Small Garden : San Jose, Ca.

A backyard in east San Jose. Natives share the site with a few exotics including Bamboo and Chamomile. No before pics but a huge transformation, a car tire was even excavated from the dead lawn during the demolition! This is one my very first projects.

Pictured here at eight months after installation, the non native Chamomile ground cover had spread rapidly and is shown here freshly cut back. The Rhamnus californica Coffeeberry started as a one gallon is taking a beautiful form at the corner of the new patio.

Muhlenbergia rigens Deer Grass

A surprise several months after planting when the Lepechinia blooms and turns out to be of Mexican origin and really thriving. Love it.

Native Cornerstrip : Mountain View, Ca.

A young Salvia apiana White Sage grows between Lepechinia fragrans and Salvia clevelandii.

Solidago Goldenrod coming into bloom

Clarkia amoena "Godetia"

The Mountain View corner strip pictured here at seven months mid August 09' and untouched since planting.

Heterotheca villosa Golden Aster spreads it's roots beneath a "Pozo BLue" Cleveland Sage.

Erigeron glaucus Seaside Daisy at the foot of a young Manzanita.

At the corner of the driveway among accents of rock grow mixed plantings of native aster, grass, sage, and Manzanita pictured here at the time of installation.

Iris douglasiana "Canyon Snow" in bloom.

The new border is seeded with wildflowers and plantings that include Yarrow and Iris douglasiana "Canyon Snow".

The path is set in sand and Connecticut blue flagstone. One step was added for for the slight grade.

After a little grading and setting some rock, this corner strip in Mountain View is waiting for native plantings and a small stone path.

Native Rain Garden : Sunnyvale, Ca.

 A private rock patio space allows the family to enjoy the neighborhood while in the garden.

Salvia apiana, Artemesia californica, Salvia Bee's Bliss, Mimulus auranticus Fragaria chiloensis

The creamy flowers of a young Elderberry Sambucus mexicana.

Sambucus and Myrica growing into a privacy hedge.

Spring brings an explosion of colors as Poppies frame a mix of sages.

Sambucus mexicana will grow to offer privacy for the new boulder bench and stone patio.

 Myrica makes a great screen for privacy.

Myrica californica with Salvia Clevelandii, Calamagrostis foliosa and Pumpkin.

This Pumpkin volunteered from the corner of the new patio and grew to soften the hardscape while the new garden fills in. Thanks, nature!

Asclepias fascicularis Narrowleaf Milkweed is among the new plantings to invite Monarch butterflies.

With all the hardscape elements, irrigation, paths and sheet mulching finished this little garden is ready for native plantings.

A thick top layer of bark mulch completes the sheet mulching process.

Organic compost makes the second layer of the sheet-mulch lasagna.

Sheet mulching will act as a weed barrier and a soil builder once the compost and bark mulch are added.

Here is the beginning of the sheet-mulching process. The cardboard has been layered to catch water on the contours of the new landscape. Also, irrigation and a path of gold fines was completed before the sheet mulching began.

Low retaining walls elevate areas for drainage as part of the rock work. The grade is done by hand, taking care where possible to not disturb the remaining soil biology. As basins were dug to collect water from surrounding hardscape, the excavated soil is added and compacted into the low raised berms.

This boulder doubles as a natural bench for the family to feel more connection to the garden.

Once boulders were set, this blue stone patio was built to extend the front porch away from the house and offer an outdoor room to enjoy life in the new garden.

Small boulders and dry-stack work adds spacial interest along with small earthworks such as low berms and basins, a foundation for a rain garden is built.

A Sunnyvale residence overgrown with weeds and non-native grasses. The clients project goals were to transform this into a drought tolerant native garden.

Stone and Urbanite Native Garden : Portola Valley, Ca.

Ribes, Douglas Iris, Canyon Prince Wild Rye, Snapdragon, and Penstemon

A rock patio compliments the Native plantings.

Fragrant Ribes sanguineum and Ribes aureum with Iris douglasiana.

Elymus condensatus 'Canyon Prince' offers stunning blue with Galvezia speciosa in the background.

Dymondia margaretae Silver Carpet grows to soften the edges of the Urbanite.

Cercis occidentalis Western Redbud grows in the shade of the fence.

The finished patio and new plantings. Summer 09'.

The homeowners found the best spot to relax with a new bench.

Verbena lilacina

In the shade grows Salvia spathacea, Acer cicinatum, and a mix of native ferns and bunch grass.

New blue fines and recycled gravel offer path around the fescue meadow.

Ribes speciosum, Manzanita, and Cercis.

 This is the hillside after sheet mulching. Also pictured is the new path fines and recycled gravel connecting to the patio.

Wheeler Farms organic compost and a fine bark were used for the hillside sheet mulching process.

The hillside with cardboard and erosion mat. After sheet mulching, the hillside was seeded with native grasses for erosion control.

The "urbanite" transition to the front walkway before planting.

Once the patio is finished the other slab connecting to the gate entrance was worked into natural forms as a transition to the new raised patio.

Flagstone patio set and waiting for grout.

The stone was hand cut, placed, and numbered before masoning.

Screeding concrete into the reused brick web.

The masoned ledger coarse before backfill.

Just before pouring to level. The ledger has been set and is also ready for backfilling. Because the old slabs I built on were not proper level, a string line and level was used for setting all the brick and ledger... one by one.

Once both slabs and bricks are scrubbed clean, they are masoned into the web that was backfilled with concrete before the new stone was set. You can see here, the rocks and stone ledger being added as well as the first step to the house has been removed for the new level.

The before picture of the Portolla Valley residence. Showing the concrete slabs that were broken into the new form and used as urbanite for the patio and path project. Left alone, the slabs offer a foundation to build a new patio without having to remove them and pour a new slab. The goal was to use as little new concrete as possible. The surrounding brick path was pulled up and scrubbed to be used as a spacer between the slabs and the new stone patio.