November 2007 Archives

There is an article in the New York Times today concerning a dog attack on a landscape laborer in New Jersey. There has been a great deal of controversy in the state over putting the German Shepard down after the attack. State law requires that a dog be put down after an unprovoked attack, but supporters are trying to get a pardon from the governor:

State Assemblyman Neil M. Cohen, a Democrat from Union, has introduced legislation, which he calls Congo’s Law, that could spare the life of Congo and other dogs in similar situations by giving judges more discretion in meting out punishment.

And now, thousands of people from Princeton and elsewhere are petitioning the governor for a pardon. (There is precedent for such things in New Jersey.)

In a letter to The Princeton Packet on Tuesday, a resident, Jonathan Eckstein, wrote: “I urge the State Legislature to vote down this absurd legislation and put the rights of human beings like Mr. Rivera above those of domestic animals, however tragically misunderstood. I would hate my hometown and home state to go down in history as the place where suburbanites valued their dogs above the lives of those they hire to tend their yards.”

From past experience, it can be a bit tricky working on landscape projects with dogs, who can be defensive of their owners or territory.

Garden Design Online had interesting post about Fire by Design, a firm from Las Vegas, that specializes in design and component systems for remote controlled fire accents for water features and other landscape applications. We have also seen an increased interest over the past 5 years in inclusion of fireplaces, firepits, and outdoor kitchens as the most popular landscape accent items.

Here is an image from a current project in Tiburon. We are working on the finishing touches preparing for this roof garden. For the project a new pool house was constructed and integrated into the terrain to minimize visual impact from the house. We are in the process of starting our preparation for a lawn and plantings that will be installed on top of the pool house's waterproofed roof.

Here is a planting scheme for a commercial/residential type project application we are working on in San Rafael. This project has a number of challenges- it is in a heavy deer area; there is heavy use and traffic in and around the planting areas; and the scheme needed to be as low maintenance and drought tolerant as possible. The solution we are working on utilizes a palette of deer resistant plants that are also very tough, yet still attractive. Ornamental grasses and New Zealand Flaxes are combined with resilient groundcovers like prostrate Rosemary and Manzanita to create a planting that satisfies these diverse requirements.

 

As with the fires that ravaged Southern California, Google Maps customizable features are being utilized to geographically map the environmental effects of the Cosco Busan oil spill in San Francisco Bay. The Chronicle has a map up that links stories and photos from various sites around the bay- worth a look.


For more information on Volunteer Opportunities related to the oil spill check the Golden Gate National Park Conservancy Website

We updated our event listings- both in our landscape discussion board calendar and in our blog posting of good places to find garden and other related events in and around Marin County.

A couple of interesting upcoming garden events:

The Lawn Dilemma
Date:   17-Nov-07
Time:   9:30 am to 12:30 pm
Location:   Marin Art and Garden Center
Address:   Ross, CA
Description: Roger Waters presents lawn alternatives for adults. Learn the pros and cons of keeping or adding a lawn to your garden. Waters is a water conservation and irrigation specialist. He teaches participants how to decide if a lawn is a good option. For those who are looking for lawn alternatives, Waters offers many beautiful and eco-friendly options.

Cost is $10. No reservations necessary.
 http://calendar.ucanr.org/eventdisplay.cfm?caleventnum=27601

Butterflies & Bulldozers Screening 12-6-07
7:00-9:30 pm
Advance screening of a new documentary about the largest urban open space in the country. The filmmakers will be in attendance.
San Francisco Botanical Garden Society at Strybing Arboretum
9th Ave./Lincoln Way
San Francisco, CA 94122
(415) 661-1316

Fee $20.00; pre-registration required

For those driving around Marin, you may have noticed the ubiquitous yellow banners for Marin's disaster preparedness drive Get Ready Marin. With the recent earthquake in the area and the Southern California wildfires, taking a look at the drive's website for preparedness tips may not be a bad idea. On the site they information on what types of supplies to stock-up on, and information and guides for fire, earthquake, and flooding disasters.