An autumnal sadness sometimes creeps into the end of the year, when the days get shorter and the leaves start falling. But now is the time to appreciate one of the overlooked joys of the garden: the play of light across the landscape. Dave has been in this house 20 years and never gets tired of watching the nuances of light in different seasons.

The low-hanging winter sun sends elongated shadows sloping through the yard, lighting the golden leaves on fire. New experiences of space emerge among the shapes of trees never noticed in the full leafy bustle of summer.

God rewards the early riser....if you stay inside til 10 am you will never see the outline of this tree sketched on the ground!

Their moment in the sun: the humble buttonbush and a coralbark maple. Brilliant!

Photos taken by Dave Rolston at some ridiculous hour of the morning

This house on Bobolink Drive shows what can be done on a small city lot to create a sense of escape from the hubbub of daily life with jobs, small kids and constant activity. The covered porch off the garage was a great place to sit and relax, but there was nothing to look at and nothing to engage the kids in nature. 

So we added a round pond that creates both: a running track for the kids to race around, as well as a rich source of entertainment with fish, plants, dragonflies, birds and water. For adults, the porch provides a peaceful place to contemplate the reflection of the sky in the pond, or to gather with drinks and friends. The blue-grey of the Arizona cypresses echoes the color of the house, and native grasses will fill in to provide rustling noises, movement, and food and shelter for birds.

There's enough lawn to play on--this yard will never be a soccer pitch anyway--and hollies and narrow live oaks will grow to screen neighboring buildings. The gravel drive keeps runoff to a minimum while providing a 'country lane' feel. The hens love it to scratch and roll in the gravel -- be sure to say hello when you visit!

When I moved to Texas years ago, my mother-in-law said, 'Oh, Texas.  People say it gets so hot in the summer the ground cracks open, and you look down and see Hell.'

I used to think that was an exaggeration, until this summer. Giant cracks that can swallow a whole baseball bat, the Llano and Guadalupe Rivers running dry--clearly we can’t keep on gardening the way we always have. But what’s the alternative? How do you cope with months of drought followed by five inches of rain in a week, or in a day?

Here’s a half-acre property in North Dallas that was planted last fall and winter, with hundreds of native and adapted plants and almost no lawn. The owner is a master gardener who is fascinated by plants and wants to try them all. These pictures were taken September 23— and we've had only an inch and a half of rain since May. There is no spray sprinkler system in this garden, just underground low-volume drip lines. And for a month this summer, there was no irrigation at all, after a lightning strike jumbled the irrigation controller's brain.

The paths are low-water use zoysia sod, mowed only once in a while. Maintenance consists of walking around, picking a few weeds out of the mulch, maybe deadheading some flowers. But this yard is mostly to enjoy!

 

This narrow back yard dropped off rather quickly to the alley, making entertaining impossible. Live oaks and scraggly shrubs prevented grass from growing, and the whole aspect was dismal. But with creative terracing and shade-tolerant planting, the space is now a lovely and functional place to have outdoor grilling parties, swim or just hang out.

Building the pool into the grade shows off the beautiful stonework, while easing the downhill transition. A stepped waterfall from the spa to the pool provides a soothing sound and sparkling reflections.

The pool cabana and outdoor kitchen were designed to complement the traditional brick house, with smooth ipe decking and bluestone walkways. Margarita, anyone?

For many of us, living in Texas and having a refreshing pool through the summer months is a necessity to survive. But a pool that eats up the whole back yard isn’t really the best use of space.  At this Park Cities home, the original backyard was charm-free, and the pool was so big guests had to squeeze around the sides of it (first photo, below). The plaster, tile and coping were old and tired, too, so it was time to update.

Instead of just dressing up a bad design, the owners decided to remove the old pool and create more inviting, usable spaces. They felt that a southern, Charleston-style garden would echo the architecture of the house.  As in Charleston, a small yard feels more spacious when broken into separate rooms for different uses.

The upper terrace was enlarged to create a cozy dining area. In the warmer months, family and friends gather around a big communal table. And in cooler weather, people can scoot their chairs up to the custom brick fireplace. 

Separated by a brick planter and low trees, the lower terrace is a formal lawn bordered with a bluestone walk that complements the exterior of the Georgian-Federal style house. This tiny green space lets your eye rest from the hard surfaces of house, walls and terraces.

On the long axis at the far end of the yard, a small raised pool serves as both fountain and focal point. It’s a great place to sit and cool off on hot days, and is much less trouble to maintain than a full-sized pool. In the center, a carved stone piece found by the owner is usually the roosting place for the grandkids’ rubber duckies. The new garden transcends fashion, providing a beautiful, functional space to enjoy for years to come.

