation lines to electrical conduit, almost all of which we had no desire to replace, so it was a bit slower than one might want.
Just the same, as can be seen in the above picture, what we did was excavate and fill, taking away soil and adding a rock mulch to replace it with. As I have explained in other posts, we look for a very hard and durable sub base below where we add the pavers. A thick layer of base rock can often get us to a compaction intensity we want and which will assure longevity and durability.
So we add the base material, rake it out, then wet it to about 12% and run a compactor - a plate tamper - over the top of it. This vibrates and provides an amazingly intense downward pressure with lot of weight. The combination of shimmying and weight leads to a supremely tight and well-compacted substrata. What we end up with is a fairly good surface, over which we add approximately an inch or less of a fine washed sand. The sand allows us to grade absolutely perfectly, leaving a surface we know will come out just as perfect as is what’s below.
From the above stages, we go to the next phase, which is far more detailed. Arriving at the finished grade at the surface, at this stage every move we make will reflect on the top. It has to be perfect. The sand allows for some faults occurring below to be rectified. The sand process is always the final answer, grade wise. From here, we lay the bricks.
Drainage: Even in somewhere as generally dry as Reno, Nevada drainage issues matter hugely. The fact that Reno gets almost all of its rainfall (and snow) in a 4 month span means as well that it comes in a rush. I have seen 4 foot snowfalls overnight as well as consistent pounding rain arriving in buckets. In a sense, these downpours and packed snow problems make for an environment every bit as threatening concerning drainage issues as anywhere, including the North West. We were extremely fortunate that the concrete edging used for the initial project was still very intact and usable. It had a small % grade - around 1 percent (translating into 1/8 inch per foot)- which is perfect. I only mention this owing to how vital it is in general. This project was pretty fabulous for that reason and allowed us to rearrange things in an orderly and far easier manner. But know this - mistakes in drainage are lethal to a home’s foundations and for general appearance and wood damage. Just a head’s up: Make sure things drain away from the house.
With the sub base intact now, and the sand ’screeded’ (leveled) at 1 inch thick or so to give us a fairly perfect base on which to lay pavers, we begin laying in some pavers. The irony of paver placement is in the speed at which they can be laid in place. I say “irony” because, with a perfect surface to work on, the pavers get laid about as fast as they can be brought over to the layer. Easily the most labor-intensive aspect of any paver project, it is the one place where a strong back and a good set of legs gets things done in quicker style.
While the general coverage goes fast, as always, it is the details that hang one up. Here my foreman, Kenny, gives a wry look at his business while dealing with that week’s equivalent of the New York Times Crossword Puzzle.
Nasty work! Adding to his woes, the tolerance for achieving the sought-after drainage meant we needed to shove the pavers under the wood almost at the same level where the initial cement was placed, which was at the highest grade achievable. Snug. It’s a pain when the pavers that get cut need to slide under such a minimal tolerance. It literally requires putting pavers down, then lifting, then fitting back. One just hopes the cuts were good. Otherwise………..the dreaded interpersonal fireworks!
For an idea of how the trimming of pavers to conform to the edge is so vital, take a look below. Bear in mind, this is the outer edge. Imagine doing it blind, like Ken did above, with the siding protruding over and just a tape measure to get it right. It takes some serious patience to get it right and he pulls it off regularly. He’s a better man than I, lol.
Here is another look at the outer edge. Plus, the work in the upper part is what the “screeded” sand looks like, just prior to getting pavers laid over. The small rubber mallet is used to “persuade” reluctant pavers to get with the program and go in. It also serves to tamp them down into place.
Here Corey is placing them after cutting. He was on his own on this while waiting for Kenny to supply those nasty fitters under the siding. He also did a fabulous job on this project, acting as the primary labor dude, hustling pavers over and then adapting to his next chore which involved cutting and placing the edge stones. He was The Man, too. Very fashionable shorts, I hasten to add!
Having said all that about all that, a good edge is a beautiful thing. It satisfies the professional in the installers and it is something clients adore no end. Forgive the terrible focus on the next picture, but I think the idea of perfection and its appeal is borne out.
