Friday, March 7, 2014

OLMSTED LEGACY


Born in Hartford, Connecticut and raised by his father, unable to attend Yale College because his eyesight had weakened due to sumac poisoning, Frederick Law Olmsted sailed off to China where he returned a year later with scurvy.  After recovering, he set out his hand at farming on Staten Island, failing miserably to profit from his land holdings.  Next he embarked for England and Wales with his brother whereupon they encountered magnificent estates, parks and rural scenery.  Such was the indication of things to come.  Most influential in his journeys were Joseph Paxton’s design for Birkenhead. Paxton sought to bring the grandeur of the aristocratic garden to the working people of Birkenhead. The park was a declaration of civic pride to nearby Liverpool and an attempt to tempt wealthy taxpayers to either build or purchase homes in Birkenhead. It is widely believed to be the first civic park in Britain, but more importantly within this context it provide the inspiration and template for Olmsted (and Calvert Vauxs) work.  Olmsted wrote ""five minutes of admiration, and a few more spent studying the manner in which art had been employed to obtain from nature so much beauty, and I was ready to admit that in democratic America there was nothing to be thought of as comparable with this People’s Garden"."

 Illustration and photograph of  Birkenhead Park
(youyesterday.com/flicker.com)

“Olmsted was much impressed with the meandering footpaths and open meadows spangled with rocks and scattered trees. He wondered how cleverly "art had been employed to obtain from nature so much beauty." And wonder of wonders, this was not just a sanctum for some noble lord but a park open to the public, a park for people of all stations in life. In all the cities of democratic America, he had to admit, there was nothing quite like it. Not yet, anyway.” National Geographic Magazine, March 2005.

Illustration of Central Park/Bethesda Terrace and fountain
youandyesterday.com

Much has been written on Olmsted’s intriguing life, including the most recent bestseller “A Clearing in the Distance” by Witold Rybczynski.  Thanks to the efforts of the Olmsted Legacy a film that was initially screened last year at select locations will now be coming to public television. The Olmsted Legacy, with its name slightly tweaked to "Olmsted and Americas Urban Parks" will be aired appropriately on PBS for Earth Day, April 20th at 10 p.m.  


Cant wait!
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designing backyard landscaping

designing backyard landscaping

Mainly suitable for entertainment functions and for prolonged living regions, backyard landscaping designs can be as comprehensive as needed to get the look preferred. Taking time to get out any design is vital. This design and style should include strategies for present trees and also shrubberies, retaining partitions, fences as well as backyard constructions. Backyard landscaping designs need to be properly thought out as well as planned. Employ and function with the layout ought to be the first developing step. Privateness issues with others who live nearby, pet concerns, and run away animals should be addressed any time planning the actual landscape design. Play regions and leisure areas should be well planned with regard to.

An unappealing fence or perhaps chain related fence may be covered up by the tree range or bushes line that can bank versus it correctly. Use this amount of designing to consider planting regarding noise and also privacy causes. Most landscaping designs movement freely without having set constructing other than becoming pleasing for the eyes in the beholder. Existing terrace areas and also pools must be carefully created around to hold entertainment price high. Populating plants close to in aimless ways isnt an option in relation to seating agreements. Boxy seating areas wont be as desirable to the vision as people who curve along with curl all around a sitting area on a pair of sides or maybe more. Every nook should be looked at by the peak of crops needed for personal privacy. Proper jogging paths might be scattered together with pea gravel or even set together with occasional walking stones twisting through the landscaping design. Pavers will also be ideal route material and may be used, regarding avoid being forced to edge the particular landscaped location with border material.

Usually, a seed or plant can be properly moved to end up being incorporated into the style. Large timber may take much more planning. Chatting with a local gardening shop about shifting larger rooted trees, such as fruit trees and shrubs, is recommended. Organizing the proceed for current plants ought to be done when they are within their dormant express to avoid just about any potential re-rooting issues. The design period should also will include a nearby drinking water source with regard to landscape providing water, or a normal water irrigation style should be extra. It is recommended that just about all waterlines, underground cable tv lines, electric powered line, cell phone lines along with gas traces be well noticeable beforehand. Getting in touch with the local energy and electric company is a good idea prior to ever rooting up any yard.

