GardenDesignOnline

2016 APLD Awards - III

photos: Matthew Cunningham - click to enlarge

Landscape architect Matthew Cunningham (Matthew Cunningham Landscape Design LLC) won a gold award this year from APLD for this urban property just outside Harvard Square in Cambridge, MA. 

The home is sited several feet below the street, and stormwater often collected in the basement.  The family wanted a design that would allow them to be outdoors as much as possible.

Cunningham designed a front woodland garden with four season trees and shrubs, along with ferns, sedges and woodland asters that soften the granite slabs of the front yard path and of the terraces and walkways around the house.

In the backyard, the terrace is barefoot-friendly, and and a lawn and stone staircase spans the width of the yard, providing lots of seating above the activity lawn.

Judges commented that the design was "Simple and stunning! Modern, fresh, and above all local." 

 

 

Greenwood Gardens - Betty Woodman Exhibition

Betty Woodman is one of the most celebrated ceramics artists working today, and six of her seven cast bronze and hand-painted garden benches will be on display from August 1- November 15, 2016, at Greenwood Gardens in Short Hills, New Jersey.

The benches were created over the past 17 years and will be sited amid the garden's Italianate terraces, meandering paths, and ornamental trees and shrubs.  The exhibition marks the largest showing of Woodman's benches in the United States, and it also includes a bronze table and two large outdoor clay flowerpots.

Greenwood's founder Peter Blanchard says "It is a special pleasure to see these formally inventive and colorful benches where the artist intended them to be -- in a garden, not a gallery." Exhibit curator Patterson Sims, former director of the Montclair, NJ, Art Museum, says the show will be a revelation for anyone who associates Woodman's works with clay. "The bronze benches reflect the colorful motifs and formal inventiveness of Woodman's sculptures and multi-part wall and floor installations," he says, and "after more than six decades of working primarily with the malleable but fragile medium of clay, bronze allows her to create unbreakable functional objects in the context of nature and architecture." 

Greenwood Gardens is a 28-acre public garden that was a private estate until 2003, when it was transformed into a botanical garden. the Main House and surrounding terraces have been restored, but much still remains to be done. The Garden Conservancy has provided help and continues to support Greenwood as one of the 16 exceptional gardens it endorses.  

 

 

New Test Garden: Hydrangeas

photo: Star Roses & Plants

Hydrangea macrophylla 'L.A. Dreamin' (Star Roses & Plants)

A new North American Hydrangea Test Garden has recently opened at Heritage Museums & Gardens in Sandwich, MA. Heritage President & CEO Ellen Spear said the organization is "proud to collaborate with the major hydrangea growers and developers to create a home for a National Hydrangea Test Garden where new hydrangea varieties will be planted, grown, and studied by our staff and garden interns."

photo: Julie Mikush & Heritage Museums & Gardens

Hydrangea paniculata 'Vanilla Strawberry' (Tree Form) - Bailey Nurseries

For the next five years, new kinds of hydrangeas will be evaluated by experts from across the country.  The test garden is led by Dr. Michael Dirr, author and professor at the University of Georgia, in collaboration with growers from Bailey Nurseries and Ball.

Hydrangea macrophylla 'Cherry Explosion' (Star Roses & Plants)

Partners in the project include Bailey, Star, and Proven Winners, the Cape Cod Hydrangea Society and the American Hydrangea Society.

To see all of the hydrangeas currently in the test garden, see the Heritage website here.

 

Books: The New Garden Revolution by a True Revolutionary

I can't remember how many times over the years -- at conferences, lectures and the like -- that I asked Larry Weaner when he was going to write a book.

Finally, it's here: Garden Revolution: How Our Landscapes Can Be a Source of Environmental Change by Larry Weaner and Thomas Christopher (Timber Press, 2016).

As those of you who have heard his presentations know, there's a way to design and plant that's beneficial to the environment, that looks beautiful, and that saves you -- the homeowner -- from a lot of toil and trouble.  The secret is knowing which plants do best in your own local area, planting them, and letting them go.  It's a system that's friendly to wildlife, that changes with time, and that's beautiful and dynamic year after year.

Most of the gardens profiled in the book are on the larger side -- gardens that are suited for a natural meadow, which is Weaner's specialty.  Still, the principles he outlines can be adapted for almost any garden, so it's a book that you'll want on your bookshelf.

He explains how to identify plants that want to be there (native or not); how to analyze the presence of wildlife; how to connect habitats; and how to develop the criteria you need to guide your plant selection.  Beautiful photographs and drawings throughout the book illustrate the authors' main points.

In the back of the book, there's a full list of resources for further study: websites, journals, organizations, books. This is a book that's long, long overdue.

And, if you haven't attended one of Weaner's conferences sponsored by his firm, New Directions in the American Landscape, check out his website here and make sure to go to one next January. You won't regret it.  I know some designers who go every single year.

