February 2006 Archives

 

Noted California architect Sim Van Der Ryn was on Forum with Michael Krasney on KQED radio today (listen here). It was interesting to hear some of his perspectives on green architecture, alternative energy, and associated topics. See this previous post on the Real Goods Solar Living Center for more information on Van Der Ryn.

View details on Van Der Ryn's new book Design for Life at Amazon.

Image from Amazon.com

 

Here are some selections of Northern California Garden events from the current listing of Pacific Horticulture Magazine, check their complete listing for events throughout the west. If you live on the west coast Pacific Horticulture a must have magazine for gardeners and horticulurists.

February 20
California Native Plants for the Garden, lecture with Carol Bornstein, David Fross, and Bart O'Brien, 7:15 pm, California Horticultural Society.

February 22-March 29
California Natives in Style, class with Glenn Keator and Alrie Middlebrook, 6:30 to 9 pm, plus three field trips, San Francisco Botanical Garden Society. Fee $115; pre-registration required.

February 26
Microclimates in Your Garden, guided tour and discussion, 2 pm, Arboretum Terrace Home Demonstration Garden, sponsored by UC Davis Arboretum.

March 4
Sick Plant Clinic, with Robert Raabe, 9 am to noon, UC Botanical Garden at Berkeley.

March 5
Healthy Soils, Healthy Roses, lecture with Lakshmi Srisharan, 1:30 pm, UC Santa Cruz Arboretum. Fee $15.

March 5
Wildly Successful Plants, a class with Pam Peirce, 2 to 4 pm, Elizabeth F Gamble Garden. Fee $25; pre-registration required.

March 8
Mixing It Up: Combining California Natives with Plants from Other Regions, lecture with David Fross, 7 pm, Western Horticultural Society.

March 15-19
Where Gardens Meet Art, 21st Annual San Francisco Flower & Garden Show, 9 am to 8 pm daily (to 6:30 pm Sunday), Gala Preview Party, Tuesday 5 to 9 pm ($150), The Cow Palace, 2600 Geneva Avenue, Daly City, 415/771-6909, www.gardenshow.com. Admission $20 or $17 in advance; half-day tickets ($13) at 3 pm. Call for schedule of events.

March 16
The Lure of Lavender, a class with Susan Ditz and Sharon Shipley, 6:30 to 8:30 pm, Elizabeth F Gamble Garden. Fee $25; pre-registration required.

March 20
Flowers of Greece and the Mediterranean Basin, lecture with Bob Gibbons, 7:15 pm, California Horticultural Society.

March 28
Becoming a Resident Naturalist in Your Garden, lecture with Kathy Biggs, 7 to 9 pm, The Marin Art & Garden Center. Fee $5.

March 30
Napa Gardens, a coach tour with lunch and refreshments, with Charmain Giuliani and Fred Bové, 8 am to 5 pm, San Francisco Botanical Garden Society. Fee $165; pre-registration required.

March 31-1
Gardens to Match Your Architecture III: Fresh Design, West Coast, a seminar featuring Andrea Cochran, Craig Steely, and Bernard Trainor, Golden Gate Club, The Presidio, San Francisco, cosponsored by The Garden Conservancy and Pacific Horticulture. Fee $135; pre-registration required at www.gardenconservancy.org.

April through June: Poppies of the World, an exhibit of qouache paintings by Gianna Marino, daily except major holidays, 10 am to 4 pm, artist's reception Thursday, 4/13, 5 to 7 pm, Helen Crocker Russell Library, San Francisco Botanical Garden Society at Strybing Arboretum, 415/661-1316 x303.

April 1
First Aid Plant Walk, with Chuck Garcia, noon to 2 pm, San Francisco Botanical Garden Society. Fee $5; pre-registration required.

April 8
Spring in the Perennial Garden, guided tour and discussion, 11 am, the Gazebo, UC Davis Arboretum.

April 9
Garden and Climate, lecture with Chip Sullivan, 1:30 pm, UC Santa Cruz Arboretum. Fee $15.

April 12
The Canopy Above: A Walk Among the Trees of Stanford University, lecture with Ron Bracewell, 7 pm, Western Horticultural Society.

April 17
The Savage Garden: Growing Carnivorous Plants, lecture with Peter D'Amato, 7:15 pm, California Horticultural Society.

April 22
Cob Construction Workshop, a hands-on class focusing on straw/clay construction, 10 am to 3 pm, Brooks Park Community Garden, San Francisco Botanical Garden Society. Fee $15; pre-registration required.

April 22
Fabulous Containers, workshop with Charmain Giuliani, 10 am to 3 pm, San Francisco Botanical Garden Society. Fee $35, plus materials fee; pre-registration required.

April 30
4th Annual Going Native Garden Tour, self-drive tour of water-wise gardens featuring native plants in Santa Clara Valley and the Peninsula, 10 am to 4 pm, sponsored by Santa Clara Valley Chapter, California Native Plants Society. Free; register at www.GoingNativeGardenTour.com.

April 30
Third Annual Alameda County Bay-Friendly Garden Tour, a self-guided tour of Mediterranean retreats, edible gardens, wildlife habitats, and gardens designed for children. For details and registration, call 510/444-SOIL or visit www.BayFriendly.org.

Here are some progress images of the framing for a perimeter fence on a current project in Tiburon. The cedar fencing uses 6x6 posts and 4x6 framing that gives a nice solid appearance.