In the end, we end up with a very satisfying end product that met every criterion they asked for: an attractive surface, perfect in its level, easy to walk on and rather sumptuous in its overall appearance.
I omitted the fact that there was an interior patio as well. It is inside an atrium, surrounded by the house itself and which developed the same cement problems with deterioration. It was somewhat painstaking packing the heavy and very sloppy broken cement through this gorgeous home, so we obviously protected walls and floors from our assault. In the end, it worked out every bit as well:
In case anyone wonders, the name of this impressive lit up home is called The Million Light House, in Portland, Oregon. It is “all of that”, beyond a doubt. It is far more amazing when you’re standing in front of it. The sheer volume of lights and some truly excellent arranging make it quite a spectacle. You can click it to enlarge.
Lighting has always been a focus of mine. Owning the night can happen at one’s own premises, and in very tasteful ways. What has especially impressed me has been the revolution caused by low voltage lighting and its amazing ease of installation. Much science and art have also been put to the task of tastefully lighting up our outdoor environments, resulting in some fabulously interesting and far more enjoyable areas - and in our own homes! Making a home safer for walking as well as for security reasons all make sense, to say nothing of how lighting dramatically increases the amount of time one wants to spend enjoying his place.
Since this is the Christmas Season, naturally it seems topical as heck to bring up Christmas lighting and how it also has developed into far more creative displays using tremendously less power. Lighting technology is one of those areas which keeps getting better and more usable. A trip through a catalog of any lighting supplier is now a trip through a stunning array of low voltage, high impact methods of presenting the magic of light in the darkness of our nights, leading us to some very surprising and uplifting experiences at home.
Any time spent prowling these two great adjoining neighborhoods is a treat for the eyes and senses. Mature landscaping, impeccably restored turn-of-the-century homes and the well-designed boulevards of both neighborhoods yield an urban planner’s feast. All the virtues of urban landscaping simply seem so implicit in the design. It gives an incredibly satisfying sensuality to the ambiance of such a relaxing and all-enveloping stroll along these gorgeous streets and sidewalks. Sights and even smells abound. Lavenders, Mints of various types and those other gorgeous scents of exotics and even the odor of some of the native flora make it seem even more scrumptious somehow.
At this time of the season - late Fall - you get the benefits of the colors of deciduous leaves (as in the Burning Bush above) and the aroma of their deterioration, mixed with some fireplace smoke and the spicy effects of scented plantings. It’s funny. The smells are almost what I remember most when I walk this gorgeous area. You get those effects, mixed with what I often assume is the distillery smell of corn mash. Yummy stuff.
In the end, it is difficult to say what strikes one as the most impressive aspect of either of the two streets. There is simply so much to like. From its obviously planned beginnings, the urban master plan offers a very organized and supportive environment for the best sort of living. The area demands that you walk it, even if you live there. Time spent outdoors is an inherent positive. As mentioned, the odors, the plantings and the gorgeous revolving seasonal effects are pretty mind-blowing, really. It takes such splendid advantage of a true 4 Season climate.
Secondly - but still equally impressive - are the designs of the homes themselves. These are not your garden variety tract homes. Yes, it was a classic “tract” at its onset, but any similarity with our modern concept of tract housing stops at pretty much the first pace. Designers had a field day with these varied and special homes. Where St. James Court has these stately mansions in a riot of designs, Belgravia has a much more urban and “squeezed” look. These homes are close enough to practically be apartments together, with far less independent land between the homes.
The craftsmanship of these buildings is pretty doggone impressive. I especially love the masonry. Check out these bits of brick work, now over 100 years old but as impressive as any European work, using American products:
Even this one, still in the process of renovation, sand-blasting and then refurbishing (and note too the gorgeous old glass windows):
Kentucky is always noteworthy for the astounding variety and perfection of its many craftspeople. Wood, for example, in Kentucky, is a medium of incredibly wide usage using an amazingly wide assortment of tree products. Mandolins, sculpture, even those incredibly gorgeous “weed pots” illustrate the inherent beauty of the craftsman’s touch and are in huge demand, world-wide. It is said that Kentucky actually possesses the widest range of living and native species of trees in the world. All these trees, from the native Kentucky Coffee Tree to the various Cedars, Pines, Redbuds and Dogwoods, provide a stunning array of products for the wood craftsman.
