Garden Rooms

Potting Room Deluxe

This workroom/potting room at the rear of the garage has a narrow sink with double faucets set into a poured concrete counter , which was stained green and given a rock-face edge. A small fridge doubles as a cooler for cut flowers. Painted tongue-and-groove paneling makes the space feel fresh and tidy but also resists mildew.

At the Ready

In this combination laundry and potting room, a swiveling cabinet door is hung with hooks for organizing hand tools.

A Simple Plan

A potting room can be as simple as a small shed or corner of the garage, as this one is, as long as there's a nearby water source. The most important feature is a counter at a comfortable height for performing the otherwise back-breaking task.

Floral Dream

This mudroom serves as a flower arranging workroom. The owner added decorative legs to the extra-large sink, which is often filled with freshly cut blooms for the yard.



.......And the Kitchen Sink
This antique sink may have originally come from a laboratory. So heavy it took four men to carry it, the owner has placed it on a solid slate counter with steel supports. This deep basin is large enough for flowers and dishes.

Expand the Kitchen

Next to the kitchen is a "garden room" that extends the kitchen's functionality and serves myriad of purposes. The deep farmhouse sink makes this an ideal spot for pruning and arranging flowers.

The Beauty of Utility

There is no reason a utility room can't be as beautiful as any other room in the house. This pantry/mudroom, which connects the home's living room to both kitchen and screened porch, has the same floors, cabinetry, and windows are the kitchen.

Exteriors/How Does Your Garden Grow

Julia Child

A floribunda that bears buttery blooms with an anise fragrance. Shrub is rounded. An All-America Rose Selections.

Fourth of July

A climber that blooms along the length of its canes. Big sprays of semidouble blooms come in various combinations of red and white; some are striped, some splotched with red. Pretty against a weathered, split-rail fence. 

Betty Boop

A floribunda with fruit-scented, semidouble flowers of yellow-ivory edged with red. The rounded shrub reblooms without deadheading.

About Face

A grandiflora with bronzy red petals on the outside, light golden orange on the inside. Blooms smell like fresh-cut apples. The plant has an upright growth habit.

Rose Border

Pink-flowered 'Baby Blanket' shrub roses combine with pink penstemon, pale lavender society garlic, silvery lamb’s ears, and creeping thyme.

Can you tell, I am getting excited about Spring!!!!

Beginner's Guide to Gardening

Get Growing

So, it's garden time. Your outdoor space is cleared out, cleaned up, and ready to be planted.
And whether you're taking on larger endeavors or simply planting containers for the patio, it's important to do your homework and really know your outdoor area before getting started.
With the following to-do list (don't worry, it will be easy!), you'll be fully prepared to take on shopping for and planting your garden with confidence and style.

Guide to a Nursery

Garden nurseries can be a bit overwhelming when you visit for the first time. There are so many beautiful plants to choose from, how do you know what's best for your home?
Lydia Pursell, owner of Leaf 'N Petal, says, "The best customer is a prepared customer."
What to Do Before:
• Know the dimensions of the area (or container) you're planting.
• Take pictures of your space to help choose plants and containers.
• Study your beds to see how much light they get during the day.

Choosing Containers

Even if you're lacking outdoor acreage, container gardens are easy to incorporate into many spaces -- including porches, decks, and even front entries.
There are a wide variety of containers on the market, making it easier to choose a color, size, and style to fit your home's look and add outdoor appeal.

Garden Art

From whimsical garden gnomes to adorned stakes, garden art is back and bigger than ever.
The rule to choosing garden art is that there is no rule! Simply pick and choose pieces that you love, and then let your personal creativity and style shine through in your selections.

Engaging Your Senses

Take a cue from your kindergarten days and remember the five senses when planting your garden. (If you need a refresher course, they're touch, taste, smell, sight, and sound.)
By incorporating all of these, your garden or outdoor room will feel completely relaxing, whether you're enjoying a good book alone or entertaining guests at a weekend gathering.