When the backyard landscaping designs are attracted and finished, vegetation, trees, h2o structures as well as pavers or moving stones must be bought. Vegetation, trees as well as shrubbery ought to be chosen for his or her beauty in addition to their hardiness. Make sure the vegetation that are acquired for the landscaping venture are effectively zoned for that area. A neighborhood nursery as well as landscaping magazine can have this information. Local plants needs to be used, not simply for the current wildlife varieties, but simply because invasive kinds tend to grow to be aggressive as well as quickly take control the design, typically killing away native varieties.

Water fountains and also backyard drinking water ponds provide artistic along with architectural benefit to backyard landscaping designs. Crops that are recognized water kinds or endure wet garden soil conditions ought to be easy to find and also establish near these water fountains. If sea food are combined with the water lake, a good investment would have been a pond fine mesh covering to maintain birds through fishing inside pond. Capabilities to add all around ponds as well as fountains are generally beautiful riverbed stones and modest landscaping boulders. Lamps that lighting these features way up at night may add even more curiosity to the panorama. Solar lighting kits will be the most popular and a lot cost-effective to use.
designing your backyard landscaping
design my backyard landscape

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The Wild Garden

What in your garden is truly wild?

At its heart, the sustainable gardening movement is about creating gardens that look and act more like nature.  Or at least an interpreted form of it.  But how many of our gardens actually let wildness in?  Do we allow plants to self-seed and roam freely?  Are happy accidents permitted, or do we quickly correct them and steer the garden back on course?

The concept of wildness in gardens is not new.  But the topic is hotter than ever these days.  Author, lecturer, photographer, and designer Rick Darke has recently revived William Robinsons classic tome The Wild Garden.  William Robinson (1838-1935) introduced a revolutionary book in 1870 that advocated an authentically natural approach to planting design.  Now Rick Darke has republished this timeless work, complete with Darkes own photographs and preface.

No one in America has Rick Darke’s eye for plants in their natural habitat. Darke is one of the few planting photographers today to get beyond the horticultural close up and show plants living and growing in their natural habitats. The result is dramatic. Darke’s books are literally changing planting design in America, as his photographs serve as powerful inspiration to landscape architects and gardeners. Now those photographs come together with Robinson’s timeless text.

The Idea of Wildness

The concept of wilderness has inspired literature throughout the centuries. But Robinson dispenses with this mythic “wilderness” and offers a concept of wildness that is entirely relevant for creating a modern, ecological landscape ethic. The wild garden, “has nothing to do with the old idea of ‘Wilderness,’” writes Robinson in his preface. Robinson’s wild garden is not a pristine sanctuary untouched by human hands, but a place where human activity and natural ecology intersect. “Some have thought of it as a garden run wild,” Robinson says.

A New Aesthetic

That Robinson’s wild garden does not preclude human intervention, but welcomes it, makes it the starting point for any gardener serious about sustainable design. Chapter by chapter, Robinson richly describes strategies for arranging plants to work within naturally occurring plant communities. Robinson is a plantsman’s plantsman. Each chapter focuses on solid techniques for combining plants into various natural habitats, creating a hybrid space that is at once wild and man-made.

His combinations are poetic: double crimson peonies dotted through a field of native grasses; clumps of yellow alliums growing along a forgotten fenceline; or drifts of Lily of the Valley gathered in a sunny copse in the woods. His work describes a new aesthetic: a third nature where cherished cultivated plants intermingle freely with effervescent native vegetation.

In addition to the text, the book has almost a hundred exquisite drawings and engravings by British artist Alfred Parsons. The drawings bring to life Robinson’s vision, adding a moody richness that conceals as much as it reveals.