But what stunned Frederick Olmstead, Edison and many more modern others was also the professionalism of the artisans so abundant in that interesting state. The stonework on these homes is somewhere beyond world-class, if such a thing can be said. The bridges alone in Cherokee Park are famous for their craftsmanship and beauty, much less the stone work on the fabulous and various mansions built around the the period - and later - when Louisville’s homes were constructed.
All this naturally mirrors an ethic very much alive in this town so immersed in American history and in native American Crafts. I’ll cheat now and show a bit of the downtown area as well, simply because I love baseball so much and always manage to find a spot for The Big Bat! OK, guess what this baseball bat represents!
Baseball fans won’t have much trouble recognizing the Louisville Slugger premises. Here is where every Louisville Slugger baseball bat is and has been hand made for Pro Ballplayers since 1890. The tour is really delightful and includes a museum where baseballs signed by every US President are displayed and including signed bat contracts from players like babe Ruth to Willie Mays and Barry Bonds. For collectors, it’s the equivalent of Fort Knox, lol.
In closing this post, I want to further emphasize Louisville’s intense interest and now-abiding care for its own fabulous history. The shots below are all taken along Main Street, a street teeming with old Iron Buildings now being renovated and upgraded to modern usages, but with the historical facades kept and refurbished, intact. It is not only a trip through a great history, but also a trip to witness architectural wonder and the craftsmanship that allowed such a pass in reality. Enjoy and thanks for dropping in.
I just spent a week in Louisville, in town for my niece Meagan’s wedding to her very cool groom, Jeff. It was a fabulous reunion among the very diverse members of our family, actually being the first time all those assembled had been together since the ’60’s! I was reminded while there of why I so adore the fine city and the people of Louisville. I wax on about the place from time to time and, with San Fransisco and maybe New York City, Louisville is my favorite place in America. There are a wild number of reasons why, including the city’s gracious irreverence, but that will be for another time. This one is about an old stomping ground. This is all about St. James Court and Belgravia, divided into two posts.
Built in the 1880’s, alongside what was once the remarkable “Southern Exposition”, (intended to last for 3 months in 1884 and which, instead, lasted 4 years!) this neighborhood was an expansion to the South from the initial fairgrounds. Here is a look at what it once looked like - at the onset:
Glorious and ornate Victorian mansions sat side by side in a wonderful mix of styles and esoteric exoticism in a virtual riot of fabulous architecture amid an incredibly livable environment. Urbane and distinctly Southern for all of that, the court now hosts a most remarkable Art Fair, listed as the best Art Fair in the country and one which - incredibly - hosts more visitors than the famous Kentucky Derby. Some 300,000 visitors stroll this neighborhood looking at juried artwork. Here is a link to the Art Fair Site itself, complete with easily navigable areas, and rife with information and pictures of the art and the artists: St James Court Art Show
What makes it so unique in general I guess is simply the totality of its history. Interestingly enough, there were some perfectly astounding then-modern events surrounding the initial Southern Exposition, among which was the introduction, en mass, of what was then an then-unheard of number of electric lights. Indeed, Thomas Edison himself helped set the event up and spent much time there himself. Here is an excerpt from a bit of lore from this most interesting historical record: History
“Not only that, but the building and grounds (Central Park was the midway) were illuminated by over 4600 incandescent electric lights, the largest concentration anywhere at that time, more even than in New York City. This is one of the reasons that Old Louisville was one of the earliest electrically lit neighborhoods in the nation.
<…Mr. Edison’s fabulous display of “4,800 incandescent lights of 16-candle power each which came on every evening to bedazzle the beholder. The contract with the Edison Company,” wrote The Courier-Journal, “is the largest ever made for lighting a building with electric lights. The cost of the plant was $100,000 alone, and it is said to have taken 100 men working constantly for a month to string all the wires and to get the equipment in working order…. It is now common practice for parties to go to the exposition, arranging to take their supper at one of the places of refreshment in the evening sunlight, then pass into the dusk of the building to watch the marvelous expansion of the electric light.”
