Dr. Jules Bruck, Asst. Professor of Landscape Design at the University of Delaware, recently took a group of students to Brazil to study Brazilian landscapes -- including many designed by Roberto Burle Marx, one of the 20th century's most celebrated landscape architects. Check out their blog - which includes many pictures of Brazilian flora, Burle Marx designs, gardens, and tropical landscapes.
The Great Gardens of Ireland
I have to admit that I'm not nearly as familiar with gardens in Ireland as those in Britain. But there are several that should be just as well-known, and you can visit them on this summer trip.
Landscape Architect & Professor Robert McDuffie of Virginia Tech leads this 13-day trip that actually begins in Belfast at Butterstream, also known as the Irish Sissinghurst. While in the north, you'll also see the Botanic Gardens, and two National Trust properties, Mt. Stewart and Rowallane, which includes the national collection of penstemons.
On to Galway, the Cliffs of Moher, the Ring of Kerry, the world-famous gardens at Annes Grove in County Cork, the amazing Bay Garden created by Francis and Iain McDonald, and finally, Helen Dillon's garden. Helen is perhaps Ireland's most well-known garden writer, who recently published a book in the United States, Down to Earth with Helen Dillon.
For more info on the trip itinerary, click on "Gardens of Ireland" at the top of this post.
Dec 30-Jan 11 South Africa Garden Tour
Join Virginia Tech Landscape Architecture Professor Robert McDuffie on another one of his grand tours, this time nearly two weeks in South Africa, with visits to stunning landscapes, magnificent wildlife, and, -- need I even mention it -- some of the most incredible gardens in the world. Just a few of the highlights: the Featherbed Nature Reserve; Karoo National Gardens, with the largest collection of indigenous succulents in the country; Stellenbosch University Botanical Gardens, with exotic trees, tropicals, ferns, and much more; and Cape Town's Kirstenbosch Botanical Gardens and the Good Hope Nature Reserve. And as always, a real bargain, with the added benefit of an expert's eye all along the way.
Design Techniques from a Master
Breaking the rules sometimes frees the spirit and unleashes a kind of genius. Thomas D. Church (1902-1978) was one of the first 20th century landscape architects to break the rules of traditional design and lead the profession in a radical new direction. He abandoned strict formal geometry and introduced concepts like piano curves and zig-zags to make his gardens more livable. As Church himself put it, "A garden should have no beginning and no end, and should be pleasing when seen from any angle, not only from the house."
Church was based in California and designed thousands of residential gardens and also did the Master Plans for UC-Berkeley, UC-Santa Cruz and Harvey Mudd College in Claremont.
Now, there's a chance to see some of his surviving works in a 7-day tour in the San Francisco area, June 9-June 15. Led by landscape architect Richard McPherson, Jeff Sainsbury Tours Ltd is actually offering an entire course in Church's design philosophy. Each garden visit will include an analysis of the design, information hand-outs, and an examination of form, scale, plant material, and the "flow" between garden "rooms" in Church's gardens.
Included in the tour is the well-known Donnell Garden, also called El Novillero, plus many others featured in Church's classic book on modern California gardens, Gardens are for People.
To reserve a space on the tour, contact jstours@tiscali.fr or log on to the website, www.jeffsainsburytours.com.
If you can't manage the trip, you can still get a copy of Gardens Are For People, Third edition. It's one of the most useful books in my large collection, and I never tire of reading it again and again.
(photo: Richard McPherson courtesy Jeff Sainsbury Tours Ltd)
The late Roberto Burle Marx designed some of greatest landscapes in the world, most of them in his own country, Brazil. The Burle Marx gardens are among the most unique, modern, and magical anywhere. So grab this chance for a fabulous Brazilian tour led by landscape architect 
Isabela Ono, who works in the Burle Marx office in Rio and is the daughter of Marx's former business partner, Haruyoshi Ono.