The Wild Garden is essential reading for any plant designer, landscape architect, or gardener. This textbook provides layers of inspiration and depth not offered by today’s coffee table books on planting. Since reading this book, my planting designs have been liberated, and I owe a debt to Robinson and Darke for expanding my imagination.
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Thursday, March 6, 2014

house landscaping ideas

house landscaping ideas


There is virtually universal arrangement that we are checking out the toughest housing marketplace in many years. And since fact, vendors need each and every advantage they are able to get because of their homes to square above the opposition. One of the best methods for a home to formulate curb appeal is through standard landscaping. Is really a handy listing of locations that should be tackled.
BushesGood landscaping commences with well-trimmed bushes. Maintain bushes clipped and totally free of the house windows. This is important for 2 reasons. Very first, it helps future buyers start to see the windows on the surface. Second, it enables them to begin to see the sun perfect when looking at the house from the inside of.
Define Is bordered by on Bloom Beds
The actual flower bedrooms on the outside are among the more attractive options that come with a home. Its always best to make sure the is bordered by of these furniture have apparent definition. This can highlight these even more. Not to mention, get all of the weeds from the beds.
Keep the Grassed Mowed Frequently
When youre simply living in your home and not intending to sell, you are able to sometimes pull off cutting the particular grass right after 2 or 3 weeks. Yet, if your home is in the marketplace, your purchasers need to see fresh cut your lawn. Make sure your own grass can be cut at least a week. If you cant bear this task upwards yourself, contemplate hiring a garden care services.
Keep Your Entrance Walkway Crystal clear
This is a widespread issue in which sellers typically neglect; preserving a clear walkway to their doorway. The last thing a purchaser wants to discover is overgrown turf obstructing their own path to your home. It makes all of them feel a smaller amount welcome, and helps to create an pointless distraction which takes away from the additional positives you must have done to your outdoor.
Get Rid of Backyard Clutter
ok, this may not necessarily technically be described as a "landscaping" tip, however it is still suitable to getting the outside of your home fit. This goes rear to surviving in the home sentiments selling that. While dwelling there, it is possible to and should get your playthings out in the particular yard. In fact, a lawn is made to take part in. But when you are selling your property, its a totally ballgame. Buyers dont wish to see all of your "stuff" scattered through your lawn, it discounts their ability in order to picture their unique stuff inside the yard. Maintain everything tidy and neat, and keep garbage cans and also recycle receptacles in their suitable place in the actual garage.
Buy your Car From Sight
Once again, not so much the landscaping idea as a keeping your own exterior clean suggestion, but still very important. Once your house is for sale, you never know just how much drive by traffic you happen to be getting. These are generally people choosing a quick look to find out if they think the property is worth searching further. When possible, make sure to car park your car in the spare room, so this travel by visitors can have a good unobstructed take a look at the exterior of the property.
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Bellagio Floral Designs Botanical Art Installations





Bellagio Las Vegas
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Warming Trends Mash Up Video

We here at Warming Trends just wanted to share a video mash-up with you about what we do here at our headquarters in Denver, Colorado.

We build custom fire pits, outdoor burning systems, fire pit frames and specialize in landscape design.

From cutting custom plates, to assembling custom fire pit frames, to custom burning systems, we make everything here on site exactly to your dimensional requirements. You can choose from our three standard systems, OR, we can custom fit any fire pits to your architectural needs. We work with homeowners, commercial businesses, architects, builders, contractors and landscape designers. We pride ourselves on the fact that whatever your design requirements are, we can build whatever you need based on your specs.

So enjoy our video mash-up below and please contact us today when you are in the market for a commercial or residential custom fire pit.

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Wednesday, March 5, 2014

The Corner Cafe Hearts Street Trees

This tree gets a new heart despite its decayed heartwood

Durban is quite well known for its abundant well established street trees. The Flamboyant (By name and description) creates an incredible display in Summer with its masses of red flowers. Its flowers take over from where the more serene purple blooms of the Jacaranda end. At the moment the Tabebuia are blooming in splashes of pink and yellow that seem to fall to the floor around the trees like a matching carpet. Other trees that stand out are Tibouchina and Spathodea, while the ever green Trichelia (Essenwoods/Natal Mahogany) and the canopy-forming Albizia (Flatcrown) are some of the few indigenous trees used to line our streets.