Ask anyone who was a child back in the ’80s and he will tell you about that breath-taking experience. For no matter how often he saw it (and families went over and over again), the miracle was always the same. There was a quiet that covered the waiting crowds. Then an amber glow began to seep through the dusk, brightening, brightening—until what had been familiar corridors of the big barn-like building became for him aisles of blinding light and beauty, touched with the gold of heaven.> Excerpt from Fond Recollection, Melville O. Briney, 1949
The Southern Exposition 1883-1887: Louisville had toyed with the idea of hosting a large exposition since the 1870s. The success of the Atlanta Cotton Expo of 1881 greatly spurred interest in Louisville to hold a grand Southern Exposition.
An electric railway, designed by Edison, took visitors around the exposition grounds and all around Central Park. We heard this was the public premier of the electric trolley concept. Maybe it was, if not it was certainly a premier for the region, and quite impressive with its tunnel of incandescent lights reputed to be wired by Thomas Edison himself. A few years later Louisville had one of the best electric trolley systems in the country, and had at least double the number of street railroads of any other city its size. And of course, the most famous trolley line in the country was here in Old Louisville, the Toonerville Trolley.
The St James Court area went into some disuse for a long time, especially owing to the suburban movement of Louisville’s population of which we - my family - were also numbered among those opting for less urban environments. The fact is, after I had been away from Kentucky for quite some time in the military and on with life on the West Coast, my parents had relocated to Louisville and had moved into one of these houses on this very street. I did not even know where it was!
Here’s the front of their home, the rented bottom floor of which my Mom and Dad renovated. It was incredibly well constructed and just riddled with strange little quirks. Here:
And here is Mother, relishing yet another visit to her old stomping grounds. I mean - honestly - what’s not to like? (Including Mom! Aren’t they all pretty cool?)
Just like her 100% attendance at Louisville basketball games, my Mom never misses the Art Show.
Keeping with the African theme from my other musical post, I’m giving up Ali Farka Toure, an African guitarist with a unique style. He died last year and his son, Vieux, carries on spectacularly in his tradition. This clip is from a desert festival where he shows his own form of enthusiasm while entertaining people who had never seen a concert in their entire lives. He is missed.
This post is of a project we undertook in 2004 - in the Spring - for a great couple, Jeff and Denise, and their young red headed kids who were not even arguably cuter than buttons. They were a feature every day, the little guys, and who were, not surprisingly, fascinated by their daily Big Show out back of huge machinery and big fellows moving dirt and rocks all around.
(click on any picture to enlarge)
What 4 year old in his right mind would not dig (pardon the pun) this set up?? Huge and gnarly, all these humongous toys kept them entranced as long as they were awake. Below, for example, is what it looks like when you get 20 yards of topsoil delivered to your house just a few feet from your favorite back window!
This picture is us digging those tiny (not!) channels for irrigation pipes. Hey, you use what you have!
The Story
The home was pretty much Jeff and Denise’s “dream home”. After getting the inside of their place whipped into shape, they then focused outdoors, naturally enough. They had a full acre out back and they wanted to maximize what they could get out of it. They provided me with a laundry list of things they wanted which read something like this:
1.) A running water feature with a creek and small pond. 2.) A platform and an electrical (220V) supply near the water feature for setting up a spa away from the house. 3.) A nice big irrigated lawn with a surrounding pathway for the kids and their trikes and - eventually - bikes and motorized transportation. 4.)A horseshoe pit straight out the back. 5.) A play area for the kids. 6.) Some pathways on the rear hillside. 7.) An upper level patio, very informal, bedded in Decomposed Granite.
They were looking for ways to squeeze the budget which would still allow them to get all the goodies they wanted. The list was long and challenging but I immediately saw the potential in the overall landscape. We would take advantage hugely of the hillsides surrounding the East and Rear sides of the property, using it for our creek and the spa placement. Providing pathways would be easy and interesting and would cut through the landscape in a winding way. Jeff and Denise and I huddled and came up with a reasonable budget. Helpful - no that is an understatement - what swung the deal in favor of total possibility was that Jeff could provide all the machinery we would need. What also helped were his connections regarding trucking and rock suppliers - there being some excavations nearby that had the marvelous rocks you see throughout the property. That brought the budget down so far that suddenly it was all as doable as it could be. So we shook hands and took off on our grand landscaping experiment. It would be fun, especially inasmuch as Denise was at home with the boys and offered her opinions daily and in an unobtrusive and truly cooperative fashion. In the end, she has as much to do with the ultimate look as anyone. I consulted with her often, and as often at my request. She was always a treat, honestly.
