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October 25, 2005
A Natural Repellant for Gophers
Gophers can be a vexing garden problem with many different solutions. A range of products exist including traps, poison, sonic deterrents, plant protection cages, etc. One product recently mentioned by a colleague that works as an organic, non lethal deterrent is a caster-oil based mixture that is sprayed in the affected area and is supposed to deter gophers. This is another option to consider when countering these subterranean pests.
One spray called Gopher-Mole Med, is supposed to last for up to two months per application.
Image from Wikipedia
Posted by Michael O'Connell at 05:15 PM | Comments (0)
October 24, 2005
From the Drawing Board to the Real World II
Here is a second follow-up to our post on wire fencing, this time concerning a 6' wire perimeter fence that was custom designed in lieu of a chain link fence.
This type of fence provides a nice architectural feel, has some transparency, and does not draw the same amount of attention as a chain link or solid fence.
Posted by Michael O'Connell at 06:21 PM | Comments (0)
October 21, 2005
From the Drawing Board to the Real World
This is a follow-up to a post on wire fencing; as promised here is a completed photo of the fence I described in the past post. It is always interesting to see things jump off the page and into the real world.
The Drawing:
The Real Fence:
Posted by Michael O'Connell at 07:57 PM | Comments (0)
October 20, 2005
Real Goods Solar Living Center
Below is a profile for Real Goods- A alternative energy center and gardens located in Hopland, California.
Project Type:
Retail sustainable goods outlet/ Non- Profit Institute for solar and sustainable technologies, 12 Acres in size
Designers:
Architect: Sim Van der Ryn
Landscape Architects: Stephanie Kotin and Chris Tebbutt
Completed June 1996
Contact:
Website: http://www.realgoods.com/
Address: 13771 South Highway 101 Hopland, CA 95449
Phone: (888) 212-5640
Project Background:
The Real Goods Solar Living center is the vision of John Schaeffer, the founder of the sustainable products company Real Goods. Located about 90 miles north of San Francisco, the center encompasses three distinct elements: The 5000 square foot Real Goods retail store, the Solar Living Center- a non-profit educational and research division of Real Goods, and Solar 2000, a 132 kilowatt solar array, which is one of the largest solar power sites in Northern California. Real Goods is a mail-order based company, which had over 18 million dollars in sales in 1996 when the center opened. The project was built as a model for the use of sustainable energy technologies, building materials, and a showcase for the company’s products. The Solar Living Center manages the facilities and grounds and focuses on educational workshops and continuing research. This includes the promotion of sustainable building materials and techniques, permaculture, and sustainable landscape design.
Project Design:
Sustainable design of both the architecture and the landscape was of foremost importance for the center. The site selected along Highway 101 in Hopland, lies in a 20 year flood plain and at the time of purchase was a CalTrans dumpsite. The husband-wife landscape architecture team of Stephanie Kotin and Chris Tebbutt transformed what was a bare, noisy site into an interesting and lush oasis with as much landscape meaning as interesting form. Solar energy panels are built into and featured within the grounds of the center and incorporate the ideas of sustainable energy use directly into the landscape. Distinct design elements such as incorporation of the cardinal directions as distinct axis, a solar calendar, a central artesian well and stream, and a large pond and wetland are all designed together into an inclusive package, rich with symbolism and artistry. Throughout the site individual design elements speak to the message and artistic quality of the grounds. One poignant example of these elements is the Memorial Car Grove. The grove contains old rusting muscle cars that have had holes cut in the roofs to allow trees to grow through. Elements such as this show a rich synthesis of message with form.
Sources:
-A Place in the Sun- the book about the creation of Real Goods
-Personal Site Visit
For More:
-Review of A Place in the Sun
Posted by Michael O'Connell at 05:58 PM | Comments (2)
October 19, 2005
A New Toy
We just purchased a new digital camera for our office- the Nikon 7900. I have a Nikon Digital SLR (D-100), but we wanted something that could be slipped in my pocket for day to day site visits. I am sure photos from the 7900 will be appearing here and on the site real soon.
I bought the D-100 a couple of years back, when professional type digital cameras were just becoming reasonable. Now of course technology has advanced, and my old camera is outpixeled, although pixels alone do not determine image quality. Much of that has to do with the quality of the glass in front of the camera. The old Nikon has been a great camera and I have easily shot 30,000 plus images with it (including 10,000 in Europe, which can be see in our Great Gardens and Parks section)
More on the Nikon 7900:
Digital Photography Report
Cnet
PC Magazine
Nikon
Posted by Michael O'Connell at 05:41 PM | Comments (0)
October 18, 2005
The Power of Adobe Acrobat Professional
Adobe Acrobat is commonly used for creating documents distributed off the web, and for a host of other uses. A couple of years back we traded in our Acrobat Reader, for a version of Adobe Acrobat professional. At the time I was unconvinced that the switch would be worth it. We already had a utility from another program that could print documents to .pdf. The ability to create, assemble and add advanced features has definitely been worth while.
With advanced features of the new Acrobat pro you can imbed various types of data, embed audio commentaries that can be played while viewing, and a host of other features. It has made Acrobat a staple of our digital workflow and email correspondence.