Unfortunately, some of these trees that were planted about half a century ago, are starting to reach the end of their lives. There have been a few cases lately of cars being flattened by their huge branches, as the heartwood has rotted away, or white ants have taken what strength is left in their limbs.

So it warmed my cockles to see a tree that had been recently felled because its core had decayed, being given new life by The Corner Cafe. A huge big heart was sculpted out of one of its now well shortened branches by the members of the Tree Amigos - a tree felling company from Durban.
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The Colors of a Northeastern Fall Garden

 
 
 
The colors of fall are beautiful this year and as Hurricane Sandy stormed up the northeastern coastline I am glad I felt a need to capture the beauty of the foliage before the powerful winds arrived here on Long Island.  I saved the photos on my computer and now that the power is restored I can share them.   The last photo was just taken after the storm.  To much surprise a lot of the fall color is still around.  To say the least...it has been a long week.  Fortunately many of the large aging trees on the property have been removed over the years and the evergreens and flowering shrubs are a bit more flexible. The Crape Myrtle and Magnolia have lost all their leaves so I am glad to have gotten the photos.  The Coral Bark Maple still has its golden yellow foliage which it wasnt about to give up just yet and the Knock Out Roses are determined to still produce blooms. I hope you enjoy the photos of the changing fall garden.

Maiden Grass Yaku Jima and Magnolia (Backdrop)

Spirea Limemound Fall Foliage and Flowers
Golden Oriental Spruce Skylands and Coral Bark Maple Sango Kaku (Left)
Crape Myrtle Foliage (Close Up)
Maiden Grass Yaku Jima
Perennial Garden Bed (Astilbe, Daylily and Lambs Ear)
Coral Bark Maple (Acer palmatum Sango Kaku)
Spirea Goldflame and Hosta
Crape Myrtle Sioux Fall Foliage
Spirea Goldflame
Golden Oriental Spruce Skylands and Coral Bark Maple  (Acer palmatum Sango Kaku)
 
Barberry, Golden Oriental Spruce Skylands and Nepeta with Weeping Blue Atlas Cedar (Far Left)

Sedum Brilliant Fall Color 


Weeping Japanese Maple (Pre-Storm)...now a little more bonsai but OK...

Knock Out Rose After the Storm
 
And after the storm with gusts of 90 mph winds...the resilient Knock Out Roses are blooming profusely...not about to quit but to keep the colors coming.  

We are very thankful that we made it through the storm alright with just some power outages and clean up.  My heart goes out to all of those whos lives have been affected by Hurricane Sandy and hope for a safe and speedy recovery.

Thank you for visiting.   

 
Author: Lee@A Guide To Northeastern Gardening, Copyright 2012. All rights reserved
 
 
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Private Residence Puget St






These are more examples of work using a naturalized landscape with a minimal hardscape for balance, texture and beauty.
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Bottlebrush Grass

Hystrix patula ( Bottlebrush Grass )
A perennial ornamental grass, reaching up to 3 feet, that looks great when used in groups. It is native to moist woods in the eastern U.S.
The foliage is green during summer, turning to brown during early autumn.
The flower plumes appear during summer.
Hardy zones 3 to 8, thrives on dry soil in partial to full shade.
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Tuesday, March 4, 2014

Peaceful Backyard Landscape Design Ideas

Existence can be rather chaotic: each of our jobs, the homes, as well as our family members can make a large amount of demands about our period. But one involving lifes many soothing assets can be found in your own backyard. Scenery that provide feeling of peace as well as tranquility are not only found beautiful : theyre great for the spirit, too. Then when it comes to making a space yes its true for your needs, youll find literally hundreds of backyard landscape design ideas to select from. Why not try many of these?

? Butterfly Gardens: In addition beautiful when compared to a butterfly? From the very start of their life, butterflies point out renewal as well as rebirth -- and theyre definitely gorgeous for you to behold. Grape planting flowers and also herbs (similar to inexpensive marigolds along with oregano) can draw in butterflies in your space, making butterfly gardens great landscaping ideas for small backyards, too.