Anyway, we began and, once we finished the irrigation issues, and after burying the pipes and backfilling them, we were ready to entertain deliveries of both rocks and soil, both in the 200 yard range as totals. So, here they came:
Once delivered, staging became an increasingly knotty problem. In the picture above you can see us placing rocks in their eventual resting places with the smaller excavator placing them and the larger one picking and separating them just after their arrival. They tended to come in 3 sizes, from humongous 2-3 ton slabs, to medium sized ones from 500-1,000 pounds, to smaller, one man sized rocks. It is actually somewhat tedious at this stage, in a way, although the placing of permanent fixtures is always bracing and challenging. You can never get bored with supplying something permanent for a client - the appearance and selection will be there for ever. Some heavy duty cosmetics here. So, anyway, things began taking some shape. In this picture, both the “upper level patio” and the horseshoe pit have been outlined in boulder placement.
Yes, there is still one huge pile of rocks down there. That is for some detail work as well as almost entirely dedicated to the water feature, which is being scratched out in the picture below. We typically excavate the channel which the water and all acoutrements will follow, then add the liner and, of course, the rocks defining it last.
And there you have your stabndard-average scooped out water course. Next, we make the water feature, starting at the top:
Adding rocks on top of liner is always the single most nerve-wracking part of any large job. One false move with that machine and the rock - and especially this type of “fractured rock” - can poke holes in the liner, the worst possible result. So we operate gingerly to say the least and we also use other pieces of the liner wedged between the new rocks and the liner to protect the all-important liner itself, providing a meausre of security as we worked.
The excavators we like using for these events are amazing tools. You act like a jeweller or watchsmith or something placing one and two-ton boulders as precisely as possible in place. Plus, you always get helpful advice, lol.
Looks like Chaos, don’t it?? ;-) Note also another wonderful development which is the very durable flexible pipe we use as the source. This one was a 4 inch pipe and made the project ten times more do able..
Now just add cement and we’re finally getting somewhere!
So that yields to this:
Next post, we add plants, grass and finish all the paths and stuff. I think you can see the madness all actually had some later-crystallizing plan to it. Thousands did not! Had to say it.
So - with the creek pretty much 80% done, we begin running the water to check the electrical and pump systems and to finish all the detail work in the crevases and in hiding the liner. We also run the water to clear it, of course. The first passes of water collect all the dust and grime from the initial construction phases- all the dust from feet and from spills and from the rocks themselves. Naturally, someone washes off the rocks as well at the same intial phase of the cleaning. We’ll leave it running for just a bit and then grab the end of the hose we saw inserted inside at the top for providing the initial flow and basically empty out all the water, completely, sending it somewhere that can take it all. We’ll refill it with the automatic fill apparatus we installed and work away elsewhere while it clears itself. We’ll repeat this step more than once, looking for that clear water.
(click on all pictures to enlarge)
Here we can see the water’s still running pretty murky, as we will also see in a lower photo. About this time, generally speaking, we are ready - believe it or not - to start planting the plants and running lighting wire for the outdoor lighting system. You can see our ‘12-2′ low voltage lighting cable (above) which we ran to a light under that small falls there. Some wires were also sent through the creek, between the rocks and over to the other side for uplighting trees with.
We also began adding the decomposed granite which compacts well and which will provide the traffic surfaces for the horseshoe pit, seen below leading off from the upper patio area. As well, we are adding “D.G.” to the pathways on the upper hillside which we carved out. We are pretty much at the compacting stage at this juncture. We will pack them, then get them wet and they tend to crust over nicely. In time, they make a perfect bottom.
(Note the “creekebed” drain field above)
Time to start planting! Bear in mind, as exciting as this gets for me, I always see the future in what I put in the ground. Frankly, a newly-planted landscape can look pretty doggone barren when just finished, and especially one this large. I posted a picture below all this that shows us a look at this landscaping 3 years later. Suffice to say, you won’t believe the change. Yes, it is the same place.
