Garden Design Quick Start Guide

Never use these three things in your garden! That is Point #3 in my book ' Garden and Landscape Design -  a Quick Start Guide.'    (Amazon)   Never use: plastic lawn edging Never use: gaudy colored mulch or stone Never use: cheap concrete block retaining walls Here we see all three at two homes just one block apart in suburban Chicago. This is very common.   Never use plastic lawn edging or gaudy colored much or stone. They detract from the plantings. Your gardens should not be repositories of excess amounts of plastic. The eye is drawn to the red colored wood chip mulch. Is that attractive? The red dye can leach from the mulch in wet weather and might even stain. The money spent on the edging and red mulch would have been better spent on more plants to fill in around the junipers.  Another serious problem with plastic edging is that it is prone to "frost heave" in cold climates. The freeze/thaw cycle pushes it upward and out of the ground.

Midwest gardening project in January. Really! We actually did this on January 10 & 11 at the home of a relative in suburban Chicago. The beds are now cleaned up a bit and several of the shrubs and evergreens were pruned as needed.  An out-of-place redbud (Cercis canadensis) was transplanted from the bed in front to the back yard.  Pruning during dormancy allows you to easily see which limbs need to go.  And please take a look at all of the photos here. This winter has been warmer than normal. Some plants (see photos) are beginning to sprout new buds here in mid-January. I doubt if that will cause damage if the weather turns back normally cold temperatures.    The front yard bed after pruning.   The front bed before cleanup. The red twig dogwood at back right has been pruned to allow better access through the gate. Several other shrubs were pruned.  Viburnum with buds swelling.  Ninebark (Physocarpus)   Service berry (Amelanchier) covered i

"Greeting pad" in the front of a home This view shows a front yard  "greeting pad" made of brick pavers. The home is in Naperville, Illinois. Our clients enjoy sitting  in front in the evening twilight. We also planted around the perimeter.  Note the seating wall behind that provides partial enclosure. It adds an outdoor living space feel. Seating walls are an entirely appropriate use of segmental concrete wall stones, an otherwise overused product.  The witch in the left foreground was added by our client as a Halloween embellishment.    This view gives you a better look at the seating wall.  This view from the street illustrates the sense of enclosure the clients have. The greeting pad is partially hidden yet it provides enough opening to look outward.  This closeup view from the street shows the seating wall more clearly.  To learn how to create spaces like this at your home please order my book 'Garden and Landscape Design a Q

A very easy hardscape We completed this simple patio in the back yard of a home in Naperville, Illinois. The clients wanted a retreat in the corner set away from a larger existing patio at the back of the house.   The stones are 25 to 30 natural limestone steppers. No cutting was needed. We merely dug out the turf, smoothed the soil beneath, and set the stones. No sand or gravel was used. Large stones like these are naturally stable.  Two courses of limestone wall stones behind define the back edge. Hardwood mulch was spread between the stones. Groundcover would be suitable filler, too. A project like this can be completed by two people in a half day. If possible, try to compost the turf that was removed in a corner out of sight.  To learn more please order my book 'Garden & Landscape Design - a Quick Start Guide.' Available at Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Garden-Landscape-Design-Quick-Start-ebook/dp/B00COMHCXK/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=154

No actual attorneys were harmed during the making of this patio! Point #4: Hardscapes will make or break your garden. During my on-air radio on interview on WCGO, host Mike Nowak, asked if inexperienced people can successfully install hardscapes.  The answer is a qualified, "Yes!" With proper preparation and with some direction from someone who knows a project like the one shown here is doable.  The woman setting bricks in these photos is my good friend, Karen. She is an attorney. Karen volunteered to join our crew of amateurs during the three days it took to complete the project. The site is at a home in Joliet, Illinois.  You will learn all about this in my book 'Garden and Landscape Design - a Quick Start Guide.' Available at Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Garden-Landscape-Design-Quick-Start-ebook/dp/B00COMHCXK/ref=sr_1_1?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1546882591&sr=1-1&keywords=David+pearling  Karen setting pavers on sand

