GOLDEN

In late 2021, a family of two soon to become a family of three, reached out to help fill in what was already a beautiful garden and home. Though built in the 1950s with the bones of a garden skewing traditional with its boxwood lined pathways, iceberg roses, and lots of grass, a quick tour of the recently renovated interior told us a hard right from tradition into a landscape of natives and drought tolerant plants was going to be a perfect complement. To create a nice privacy hedge we lined the interior of the front fence with bay laurel - a nice alternative (albeit slower growing) to the more common ficus, privet, or podocarpus hedges. Under the canopy of a majestic deodar cedar tree, we mixed in dicksonia ferns, agave, yarrow, Carex tumulicola, and some Pittosporum crassifolium (though the rabbits mowed the ferns to their stumps within weeks - lesson learned and more on that later). Then, under the canopies of the two beautiful trees framing the entry we pushed everyone out of their comfort zones, including the neighbors ("where are those cactus going...you’re not getting rid of the roses are you?" said some elegantly dressed ladies from around the corner), and incorporated a few candelabra cactus with fragrant yerba buena as a surrounding groundcover, along with a mix of Leymus condensatus 'Canyon Prince' and Mexican marigold. In the backyard, mostly a combination of pool and hardscape lined with distinct planting areas, we pulled in some of the same touches — native grasses, agave, westringia, cactus, and a favorite addition the Yucca rostrata. Also, a truckload of cobble for the Chinese Elm, the true heart and soul of the back half of the property.

Then, in 2023, the same family of three soon to become a family of four, reached out to tackle phase two of this garden, which would largely focus on swapping lots of grass and all the boxwood hedges for a large palette of natives. One of the most special things about revisiting a project and tackling a garden in phases is the acknowledgement that garden making doesn’t happen in a few weeks, but is a constant process of growth, iteration, change, and more growth over the course of years — and this garden was no exception. The garden had exploded. The several canyon prince we planted had completely filled in while the Mexican marigold had gone full tilt, nearly outgrowing the 6-foot euphorbia that had once dwarfed all surrounding plants.

Now for the iteration and change — under the deodar canopy it was clear we needed to try other things. We incorporated hummingbird sage, Acanthus mollis, and Heuchera. We then removed the 2.5-foot tall boxwood hedge along the main brick pathway to the front door, which bifurcated the large yard into two grassy areas, and swapped it for a few bundlings of Muhlenbergia dubia, white and terracotta yarrow, Salvia bee's bliss, and Penstemon Margarita BOP. Kids could now run wild and move freely through the whole yard, even with the pathway lighting we strategically placed among the new plants. Then, at the very front of the property, beyond the fence line, we dug up nearly 800 square feet of grass and replaced it with a wild mix of natives — deer grass, California sagebrush, Penstemon spectabilis, Fragrant pitcher sage, bush sunflower, Cleveland sage, and more yarrow. We can't wait to see what the springtime holds for all these natives. Check back soon — we'll be sharing photos and musings on its growth (and continued iteration and change) here, as well as on our IG...

Much, much gratitude to this beautiful family of four — David, you know how much we appreciate your trust and enthusiasm for our ideas! It's always such an honor working with you.