OK, so on with the planting and the Green part of the gig:
It’s looking a bit more orderly out there now, don’t you think?
Hey! Here’s the sod! (below) The sod comes on pallets of about 550 square feet each, with about 65 rolls per pallet or so. We lay these suckers one at a time, just like a carpet. While it is an exceedingly reliable “plant”, the grass, since it occupies so much space, is a huge developmebnt towards finishing. It makes everyone’s day, honestly. Grass is the one finishing operation that really brings it all together and points the way downhill. There is much to be done yet, but there is something “final” about seeing the green grass outside after staring at dust and mud for a month or so.
Drainage Issue: It is a tedious chore, getting the grade just right, making sure rainwater and irrigation water all are directed away from the house to somewhere relevant that can conduct it then disperse it - in this home’s case - out to the front street, believe it or not. That’s a long way and we made small sorts of rock-filled creekbeds to do this with. These end up being an added feature, in the end, adding an aesthetic touch to a very functional consideration and neccesity.
Here, we are adding the final pieces, getting ready to trim the edges, roll it all down firmly, then give it its first dose of good watering. We will adjust the sprinklers perfectly at this time and set the clock for a test of it as well. Right now, Hugo is adjusting the radio, a constant need (!) while sodding as everyone must know! LOL, we had some good dance music going on for much of this, I remember. yYes, some of it was Mexican on demand, but I got my time in with some good R & B, too. Sam and Dave and James Brown can do alot for motivation!
Here’s a look from above. What a difference a day makes!
The two colors of the grass were merely different crops, cut at different times. I warned them of this possibility and that it meant zero, in the end. Inasmuch as the grass comes essentially fertilized, it takes about two-three days for the green to really start setting in.
Our remaining work is all “finishing” at this stage. I term applying the irrigation to all the plants as “finishing”, although classically, it’s still construction. But one thing we can get accomplished while setting up the drip irrigation lines and running the appropriately sized pipes and emitters to the trees and plants is that we bury the lines, then rake the dirt - in other words, we finish those areas. This project would not need mulching until some future date, owing to the expense - it was one of the ways we budgeted things - and it turned out delightfully. We were able to use a preemergent herbicide for the first two years and weeds just never got any purchase at all. Jeff and Denise were also able to add plants wherever they wanted quite a bit easier than by dealing with a mulch cover.
Here, below, Romero is adding the emitters to the “main line”, a 3/4″ drip line that he sends a bit of smaller pipe off of with an emitter which regulates the amount of water delivered to the plants roots per hour. The coiled pipe seen in the picture above is this 3/4″ pipe. It goes to every single plant on the property, run off a valve in a timed release. Drip irrigation is the single greatest achievement in landscape technolgy in my recent history. It applies the water exactly where it goes - to the roots - and does not evaporate in the air or cause wasteful watering which is endemic with spray systems. For those who wonder, that’s a Weeping Larch tree beside Romero there, a favorite plant of mine. The Larch is one of only two deciduous conifers in the world. They look amazing in the Spring, when they ‘re-needle’, in a soft green that gets greener. The weeping charactieristic I have always found terrific around water features. “Weepers” are a Steve characteristic.
We also did work on the upper paths, naturally, but in every respect relating to finishing, starting with the top - running the irrigation up there and then bringing it around, we were always working our way out.
Here’s the patio area. The grass is greening up as promised and the line is about to be buried.
Time for the all-impotant Road Testing” of the horseshoe pit. Jeff was not going to be easy to please, and especially with his Father-in-Law as competition. I gave them a break and didn’t compete with them. They got a break without knowing it, lucky stiffs.
He liked it! Well, we were just about finished. Please note the scrawny and tiny little plants all set there looking so lonely and forelorn. Then please look at the picture at the very bottom, 3 short years later.
Meanwhile, guess where our next project was!
Here you go, three years later! Different?