Best of the 21st Century - So Far

Metropolis Magazine has named the 16 best architectural projects of the 21st century, and they include two well-known landscape projects.

The High Line -- designed by James Corner Field Operations with Diller Scofidio + Renfro and Dutch designer and plantsman Piet Oudolf -- was cited for its "transformational" qualities.  Olson Kundig Architects says it "changes the conversation about what a city park can be, and it changed a city."  The Architectural Research Office said the High Line "has raised our expectation that exceptional public space is essential to city life."

photo: Michael Van Valkenburgh Associates

Michael Van Valkenburgh Associates was cited for Brooklyn Bridge Park, also in New York City. The Center for Architecture/AIANY said it is "one of the most ambitious and significant park projects to be created in New York since Central Park. Michael Van Valkenburgh has transformed this spectacularly sited but long-defunct series of shipping piers into a program of diverse spaces that that promote both leisure and active recreation."

See all of the winning projects here.

Art-y Birdbath

What bird wouldn't want to take a bath in this?  It's actually a sundial birdbath from Telescopes of Vermont.  The birdbath is made of bronze, but it can be ordered in different patinas and finishes.  The one pictured here is the most popular -- verdigris patina.  The basin rim can also be personalized with any message or notation that you like.

According to the company, the birdbath size and the depth of the bowl were reviewed by expert ornithologists to ensure the best conditions for the birds.

The basin is 24" in diameter and the overall height of the birdbath is 45 inches.  The dish lifts off for cleaning, but it is mounted in order that a child cannot pull it off the base.  And ... oh yes ... the sundial indicates the time by casting a shadow across the rim.

Great idea, and a lovely focal point in the garden.

 

 

Books: The Art of Burle Marx

As designers, who wouldn't want want a landscape plan by Roberto Burle Marx to frame and put up on the wall ... abstract modern art at some of its best. Not only was Burle Marx a celebrated landscape architect, he also designed jewelry, tile mosaics, textiles and tapestries, and was a painter and sculptor as well.

The current exhibition of his works at the Jewish Museum in New York City (which runs through September 18) is accompanied by a book that spans the entire range of his works, Roberto Burle Marx: Brazilian Modernist (The Jewish Museum / Yale University Press 2016) by museum curators Jens Hoffman and Claudia Nahson.

Burle Marx, son of a Jewish-German father and Brazilian mother, was reared in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. On a trip to Berlin with his parents, he encountered both Modernism and, in the Botanical Garden, tropical plants that were treated like weeds back home. As Hoffman notes, once he began thinking of landscapes as paintings, "The flowers and the plants were his brushes and his colours, and the landscape became his canvas."

This beautiful book has chapters on his early drawings and paintings, his first gardens, some of his most important landscape designs -- public and private -- plus his paintings, textiles, sculptures, and much more.

If you're an avid fan of Burle Marx, as most designers are, you won't want to go a moment without this book.

In the Magazines July 2016

Landscape Architecture July

*Conversation "interview" on wild landscape design strategies with Thomas Rainer (Planting in a Post-Wild World: Designing Plant Communities for Resilient Landscapes --(Timber Press-- and Margie Ruddick (Wild By Design: Strategies for Creating Life-Enhancing Landscapes -- Island Press).
*The Rose Kennedy Greenway in Boston comes of age.
*Ken Smith designs and builds a driving range atop the Croton Water Filtration Plant.

Garden Design Summer 2016

*Furniture and plantings to match a rustic house in LA,.. design by Di Zock
*Jefferson's Monticello gardens -- as they were
*Oehme van Sweden garden in Amagansett
*Three-room garden in Santa Monica by designer Scott Shrader
*Secrets of a Serene Garden by Jan Johnsen

Sunset July

*Modern garden for modern architecture in Palm Springs by designer Troy Bankord
*Replace the lawn with a swirl of succulents by designer Rebecca Sweet
*Idea Garden for kids by designer Leslie Bennett
*Modern plant stands

 

Horticulture July

*Three key conditions for growing almost anything
*Your garden's climate and microclimates
*Eco-friendly roses
*Different daylilies
*Brand new Coleus

 

Better Homes & Gardens July

*A Wild and Floriferous Maine Garden
*Annual Vines for Screening
*Container plants for hot, dry weather
*A 775 Sq. Ft. Zen garden in Irvine, CA by designer Warwick Hunt

 

 

Happenings July-August 2016

Selected Events Around the Country:

Exhibitions:
thru Sept 11, Impressionism: American Gardens on Canvas, Bronx, NY
NY Botanical Garden, 718-817-8700
thru Sept 18, Roberto Burle Marx: Brazilian Modernist, New York, NY
Jewish Museum, 212-423-3200

