The site:
This home for the president of a Napa Valley winery was newly constructed, and the backyard consisted of a tall wooden fence, a couple of mature oaks, and a blank canvas of highly-compacted clay. The clients wanted a little bit of everything: a lawn for their 6-year old daughter, long flower borders, a vegetable garden, fruit trees, two patios for entertaining, privacy from neighbors, and a secluded, Asian-style wooded area for a future hot tub.
The design:
The challenge for this design was fitting the clients’ wish list to the shape and conditions of the site. I chose curving lines to connect the network of paths, patios, lawns, and various garden rooms. To preserve the oak trees, I created a dry woodland area. The vegetable garden was planted in a recycled wine barrel and placed on the narrow side of the house that received the best sun (a solution that the clients love because the barrels stay weed free and are easier to plant and harvest). Perennial herbs and fruit trees were mixed in with the perennial flowers forming the long border for the yard. Just for fun, I designed the border as a “rainbow garden,” starting with yellow, orange, and red near the kitchen, then sections of purple, blue, and finally white at the far point where the border ends in the shade of the oak trees. Though the garden has strongly defined areas, the long flowing lines and mix of colors give it a sense of unity
and coherence.
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