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Design work |
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Design work |
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My approach to Garden and Landscape Design, including hardscaping design:
Gardening is the process of establishing living plants, functional hardscaping and elements of beauty in an outdoor space .
It can be done by going traditional ways as well as new and unusual paths. It involves a creative process in which ideas are allowed to flow, and it should be open and imaginative and sensible in it's proceeding.
Garden design also has to take into account technical necessities and therefore needs to be based on sound knowledge and understanding of all parts that play a role in this complex arrangement - be it the soil, plant requirements or plant performance, necessities of infrastructure, maintenance needs or ecology. The choice of materials also has an important influence on the outcome of the garden creation, including the hardscaping materials and the plants themselves.
Last but not least, the designer needs to be perceptive to the customers preferences, needs, budget, and so on.
What is my specialty?
I am asked this question frequently, and have a hard time answering it.
I should say that my specialty is "Creating beauty from plants and stone". Being a plants man and also a stone mason and sculptor, I equally bring the experience of both into my design work.
Beyond that, I refuse to limit myself to a specialty. I like variety and enjoy designing all sorts of landscapes and gardens. I prefer the challenge over the routine.
However, most of my designs are products of the individual necessities and situation of the locale - and the preferences of the owner. Very often they are simply good, functional layouts that meet the needs of infrastructure, beauty and recreation in the best possible and most cost-efficient way. Accordingly, these designs include all considerations from grading and drainage to walkway layouts, patios, shade trees, screen plantings, flower beds, etc. At other times, I work purely on plant designs where the focus is entirely on beautiful combinations of foliage and flowers, in all their variations of shape, texture, color, fragrance, and seasonal changes. Some of my gardens are very specialized, however, such as miniature gardens, butterfly gardens, oriental gardens, woodland garden and water gardens of all sort.
My Principles:
I design with natural and traditional materials only. This includes a broad spectrum of natural stones, clean composts and mulches, and beautiful plants. Gardening is about being close to nature, therefore it is a wise move to show the artificial things their limits. I do not use pavers or wall stones that are molded from concrete. However, I do use fired clay brick as a traditional material, especially around historic houses and in urban areas.
Sustainability in landscaping involves careful plant choices. Not only have invasive plants to be avoided, but all plants used have to exactly meet the requirements of the site. They have to be able to live in their spot with little intervention and few maintenance tasks by their owners. Replanting annuals and short-lived kinds of perennials on a large scale is not my thing and should be limited to a few focal points and flower planters. My designs usually contain long-lived plants, especially a wide variety of ornamental shrubs. Many are compact or dwarf varieties, because these don't outgrow their available space and need less pruning and trimming. They usually take longer than other plants to get established and to come to their full beauty, but once grown in and full, they require very little maintenance and keep weeds in bound as well. These plantings become better as they age, instead of declining! Well, I miss out on being called back year after year for all the annual beds to be replanted - however, I do admit that they can be very beautiful.
A good deal of my work concerns solutions for problem locations, such as entrance areas that lack function and beauty, or planting locations with dry shade, strongly draining slopes or sterile soils. These are often solved within the frame of a consulting visit or a small, limited design drawing.
Depending on the project and the customers wishes, my designs contain one or several of the following parts:
| - an overall landscape plan, in black& white or color |  |
| - an overall landscape plan focusing on technical specifications, needed by the installation crew |  |
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drawings of details, elevations, drainage installations, etc
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| - plant lists with trees, shrubs and perennials recommended for the site |  |
| - planting designs on paper or staking out of plant locations on site |  |
| - a text describing the design, and including technical details relevant for the implementation |  |
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in some cases, a detailed site analysis is a useful tool
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| - upon request I can add a pencil or colored sketch of how the finished project would look like |  |
| - however, for most design needs it is sufficient to have one single drawing that specifies the hardscaping and major plant locations, and this is typically accompanied by a plant list and brief written explanations |  |
For my rates, se "Consulting"
Thank You!.
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