Here’s another look at the more mature place:
In the end, I stood next to Denise as I collected the final check and we had a moment to assess everything - the relations, the progress, the push and pull sometimes, all in respectful ways - and we shared one of the best moments I ever had as a contractor. We hugged briefly, and she spoke of all the guys she would miss (It’s an excellent, proud, professional and nice crew) and how the action would be so slow now for her hyped-up young red heads and how they’d miss seeing us. (It did take a full month to do.). I looked at her and I quietly asked: “Denise, do you like it?”
Denise started sobbing. “God, Steve, I l-l-l-ove it!” she said, tearfully. I looked at her and was just awed. I was dumbstruck, I swear. She was telling the truth and we had shared the deepst sort of history and warmth together in just that moment. I was embarrassed, because I had put a lot into it, myself, and I began tearing up a little myself. Honestly, who wouldn’t??
It was just the best dang thing I ever heard. I’ll cherish that one moment forever. Love you, Denise!
In so many of my designs, I subscribe to a sort of anarchy, I admit. I am a craven lover of color and spice in an outdoor environment and many decisions I make regarding a landscape often take place at a nursery and revolve around what is available at the time. This would be bad if there were some limited supply of plants. However, lol, that is not the case. My primary worry is often how to stay within my own budget! I find spending money on others, in this sense, to be absolutely and totally recklessly fun. This fact has gotten me very “chewed out”, by everyone but the fortunate homeowners who I inflict my addiction to pretty plants on.
Obviously, I have some friends out there!!! I exaggerate here, obviously, and even while there is more than a smidgen of truth to it, if I lost money somewhere, it was long before the plant choices. Anyway, so I admit to some impulsiveness while implementing my designs. Please know, however, that the choices do have some basis in experience with installing landscapes by some excellent and even well-known landscape architects. It was these people from whom I learned the basics.
The above picture, for example, was done with seasonal aspects borne in mind. The Fall colors of this design are only beginning in that shot and deepened with pure color - some really dazzling stuff - all red, orange and yellow to the max. Needless to say, the Spring and Summer colors - with my emphasis on perennials - also shone well. I also include Winters in my landscapes. I use evergreen conifers, pines and broadleaf plants as extensively as possible.
So my real bias is towards “splashes” of color, interspersed with more permanent grounding in the sense of solidity, which I believe “anchor plants” supply - shrubs, trees, even ground covers - that maintain a fastened-down look and structural element of permanence. I also use rocks and art features as equally permanent and which supply that same solidity.
Now, there are other ways to achieve a beautiful landscape - far less riotous and anarchistic as some of these examples of mine. Mass Planting, for example, is a concept I actually like very much and which I actually implement when given a large enough area. Here, for example, is mass planting in the form of trees, a grove of Shirotae Cherries we planted, believe it or not, over an underground parking garage:
Every plant and tree shown in the picture below we actually planted ourselves, maybe 2 weeks to one month prior to this picture. Their huge size made it much easier to “mass plant” inasmuch as so few took up so much space. Nevertheless, they still give the desired effect: a permanent and uni-colored structural base to the looser items which were eventually planted below them. This particular area, looked at from the rear like this, was also strictly mass-planted from this angle. The front was somewhat wilder, containing a waterfall and numerous swaths of perennials and grasses.
Below: Here’s a look from the front, just prior to the placement of all the color I am tempting you to imagine, lol. Dam…….I just found I don’t have those pictures on this computer, so use your imagination. It’s sure purty! Trust me! ;-) The waterfall here, by the way, goes two ways. You can see the falls (barely) on either side as they come down the little rise there……enlarge it.
Anyway, I love points of interest and lots of varying color, all the way through the year.
I just think we all want to enjoy it as it develops as much as when it sits still!
I recently learned how to embed music and videos into posts. I have been a music lover all my life. I have often looked for unique and pleasing forms and genres of music and, fortunately, I have found tons of it out there, long before computers.
This one here - Ethiopian - is something I stumbled upon a while back and I often use it for inspiration. I love the innocence of the piece and all gardeners will enjoy how green the area looks. There is also a remarkable - if simple - stringed instrument being played which I especially love. There is also a Father - Daughter theme I detect too and I am a true sucker for those.
Unfortunately, when whoever made the Youtube video, they screwed up at the 4:43 mark. That’s where the song ends, actually. Feel free to stop it there. You’ll see why, lol.