"Baby, it's cold outside!"  Or is it? Five years ago the Midwest was in the grips of the "Polar Vortex." Do you remember? Not this year. Winter is the perfect time to plant some container gardens no matter where you live. The first two photos below are from my home in Chula Vista, California. The four photos of the patio garden with the ferns are from the home of a friend who lives in the Eastlake are of Chula Vista.  Tune in today, Sunday January 6 at 9:00 a.m, Central (7:00 a.m. Pacific) to the Mike Nowak Show on WCGO Chicago AM-1590. Online anywhere Listen Live at www.mikenowak.net The Finishing Touches Container Gardens Aloe blooming on my front porch in Chula Vista, California   Small container succulents on the table on our front porch. Condominium patio before we added some container plants.    The patio with the freshly added plants including large ferns.  (The large ferns were purchased from a

Saying "Goodbye" to San Diego... Departing today for Chicago for my interview on the Mike Nowak Show on Sunday at 9:00 a.m. Central (7:00 a.m. Pacific)  on WCGO  AM-1590. Listen Live at www.mikenowak.net We return to San Diego a week later after spending time with family in the Chicago area.  The photos below are not about garden design. Instead, they show about some of the other wonders that nature gives.  Joan and I spent this sunny but cool afternoon at the tide pools in La Jolla.  The "negative" low tide that comes during New Moon and Full Moon periods gave us a great expanse of pools to explore. Our low tide arrived at 2:45 p.m.  This is one of our favorite places.   The tide pools are directly behind us.  White ibis looking for a meal. We loved the reflection in the water.  Gotcha!  The daily catch.   Shell encrusted anemone in a shallow pool near the water's edge. All photos taken by me.

Patio and front walk in suburban Chicago We designed this patio project in southwest suburban Chicago and helped with the installation and planting. The homeowner is a relative. Her back yard had been a sea of grass with no patio at all. The job was entirely completed in just three days. Most of the crew who helped were inexperienced at this kind of work.   The garden around the patio after just two growing seasons. The pavers that make up the the concentric circles are no longer being made. The pavers that make up the upper circle were set by a friend who actually is lawyer. She had never done this kind of work prior to this.  Before and after photos taken from the same spot in the back yard. The front walkway of the home after two growing seasons. Note the colorful use of containers. The original crumbling concrete front walk. Our friend here is removing the old concrete in preparation for adding new base gravel.  Tools such as these will hel

"Hardscapes make or break your garden"  Part 2 Our friends recently completed this patio project at their home in Murrieta, California. The finished result is marvelous. Just off the back of the home under her new patio cover is counter/bar complete with gas grill, mini-fridge and gas fire pit with blue glass beads.  A few steps away are patio furniture and a two-sided fireplace with a TV.  The homeowner designed this entire project herself. She hired a contractor to complete the job.  The cost was under $20,000.00 including the large patio cover above.   We were not involved the process.  See note of caution below about how to protect yourself from unscrupulous contractors.   Bar/counter with fire pit.    The working side of the bar with installed gas grill and mini-fridge.   Outdoor furniture and a two-sided fireplace with TV above. This is all under the weather proof patio cover.  Closeup view of the two-sided gas fireplace and TV

"Hardscapes Will Make - or Break - Your Garden! That is Point #4 (of 5) in my short book Garden and Landscape Design a 'Quick Start' Guide. (Amazon or direct from me for $1.00. I will email you a PDF copy. Email me at gardenquickstartquide@gmail.com ) Hardscapes are the solid elements like patios, walls, decks, and boulders. They are the most challenging aspects of your garden to install because it usually requires several tons of material. The skills needed might be beyond some homeowners. You might be better served to hire a qualified contractor. After the hardscapes are finished you can easily follow up with your plantings and decorative elements.  NEVER USE CHEAP CONCRETE RETAINING WALL BLOCKS . That is among Point #3 in my Quick Start Guide. Unfortunately, many homeowners do use them. Products like that are completely over used and forced in where not needed. Nor are they attractive. We recommend using natural stone for small retaining walls. However, t

Happy New Year 2019! Winter is a very good time to plan your gardening projects. Here is one we completed a few years ago at a home in suburban Chicago.  The progress of the growth has been remarkable and quick.  This was easy to complete in a single day during the spring of 2014. The gardener replants her color every spring and fall as she desires. Easy.  Fall 2018. And the original garden that was removed.  These photos and the ones below show the growth from 2014.  Listen to our interview on the Mike Nowak Show on Sunday January 6. 2019 at 9:00 a.m. Central on WCGO AM-1590 in Chicago. Listen live www.mikenowak.net