We are excited to be working with Caletti Construction on a new construction project in Tiburon. The new custom home and garden has an interesting design with some very beautiful materials detailing. I will post progress images here as the project starts to come together.

A progressive look at the house construction can be viewed on the Caletti website.

Final entry in this week's series of features on the Gardens of Kyoto from our Great Gardens and Parks portfolios.

Castles do not just grace medieval Europe. The Japanese Castle was a thriving architectural form in medieval Japan as well. The most striking example of Japanese castle building is Himeji Castle a UNESCO world heritage site. Within Kyoto, Nijo Castle is another striking example of Japanese castle construction. From a landscape perspective, the layout of Nijo's gardens, moats and impressive stone walls create an interesting contrast from the multitude of temple and shrine gardens in Kyoto.

Nijo's most striking aspect is the bone of most Japanese gardens, its amazing stone work. Both the boulder arrangements and castle walls are amazing.

For More:
City of Kyoto Brochure for Nijo Castle (Part 1 & Part 2)
Jgarden.org profile
Wikipedia article

Continuing this week's series of features on the Gardens of Kyoto from our Great Gardens and Parks portfolios.

Daisenin is the more enigmatic garden counterpart to the clean lines of Ryoan-ji. Another “Zen Garden” with its dry raked gravel, Daisenin has an intimacy and series of boardwalks that give a serial, sequential feel to its spaces. The piles of gravel in the main garden have the appearance of a hybrid, somewhere between that of Ginkaku-ji perfection and Ryoan-ji gravel and stones.

For more:
Great Analysis of the Garden from Jgarden.org
Japanese Based Page with good information on the evolution of the Japanese Garden

Continuing this week's series of features on the Gardens of Kyoto from our Great Gardens and Parks portfolios.

Ryoan-ji (meaning "The Temple of the Peaceful Dragon") is the archetypal Japanese rock garden (read more about rock gardens in this past Post). The small table top rock gardens that have become popular owe their inspiration in part to the 15th century anonymous karesansui masterpiece of Ryoan-ji. The garden has a unique axial configuration, so that, from any fixed point on the ground, one cannot see all of the stones in the garden. It is the ultimate rock garden of contemplation.

For More:
Profile at JGarden.org
Article from New Scientist about Ryoan-ji's appeal
Reflections on Ryoan-ji from Salon
Article about adding elements of Zen Garden design to garden projects

Another profile from our new Japanese portfolios of our Great Gardens & Parks features.

Kinkaku-ji, or the Golden Pavilion is another of Kyoto's most famous historical pieces of architecture (in 1994 it was designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site). It is interesting to contrast Ginkaku-ji, with its large Silver Sea of gravel, with the layout and actual pond of the Golden Pavilion.

The Silver Pavilion of Ginkaku-ji was an homage to the more elaborate Golden Pavilion. Historically, however the Silver Pavilion holds significance as an original structure, whereas the Golden Pavilion has been reconstructed after being burned in 1950.

The fusion of architecture and the surrounding landscape in these temples and shrines is amazing. It is interesting how Frank Lloyd Wright's methodology of organic architecture parallels the incorporation of the design and layout of the building to its surroundings in a similar way to these Japanese pieces.

For More:
Kinkaku-ji official site
Wikipedia article

We have posted new sections from Japan in our Great Gardens & Parks section of our portfolio. Thus far there are six gardens from Kyoto. Here is a profile of one of the highlighted gardens.

Kyoto the historical capital of Japan (prior to the move of power to Tokyo in the 19th century), is a striking city full of history and captivating gardens. One of the best preserved major cities in Japan (surviving World War II), it features a wealth of shrines, temples and gardens.

The Silver Pavilion, or Ginkaku-ji, is one Kyoto's most famous temples and houses one of the city's greatest gardens. The striking piles of raked and formed mounds of gravel and stone are wonders to behold. The Silver Pavilion itself is a rare original example of architecture from its period. Often temples and shrines were burned by feuding Shoguns and many have been reconstructed numerous times.

The entrance to the temple complex features a two story Camellia hedge, precisely clipped and indicative of the meticulous nature of the gardens inside. Once inside the Karesansui forms are like nothing else in the gardens of Kyoto. The craft here is amazing, and the raked gravel takes on an appearance of solid mass that should be impossible.

For More:
Check out the Ginkaku-ji Official Site (in English) with an interactive map and detailed history of the temple
Details from Wikipedia
Jgarden.org index of Japanese Gardens

Here is a follow up to the first two rounds (Progress 1 & Progress 2) of images I posted from a current job in San Rafael. We have completed work with the installation of two additional concrete pads to match the existing pathway and facilitate access along the driveway.

Final Lawn, New Pathway Sections & Copper Lights

Wire Trellis with Pink Jasmine Vine

View to the Front Entry

Here are images of a recently completed project in San Rafael. The client wanted to increase usable living space for this hillside residence. Work included moving back and replacing the existing brick retaining wall, replacing existing decking, and installing an outdoor kitchen.

Before

After- New Retaining Wall, Lawn and Bluestone Patio

Before

After- Bluestone Capped Retaining Wall, Lawn, Perimeter Fencing

Before

After- Manufactured Stone Veneer Retaining Wall, Outdoor Kitchen

Before

After- Planter Box with Manufactured Stone Veneer