Carefree Coreopsis

Tolerant from zones 3 through 11, there is coreopsis for just about every flower garden. Commonly called tickseed, this relative of the sunflower prospers in dry, sunny locations with poor soil, making it ideal for problem areas in the garden. Coreopsis makes an ideal centerpiece in containers surrounded by shorter trailing flowers.

Succulent Success

A broad group of tough, drought-tolerant plants including sedum, aloe, agave, and cacti, succulents are the perfect plant for gardeners who forget to water. If planted in well-drained soil, they require only a sunny spot and occasional watering.
Potted heat-tolerant cactus and aloe beautify decks and patios in the summer before being brought inside for the winter. Not all succulents are warm-weather plants, however. Showy sedums, such as the popular 'Autumn Joy', are hardy from zones 3 to 10

Garden Paths

Stamped concrete path


A curved path, high walls, soft greens, and a bubbling fountain make this Southern California garden a soothing escape.
The broad path connects the gate to the front door. The walkway is built of stamped concrete and has a dusting of multicolored sand for extra texture.

Fragrant journey


Designers know a great path includes an intriguing destination. Here, a yellow-glazed container catches the eye at the end of a lavender-edged gravel path.

Path of grass


A narrow carpet of grass, all that’s left of a once-expansive (30- by 60-foot) lawn, meanders between curved planting beds. To make room for the beds, the homeowners removed sod around the turf’s edges bit by bit as they discovered new plants they wanted to try.

Wooded escape


A flagstone path in Pasadena leads through a garden underplanted with New Zealand flax shrubs and grasses.

Desert garden path


Bold furnishings and dense plantings can help you create a getaway in your own backyard, even where gardening can be a challenge.
Individual concrete pads create the illusion that they're hovering lightly above the desert floor. Their exposed aggregate finish blends in with the native soil's stony texture.

Garden art


In Newport, CA, geometric steppingstones crossing a small pool give the illusion of walking on water.
A piece of art tucked amid greenery at the end of the path treats visitors to a visual surprise.

Garden Scene Color Splash Part 2 of 2

Gaura (G. lindheimeri)


White flowers cluster like butterflies atop tall spikes on these airy 2½- to 4-foot-tall plants. Selected forms include 'Siskiyou Pink' (to 2 feet tall), with rose-pink flowers and 'Whirling Butterflies' (to 3 feet tall), with white flowers.

This continues part 2 of 2 about ideas for fall plantings.

Geum chiloense


Tall flower spikes grow from mounds of velvety foliage to 15 inches high, 2 feet wide.

‘Lady Stratheden’ has clear yellow blooms; ‘Mrs Bradshaw’ has double scarlet blooms. Both have a delicate wildflower look.

Gloriosa daisy (Rudbeckia hirta)


Deep golden petals radiate from chocolate centers on 2- to 4-inch-wide flowers.
Plants reach 3 to 4 feet tall and 1 ½ feet wide. Shorter varieties such as ‘Goldilocks’ and ‘Toto’ top out at 10 inches tall.

Jerusalem sage (Phlomis fruticosa)


Tall stems of these Mediterranean natives are set with widely-spaced, hooded yellow flowers.
Moisture-conserving thick, typically furry or hairy leaves are lance-shaped. Pretty planted with lavender and red hot poker (Kniphofia ‘Bressingham Comet’).

Lavender


Every garden should have one of these beauties.



English lavender is the most fragrant, but Spanish lavender’s deep purple “rabbit ears” stand out in garden beds.

Where space is tight, grow a compact form; one we can’t wait to try is Lavandula angustifolia ‘Thumbelina Leigh’, coming late this year from High Country Gardens. It stays 12 to 15 inches tall.

Pineapple sage (salvia elegans)


At its best in fall when it sends up spikes of vivid red flowers, this salvia’s foliage smells like ripe pineapples.

The plant grows 4 feet tall. S.e. ‘Golden Delicious’ grows 1- to 3 feet tall with fire-engine red blooms and chartreuse leaves.

Have fun planting and don't forget to add cuttings from your garden into your home for a fresh festive feel of fall. Find lovely clear vases at my store to display indoor cuttings.
 
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