? AromaGarden:Folks are very responsive to smell : more so compared to you might think. (This is why so many club treatments include scented h2o.) Those in demand for inexpensive backyard landscape design ideas might do well to consider smell above sight. Jasmine, jasmine and thyme help to make wonderful addendums to backyard landscapes, and could be combined with the plants and flowers already flowering.

? Fire Pits: Dont assume all backyard landscape design ideas have to contain flowers. For anyone with more place, installing a fireplace pit is a fantastic way to produce a cozy out of doors living area. Organic stones, such as Bluestones, fit effectively with all backyard panoramas, because they is often as conspicuous as well as as refined as you need. For those who are observing their costs, concrete or even bricks can make a more modern sense.

? Water: Few people can have a talking brook within their yard, yet installing a new fountain or perhaps koi fish-pond is a great subsequent choice. And since fountains as well as ponds can be found in all shapes and forms, theyre an excellent part of landscaping ideas for small backyards. When you have more space - and much more of a finances - take into account hiring a builder who can use a small fountain in a bigger pond. You may also attract chickens, such as other poultry and storks, searching for a quick soak (or a speedy bite you can eat) during their migration with places.

? Curved Patios: So why do we often assume that decks must be rectangular or square? Most things anyway have circular edges; perhaps your backyard scenery and hardscapes must, too. Curved patios seem best together with rounded furnishings, which cards intimacy along with conversation. You may even put in a water composition, fire pit or even stone kitchen table in the center of the actual circle to make symmetry. In case you want to really feel a little more "at one" with all the world, a tiny Zen garden may be placed at the center from the circle or even all around this.

? Hedges: When you have a larger finances - and bigger outdoor space -- consider completing it together with larger trees and shrubs. Hedges are excellent for backyard landscape design ideas which might be aimed towards developing privacy in a natural manner. They create all-natural fencing, therefore cocooning you inside your outdoor home. If you want a thing a little less extreme for your backyard areas, you can use bamboo sheets instead of timber: its a satisfying plant that will grows speedily, and can build a warm and inviting area.

Landscaping Ideas for Small Backyards

If you dont have a greater yard, dont be concerned: you can create a few amazing backyard scenery in smaller sized spaces, way too. You may want to talk to a service provider before you start searching up your backyard, though: occasionally the best backyard landscape design ideas can be overwhelming inside smaller spots, and sometimes more compact pieces move completely unseen. Whats most critical about your backyard landscapes design are generally ideas that work together with you. You dont want to select flowers or even stones that seem to be out of place in the region where you live, thus make sure to shop around before starting assembling your project.

Jersey Gardening, LLC. started in 76 when Dennis Malibashka thought we would pursue the romance and pastime of landscape design.
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BROWNFIELD REMEDIATION


On the north bank of the Thames River, between North Woolwich Road and Thames Barrier in Silvertown (on the outskirts of London, England) lies one of the finest modern parks in Britain.  The Thames Barrier Park was opened in the new millennium (2000), a regenerated formerely contaminated site that once housed timber treatment plants, petrochemical and acid works for over 150 years on the riverbank. It is a 27-acre site of inner city greenery wedged between two modern housing developments along the riverside.

French designers Alain Provost (designer of Parc Citroen in Paris) and Alain Cousseran of Group Signes teamed up with Brit architects Patel Taylor and Ove Arup to transform this former brownfield site.

A parti diagram of this landscape would be a simple rectangle sliced by a diagonal line.

What you see is a vast carpet of rolling hedgerows and lawn blanketing a space between the railway line and the silver domes (or as locals refer to them –“cockleshells”) of the Thames Barrier (the dramatic engineering structure that prevents the centre of the capital being inundated when floods of water are coming down river, and high tides advancing from the east.)

To remediate this brownfield a significant amount of the soil was hauled off, but the bulk of the materials were simply rearranged to reflect the vision of the design team. This profile was then capped with crushed concrete and a geotextile layer and topped off with imported clean soil to confirm the sites suitability for use.