Organized by Jeff Sainsbury Tours, Ltd, the 11-day tour, "A Brazilian Odyssey: The Gardens and Landscapes of Roberto Burle Marx," March 6-18, is limited to 16 participants and includes many private properties rarely open to visitors. Visitors will see Burle Marx's own estate and studio near Rio; a private residence in the Tijuca Forest, the world's largest urban woodland; and Burle Marx's many public landscapes and private residences in Belo Horizonte, Brasilia, and elsewhere. A bargain at $4750 -- many meals included.
(image: Rio de Janeiro Botanical Garden)
Perennial Plant Assn Award 
Finally ... it shouldn't be any surprise that this catmint has made it into the PPA hall of fame. Nepeta "Walker's Low" is the energizer bunny of plants .. it keeps going and going and going. And now its' the PPA's 2007 plant of the year. Greyish-green foliage, deep blue flowers, no pests or diseases, zones 3-8, 36" inches high with an equal spread, and even tolerates shade in hot climates. Prune it back by two-thirds after the first flowers fade, and it will re-bloom for the rest of the summer. It looks great under roses, and we use all the time in place of lavender ... it's less fussy and far more tolerant of various soil conditions.
Garden Trips - California & Italy
Two more trips are in the planning guided by Landscape Architect & Prof Robert McDuffie of Virginia Tech. The first to southern California March 4-10, 2007, includes stops in San Diego, LA, the Huntington, Descanso Gardens, the Quail Botanical Garden, the LA Arboretum & the Getty Museums.
McDuffie flies out again in May (May 15-29) for a grand tour of Italy: Rome, Capri, Venice, Verona, Padua, Florence, Siena, and the Lake Como area. Some of Italy's greatest gardens are on this tour: Villa d'Este, Villa Lante, Villa Gamberaia, Isola Bella and Isola Madre. And think of the food!
New Year's Eve in Sydney sounds like a great (and fun) idea, and what a beginning to a wondro
us garden and winery tour of Australia. Landscape Architect Robert McDuffie, Professor at Virginia Tech, is hosting a two-week tour that'll the take the group from Sydney to Canberra, Melbourne, and many gardens and wineries along the way. The itinerary includes the Royal Botanic Garden of Sydney, the Mount Tomah Botanic Garden, the National Capital Botanical Gardens in Canberra, Fitzroy Gardens and the Melbourne Botanic Gardens, plus private gardens, the Snowy and Blue Mountains, and the Great Coastal Highway. A bargain at $4195 per person, including round trip airfare from LA. More info: mcduff@vt.edu
Join Landscape Architect & Professor Robert McDuffie for this 12-day trip to the UK to see every 
single garden you've ever wanted to see, plus one of the great flower shows in the world. July 5-17. You'll see castles (Hever, Leeds, Powis, Conwy); Vita Sackville West's masterpiece at Sissinghurst. You'll visit the grounds at Blenheim Palace near Oxford see one of Capability Brown's magnificent "natural" landscapes. The Hampton Court Flower Show is believed by many to be much better than Chelsea. What else? Kew Gardens, Hidcote, Gertrude Jekyll's Hestercombe, Bodnant Garden in Wales, and much, much more. A real bargain at $3750 each, including airfare, lodging, tour guides, entrance fees, all breakfasts (and those British ones are killers that will last all day) and several dinners. Sign Up!
I've always wanted to go on one of Prof. Robert McDuffie's landscape design trips ... maybe you can join his upcoming one to Japan May 21-June 1, 2006. McDuffie is a landscape architect & associate professor in the Dept of Horticulture at Virginia Tech in Blacksburg, VA. who organizes terrific trips to fabulous public and private gardens. The Japan trip includes stops in Tokyo, Kyoto, Kamakura, Nikko and Mito to see some of the most famous gardens in the world. For more information, email mcduff@vt.edu or (540) 231-7432. And folks, it's a real bargain.
READ other press reviews about Garden Design Online
