This winter we took a little vacation to Palm Springs. It wasn’t the golf courses that got me all excited but the architecture and of course, the landscape architecture.
Palm Springs is home to Desert Modernism. It is surrounded by natural beauty. The architects of the mid 1900’s who built homes for the rich and famous didn’t try to fight the desert but often incorporated the rocks, trees and other landscape features into their designs. The result is elegant, timeless and simple.
How does this have anything to do with landscape design in the Cariboo you ask? Keeping it simple is an important rule in landscape design, especially for the front yard. The cardinal rule in designing the public area (front yard) is – the house is the focal point. The landscape is there to compliment the house, not compete with it.
There are many considerations when designing the front yard but here are a few guidelines to follow. The four elements that make up the front yard are: walkways and driveways; tree plantings; shrub plantings; and lawn areas. Sidewalks should go where people naturally tend to go. They should allow two people to walk side by side. A minimum width of 1.2 – 1.5m is best.
Trees in the front yard are there to frame the front view of the house, provide shade and hide flaws in the house. Use a large shade tree to frame a two storey house – a small flowering tree makes the house look taller. Select trees that branch high enough so you can still see the house from the street.
Shrub plantings are intended to tie the house to the site. Since the house is the most important part, the shrub plantings shouldn’t compete with it. If your house has many architectural details like shutters, wrought iron railings, or changes in building material e.g. cedar siding and cultured rock, then the planting must be simple and neutral in colour and form to avoid any visual confusion.
Shrubs should lead your eye to your front door. Often overgrown cedars are placed right next to the door and you need a machete to find it. Make sure you know the mature heights of the planting material.
Finally, the lawn links all these elements together. The landscaping in Palm Springs brought all these things together without overstating any of the elements. Often only two or three different varieties of plants were used and repeated throughout the front yard. The simplicity of the designs was beautiful. Because of the hot dry conditions, lawns were minimal and different sizes and textures of rocks were used as ground covers.
I can just hear some of you muttering, ‘Let’s hope she doesn’t visit Italy next year. She’ll come back telling us we need a parterre and a three-tiered fountain in the garden!’
Jean Atkinson is a horticulturist with Richbar Golf and Garden and a regular Observer columnist.