Fields of wildflowers, a grid network of birches and stretching the length of the park is the largest and perhaps most modernesque sunken garden in London – known as the “Green Dock”.  This simulation of a marine dock is accessible by the public and crossed by two viewing bridges.  The planting is a tidal flow of wave-cut hedges alternating with beds of perennials such as Geranium cantabrigiense, Nepeta (catmint), Papaver (poppies) and more.
A group of local friends regularly play hide + seek in the park

Note the separate trash can for fido waste

**all photos Todd Haiman 2010

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COUNTDOWN TO CHELSEA FLOWER SHOW 5


With an eye toward sustainable solutions, Nigel Dunnett, Adrian Hallam and Chris Arrowsmith presented an atypical garden at Chelsea last year… one that is both educational and creative in it’s approach. The “Future Nature” garden looks to a future for landscapes and gardens in a changing and unpredictable climate. This garden presents a number of practical solutions that can be used to create a new type of drought-resistant urban garden especially suited to underutilized city spaces. Its central message is, that by using a combination of any of the garden’s features coupled with careful plant selection, anybody, using simple planting methods and avoiding irrigation except with stored rainwater, can create a colorful and naturalistic garden. It aims to both help alleviate pressure on the urban drainage infrastructure in wet weather and maximize the use of water during increasingly dry summer months.

The central idea to this garden is water.... In the northern hemisphere, due to the rotation of the earth about its polar axis water flows down holes n a clockwise direction.  Check the sink or toilet, next time you go to the loo!!  Henceforth this landscape design is expressed in a spiral, clockwise direction.
Green roof - The colorful flowering green roof acts like a sponge, absorbing half of all the rainfall that falls on it, reducing the rate of stormwater run-off after heavy rainfall.  A mixture of sedums are chosen to withstand the harsh exposed conditions found on rooftops and provide a rich source of nectar for visiting insects on what would otherwise be a sterile and lifeless surface.  Well known are the benefits of green roofs - in addition to stormwater retentions and providing wildlife habitats, they also provide social benefits, improve air quality, modify urban micro-climates, provide insulation against heat and sound within the building and increase the life expectancy of the roof, and in some municipalities provide property tax credits and assist toward leed certification.

Together with the stormwater planter this series of small pools collect any excess rainwater that leaves the green roof.  The water passes thru a series of what is represented as small pools through upright growing aquatic plants that help to clean and purify the water before it spills into the rill (small channel).  The rill is designed to be attractive when not filled with water.
The line of the green roof flows in a spiral round o the pools and then via the rill to the central pool and vertical garden tower.The spiral is found in many cultures as a symbol of life and eternity.... a fitting form for a garden that aims to prolong the life of plants and addresses the pathway to a sustainable future by managing water, the source of life.

Key features of the garden include: a green roof to help reduce surface water runoff as well as enhancing biodiversity; storm water planters and pools to retain water from the roof; a living tower holding drought-resistant plants; butterfly mounds and insect towers stocked with colorful but drought-resistant planting that provide wildlife habitats in a brownfield environment.
Vertical Garden Tower - Full of intricate detail, composed of stacked and reclaimed materials.  Space for plant material, insects and other wildlife to find shelter and homes.  Unlike many “living walls” this also encompasses which require large amounts of water, this vertical garden is not dependent upon continuous irrigation.

Wild Flower Meadow - a designed and stylized version of the cosmopolitan mix of native and non-native plants that colonize urban wasteland sites and can be hotspots for the wildlife that grazes on the native species.

Stormwater Basins - Excess rainwater that leaves the green roof either falls directly into the stormwater planter, which absorbs further waste or drains into the collecting pools.  The planting will tolerate being inundated with water, but will also withstand long periods of drier conditions.  Stormwater basins can be used where rains lack the capacity to deal with all the run-offs from private property.

Like many gardens at Chelsea this garden was relocated to Yorkshire after the show and through its use continues to promote the inventive use of small urban spaces and water management.
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