Any amature landscape designers out there? **UPDATE - PICS ADDED**

[AngieChick]

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Sunset's Western Garden book is fabulous. You could also go to your library and check out some past years' "Sunset Western Garden Annual" books. It's a compilation of the year's gardening articles in Sunset magazine. I have gotten more information out of those books then from any other source.

 

[mom'sfolly]

I've got to post another link. I have seven different antique roses in my yard. Five of them bloom all summer and two have a fabulous spring bloom, and a less showy fall bloom. These are roses that are mostly from the 1800s, and they are not picky or difficult to grow. I have one that blooms in hard shade, and one very vigorous climber that is at least 15-20 up in an oak tree. All of them come from here

http://www.antiqueroseemporium.com/

these are the ones I have:

very vigorous climber, huge thorns, maybe they shipped the wrong rose? http://www.antiqueroseemporium.com/rose-1113.html

grows in shade, great dark green leaves and flowers with a silvery center, doesn't hold petals well when cut http://www.antiqueroseemporium.com/rose-205.html

small shrub, unpruned is about 3'x3' http://www.antiqueroseemporium.com/rose-910.html

I have Highway 290, which is a perfect pink rose only about 3/4"
I have, I believe a pinky climber, a Hermosa and two others I can't remember now. The new ones are the ones I don't remember.

 

[the-bird-man]

have you thought about a halls hardy almond tree? i have one and i am in zone 5 and it is a stunning tree but i can't remember how much water it takes. its a cross of a almond and a peach tree. with my flower garden a made paths out of flag stone with woolly thyme planted in the cracks, it give a natural look and the thyme smells great when you walk on it. i would stay away from aspens

 

[Coopa Cabana]

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I'm going to have to check out that almond tree!!

I really have to agree with BirdMan regarding the Aspen trees. They may look great from a distance - up close, not so good. The weather has to be just PERFECT for the leaves to not get black spot. Then there's aspen gall. And they are actually very messy trees, depending on whether you have a male or female. And they are VERY INVASIVE! Did you know that the world's largest living organism is a grove of Aspen trees - it's here in Colorado, and if I remember correctly, up by Steamboat Springs.

 

[SunnyDawn]

Yes sedums and penstemons are great! Haven't grown almonds in this area but they were wonderful in the Bay Area. And Yes! Aspens are horribly invasive in this area and are on the "Do not plant list" for Nevada. Some sedums can't survive our winters here but my front yard is mostly sedum (instead of a lawn). Just get the small leafed varieties. The more fleshy the leaves the more likely they are to freeze in winter. I have stone paths meandering through the yard and I even plant my tomatoes out there.

That is more so that the chickens can't get to them versus the aesthetic appeal though.

I also love large to medium rocks placed in groupings here and there (I like to highlight these more dramatic areas with accent lights. Just bury the rocks. It gives it a much more natural look. I hate it when rocks are just plopped out in the landscape! It makes it so obvious that they are not really part of the natural landscape and really draw the eye to them (and not in a good way). The eye should be drawn along a beautiful view with out sore thumbs sticking out to ruin it.

Keep your garden areas small or with small stone (or whatever your medium of choice) paths so that these areas can be accessed for maintenance (there are low maintenance gardens but there is no such thing as a NO maintenance garden). I like to intersperse raised areas (against the retaining wall would be a great place to do this and it would soften the straight lines of the wall). I love a drip system because the maintenance is easy and the lines can be hidden, unlike huge sprinkler heads. Not to mention the water saving benefits. You can use drippers for your low water plants and still have a couple of plants that require more water by building berms around them and placing bubblers at their base. Trees require a larger area for water since you are watering the roots not the base of the tree.

I feel a little odd responding here when I haven't seen the property or measured and mapped it. Plus I don't meet the thread's request for an amatuer. But I'm putting my 2 cents worth in anyway (you know I can never resist that).

When designing a garden I feel like it's important that it beckons the viewer to explore. I don't like it when every area of the garden can be viewed from the patio. Visitors never venture beyond the patio when a garden is designed like that and that's a shame. I do like separated areas with a meandering path so that there are surprises along the way (a small sculpture or some other decor item). Also I don't like a yard that is filled with trinkets and stuff, it gets too messy looking and overwhelming.