I especially like the slideshow feature. By changing the view to full screen you can flip through a .pdf document just like using PowerPoint.
For More:
Hardware Zone article on Acrobat 7
Adobe
Posted by Michael O'Connell at 06:29 AM | Comments (0)
October 17, 2005
A Trip to the Hardware Store- The Price/Service Axis
Today, while purchasing hardware for a project, we were amazed to find that one of the local hardware stores was 4-5 times more expensive for a turnbuckle (to tension wire rope) than all of the other hardware stores in the area.
This particular store is consistently outside of the cost range of their competitors. In a commodity business like hardware, you better either be competitively priced (or look out for pressure from stores like Home Depot- often nick-named "Home Cheapo") or offer better than average service. In the case of this particular store, both are missing.
Business author Tom Peters underscores the point, have the most competitive prices or offer the best in terms of your product or service.
Posted by Michael O'Connell at 11:12 AM | Comments (0)
October 15, 2005
Ehow.com Garden Care Information
In my surfing looking for details on maintenance of a particular plant, I came across an excellent general garden care website from ehow.com. On the site they have good overviews and step by step instuctions for fertilizing, lawn and shrub care, pest problems, pruning, and other common garden questions.
The rest of the site has good information for do-it-yourself instructions for a number of other topics.
Posted by Michael O'Connell at 03:24 PM | Comments (0)
October 14, 2005
Different Types of Fencing
We are currently working on a couple of projects where we have employed alternative fencing types, instead of traditional wooden fencing. When designing fencing there are several options for detailing, both for wood designs, and for alternatives.
These two projects both used wire elements to give a more architectural feel to the design, and to prevent a boxed-in feeling.
In the first, we used heavy grade welded wire fence panels framed with wood to create a fence that would act as a trainer for vines. For the other project we used wire cables to prevent deer from entering a property, while still preserving views. The client did not want a fenced in feel, and did not like the aesthetic of a tradition welded wire deer fence or chain link. Vines and shrubs will be used to screen where necessary.
Photos to come...
Posted by Michael O'Connell at 04:35 PM | Comments (2)
October 12, 2005
GardenDesignOnline Blog
Looking where our links come from, I wanted to give a nod to GardenDesignOnline, a nice blog of garden related information. Check the blog's author, Jane Berger's list of garden/landscape design blogs and resources (top notch!)
It is amazing how much time and dedication people put into blogs, they really can serve as an excellent information resource.
Posted by Michael O'Connell at 11:03 PM | Comments (0)
October 11, 2005
Design- The New Churches
A very interesting look at "Mega Church" design in Slate that is worth a look. These churches looked to me more like symphony halls or rock concert settings than your traditional places of worship.
Posted by Michael O'Connell at 10:36 PM | Comments (0)
October 10, 2005
Great California Weather
I am back in the office this week after spending part of last week attending the wedding of a friend in Lincoln, Nebraska. We are fortunate in California, not only for our notorious good weather, but also for the wide range of plants that are available. In a large part of the country, where cold winters and snow are prevalent, as was the case with Lincoln, landscapes consist of large lawns and a few shrubs.
Now we certainly have similar landscapes utilizing large lawns and border plantings in California, but we also have a wide range of options in ornamental plants that thrive in this climate. We do pay a price for this however great weather and location however. You won't find may town homes selling in the low $100,000's or nice homes selling in the $200,000's.
An Arid Western View
Posted by Michael O'Connell at 03:55 PM | Comments (0)
October 03, 2005
Reflections on Blogging
As we approach 70 entries and over 3 months in our landscape blog, I pause to reflect a bit on blogging in general.
Our concept behind having a blog for O'Connell Landscape, was to give a living aspect to our site. Something that would be continually updated and that would let clients and potential customers see "behind the scenes." Now this blog differs from some other blogs, in that, we typically don't do blow by blows of what is happening in the company. Rather, we try to post items that would be of interest concerning gardening, materials, landscape architecture, the occasional rant, etc. This allows anyone a good general reference, and hopefully allows potential customers to see a bit of our background and expertise.
Hopefully, we have been successful to some degree in our initial goals. We have had some good feedback from clients that have seen the blog, and from strangers that may find us via Google or other means. The blog is work, typically it takes between 30 minutes to an hour per post depending on the content. But, it is an enjoyable activity, and gives some diversity to the information available on our website.
From the Comments Section
I received an interesting comment from a visitor last week concerning some errors in word usage in one of our posts. Comments are always much appreciated, as it gives us feedback for the site. In my defense, in the last 30 days we have posted on the site close to 10,000 words amounting to approximately 40 pages of text and images, and I am sure there were more than those 2 errors to be found. Should the commenter wish to take on a pro-bono editorship in Turned Earth, I am sure we could keep him busy.
On a Whole Other Level
For those wanting to see blogging taken to an art form, check business author Tom Peter's blog/website. The staff there really put out a richness of information, that makes this serial seem paltry by comparison.
Posted by Michael O'Connell at 10:18 PM | Comments (0)