Garden Dialogues: Garden tours with landscape architects who designed them, TCLF, 202-483-0553
July 18: Boston Metro Area
July 18-19: Lakeville, Falls Village, CT
July 23: The Hamptons, NY
July 31: Millerton, NY; CT
Aug 8, Aug 22: Denver & Aspen, CO
Aug 22-23, Vancouver, BC

July 2-3 Garden Conservancy Open Days Tours, NY
Dutchess & Delaware Counties

July 8-17 Cape Cod Hydrangea Festival, MA
Garden Tours, Lectures, Workshops, Much More
July 9-10, Garden Conservancy Open Days Tours, NY, CT, NJ, VT
CT: Litchfield Cty; NY: Dutchess, Suffolk Ctys; NJ: Bergen Cty; VT: Bennington Cty

July 10, 25th Annual Gardens in the Watershed Tour, Rockland, ME
10AM-5PM Self-guided garden tours, 207-594-5166
July 11-23, Crested Butte Wildflower Festival, Crested Butte, CO
Hikes, Jeep Tours, Garden Tours, Classes & Workshops, more.
July 13-16 AHS National Children & Youth Garden Symposium, Columbia, SC
Educational sessions, Keynote speakers, field trips, more. 703-768-5700
July 16-17, Garden Conservancy Open Days Tours: CT, WI, IL, NY
CT: New London Cty; WI: Milwaukee, Ozaukee Ctys; IL: Cook, Lake Ctys; NY: Columbia, Putnam Ctys.

July 17, Dearborn Gardenwalk, Chicago, IL
noon-5PM, 58th self-guided garden tour, 312-632-1241
July 17, West Seattle Garden Tour, Seattle, WA
9AM-5PM, 10 gardens, artworks, lecture, more. 206-324-2061
July 17, Bringing Back Natural Landscapes, Spencertown, NY
2:30 PM, Garden Conservancy, Garden Tour & Workshop, Garden of Linda Horn
July 20-23, Cullowhee Native Plant Conference, Cullowhee, NC
Western Carolina University, Lectures, Walks, Workshops, more.  800-928-4968
July 23, Heronswood Garden Open Day, Kingston, WA
10AM-4PM, Plant Sale, Garden Open & Garden Tours
July 23-24, Garden Conservancy Open Days Tours: CT, NY, WI
CT: New Haven Cty; NY: Ulster, Westchester Ctys; WI: Sheboygan Cty.

July 30, Garden Conservancy Open Days Tours: CA, CT, NY
CA: Alameda, Contra Costa Ctys; CT: Litchfield Cty; NY: Dutchess Cty
July 30. Native Meadow Workshop, Lakeville, CT
2PM, LA Larry Weaner, Montgomery-Glazer Property, Garden Conservancy
July 30-31, Gardenwalk, Buffalo, NY
10AM-4PM, Self-guided tours of 406+ gardens. An amazing experience.

Aug 1-5, Perennial Plant Symposium, Minneapolis, MN
Lectures, GardenTours, Trade Show, more. 614-771-8431
Aug 6-7, Garden Conservancy Open Days Tours: NY, MN, NJ, WI, IL
NY: Dutchess, Schuyler, Tompkins Ctys; MN: Hennepin Cty; NJ: Monmouth Cty; WI: MIlwaukee, Washington Ctys; IL: Du Page, Kane Ctys.
Aug 6, Architecture & Garden Design Garden Tour & Workshop , Newburg, WI
10:30AM, 2PM, 4:30PM, Ramhorn Farm, Sponsor: Garden Conservancy

Aug 13-14, Garden Conservancy Open Days Tours: CT, MA, PA, WI, NY
CT: Fairlield Cty; MA: Norfolk Cty; PA: Bucks Cty; WI: Milwaukee, Waukesha Ctys; NY: Putnam Cty

Aug 20-21: Garden Conservancy Open Days Tours: NH, NY, VT
NH: Cheshire, Hillsborough, Sullivan Ctys; NY: Columbia Cty; VT: Windham Cty

Aug 21, Garden Design Master Class with Gordon Hayward, Westminster West, VT
4-5:30PM, Walking Design Workshop, sponsor: Garden Conservancy
Aug 25-27, Farwest Show, Portland, OR
Oregon Convention Center, Trade Show, Lectures, Demos, More.
Aug 27-28, Garden Conservancy Open Days Tours: New Haven, Litchfield Ctys, CT

LOOKAHEAD:

Sept 8, Lecture, Chris Reed of Stoss Landscape Urbanism, Boston, MA
7PM, Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, 617-278-5156

Sept 15-18, APLD International Design Conference, Santa Fe, NM
Sept 16-19 Gardenwriters Annual Conference, Atlanta, GA
Oct 21-24, ASLA Annual Meeting & Expo, New Orleans, LA
Nov 1-4, Cities Alive Annual Green Roof & Wall Conference, Washington DC