Lights are crucial in the landscape for safety reasons (avoids tripping hazards) and for aesthetics. They really create drama and I almost always go for solar lights (many have long cords leading to a small solar panel so you can place the lights in the shade and the panel in the sun). LEDs are so much better these days, than they used to be, and put out a lot of light for very little energy draw so your lights stay on a lot longer on a day's charge. They even have spotlights now that are LED solar. I got most of mine through Gardener's Supply catalog or Solutions catalog; http://www.gardeners.com/Solar-Lights/20652,default,sc.html http://www.solutions.com/jump.jsp?itemType=CATEGORY&itemID=802&path=1%2C2%2C4%2C798%2C802

I agree with another post though, when they said that the plant selections should come after the hardscape design has been decided (and put on paper, which is where the measuring comes in). There are sooo many plants to choose from and as long as you pay attention to your requirements, which include hardiness zone, drought tolerance, height and spread of each plant (this is the number one mistake most new gardeners make by the way), color, visual interest in at least 3 of the 4 seasons (yes you can put a few plants in that only shine for a few weeks a year if they are surrounded by palnts that create interest at other times), light requirements and ease of care, you will not have any troubles finding a lot of plants that fit the bill. Honest, I know it sounds complicated but most gardening catalogs have search parameters that make this very easy plus any quality Nursery plantsman/woman can be a tremendous help. So yes, I would plan out the design before you order the plants and don't order the plants before most of the prep is done. It is heart breaking to see your lovely plants dying because the beds they are going in are not ready yet or they are dying after you plant them because they were too stressed before planting to survive the trauma of transplant.

Long winded post I know but you asked for it.

As far as color goes I am probably not the right person to ask since I always design my gardens with feng shui in mind and like to include an accent (or three) in each area that represents good feng shui for that area. Even feng shui differs depending on what discipline you study but the basic idea is creating an area (or areas) that create good energy flow and usually focuses on your intent being more important than each little detail.

A last note, when planting keep your groupings of plants to odd numbers (3-5 or more) and avoid areas with only one single plant. The garden looks haphazard when this happens. Avoid the temptation to have one of every plant you see that you like. A narrower selection makes for easier care and it looks more appealing. If you want more help I need measurements and a drawn plan with all the features you want to keep and exactly where the new garage, pool etc is going/staying.

BTW I no longer do this for a living because my back can't take it any more but I am still happy to give design guidance and often do for friends and an occasional client that won't listen when I say I've quit.

What ever you decide be sure it's a garden you enjoy! Make sure it works for the whole family and that it looks cohesive throughout. Ok, I'm done!

 

[the-bird-man]

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I'm going to have to check out that almond tree!!

I really have to agree with BirdMan regarding the Aspen trees. They may look great from a distance - up close, not so good. The weather has to be just PERFECT for the leaves to not get black spot. Then there's aspen gall. And they are actually very messy trees, depending on whether you have a male or female. And they are VERY INVASIVE! Did you know that the world's largest living organism is a grove of Aspen trees - it's here in Colorado, and if I remember correctly, up by Steamboat Springs.

halls hardy almonds are the best

if you plant a aspen you got to plant in in a concrete vault thats a foot think. lol. and coopa cabana is correct about the largest organism on earth but i am sure its located in utah up by fish lake near richfield utah, or at least that is what the forest service signs say

 

[SunnyDawn]

Quote:
I'm going to have to check out that almond tree!!

I really have to agree with BirdMan regarding the Aspen trees. They may look great from a distance - up close, not so good. The weather has to be just PERFECT for the leaves to not get black spot. Then there's aspen gall. And they are actually very messy trees, depending on whether you have a male or female. And they are VERY INVASIVE! Did you know that the world's largest living organism is a grove of Aspen trees - it's here in Colorado, and if I remember correctly, up by Steamboat Springs.

halls hardy almonds are the best

if you plant a aspen you got to plant in in a concrete vault thats a foot think. lol. and coopa cabana is correct about the largest organism on earth but i am sure its located in utah up by fish lake near richfield utah, or at least that is what the forest service signs say

Ok, I couldn't resist looking it up and the-bird-man is right. Here is a Wikipedia article that I found very interesting since I thought the largest living organism was a mushroom.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Largest_organisms
I'm sure that anyone that has to deal with a huge stand of invasive Aspens has a right to complain though! I've had to have many colonies ripped out of client's yards before I could start on their projects. They will take over even heavy, deep rock beds.

 

[Coopa Cabana]

I must have looked it up in Wiki at the same time! I stand corrected, and my congrats (??) to Utah!!

 

[SunnyDawn]

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[Coopa Cabana]

I wouldn't worry too much about the large-leaved Stonecrop Sedum freezing - they come back just great in the Spring! In addition to the old standard Autumn Joy, there's Matrona, Neon, Frosty Morn (variegated), and "Black Jack" is one of my favorites.

SunnyD, what has been your experience with Penstemons being relatively short-lived?