 

In our business of landscape archticture, before and after projects really are a treat to work on. To take some tired dated pool, garden, or space that looks unpromising and turn it into an oasis gives everyone involved a great feeling of accomplishment. Here's a modest project that shows this amazing transformation.

 At this circa 1960’s typical North Dallas Ranch, the backyard was cut off by 6’ ht walls, creating a very claustrophobic space with no view to the yard. Old, tired exposed aggregate patio from the 70’s really dated the space. At least there was a nice arbor to save - and help on the budget.

The walls were removed and a timeless Oklahoma flagstone terrace gives the owners a wonderful space on which to dine and entertain below the arbor. This flows between low raised walls and now connects with the lawn opening up the space for a more expansive feel. A grill is tucked out of the main view, but is close enough to be in the action. A simple existing water feature fountain was retained to help on the budget – with plans for a larger one later to add the tranquil sound and provide wildlife habitat.

New plantings of viburnum 'Awabuki', Japanese maples, oak leaf hydrangeas, podocarpus and ferns add to the quiet elegance of the garden. It's nice on these types of projects to see the swan emerge from the ugly duckling.

Here's a pool we designed recently to take advantage of great views of White Rock Lake. Instead of cramming the pool behind the house--next to the alley!--people can sit and enjoy the lake breezes and views from the new porch, outdoor kitchen and pool area.

It took longer to jump through city hoops to get approval for building a pool in the front/side yard. But all of the public spaces in the house are oriented to the lake (makes sense, doesn't it?), so there is little access from the house to the rear yard. Plus the back yard is full of lovely specimen cedar elms, which pool-building activity would have destroyed. So it was well worth the trouble to put the pool and all the entertaining spaces out front.

Many designs were explored in three dimensions, to figure out the best proportions for different elements.

We worked with an architect to make the pool cabana/outdoor kitchen comfortable and functional, as well as beautiful. And the spa, sunning area and fire features were tried out in different places, working around the existing slopes and trees to make the whole ensemble fit naturally into the site. Although it makes our 3D modeling person a little crazy, it's way cheaper to work this all out on paper first!

It looks a little empty here in this post-construction shot, but on weekends the new front porch fills up with friends. It's perfect situated to sit and sip a drink and enjoy the sunsets over White Rock Lake.

Where's the party?!

Garden lovers had a quintuple treat last Saturday during the Garden Conservancy's Open Days in Dallas. The weather was cool, overcast and perfect for taking pictures, and the 5 gardens delighted visitors with their diversity and quality. Here are some highlights:

The lead garden this year is a rarity in Dallas: Vertical! This Kessler Park Mediterranean villa is surrounded by terraces that make the most of the steep site overlooking the Stevens Park golf course in Oak Cliff. Visitors raved over the owners' hydrangea collection and the multiplicity of party spaces.

The tour continued with a charming Oak Cliff bungalow owned by plantsman and garden designer Mike Munsterman. The small lot is divided into a series of garden rooms for dining, vegetable gardening, cutting flowers and even raising city chickens.

You'd never suspect what lurks behind the garden walls of Homer Street. The original 1923 Tudor house has been restored to perfection, and a matching garden house/conservatory is a trip back to Edwardian England. In between, the sheer intensity of planting in the formal garden rooms had everyone asking, "Now what plant is that?". Amazing.

In a trip to another climate zone, the home of Blue Lotus Garden owners Brianna and Trey Denton pushes the boundaries of what grows here. Desert dwellers like ocotillo, agave, palo verde and cholla cactus sit happily in decomposed granite mounds in the front yard, while the back is a laboratory for lotus gardening, rainwater harvesting, and experiments with water features.

"Magic!" was the word heard most often at this Tulip Lane garden. The koi pond, the shady perennial garden, waterfalls and beautifully detailed gates, fireplace and walkways enchanted visitors. More than one asked, "Can I live here?" Stay tuned--we're working on finding great gardens for a fall tour, since many of our favorite garden plants in Dallas look best in October!

 

 

Taxes go up. Aquifers go down. What can we do about it?

Rip out more concrete!

Seriously, cities are realizing that greener building codes will save them money, by reducing the stormwater infrastructure they need to build and maintain. And by allowing rainwater to infiltrate into the ground, permeable paving recharges our aquifers and improves both the quality and quantity of locally available drinking water. Which means our cities don't have to build more reservoirs and then pay to pump the water from East Texas, Oklahoma, or the Ogalalla aquifer out west.

The quality of our environment is enhanced, and we don't have to flood people's farms and ranches in other counties (or sue them, or get in fights with the Fish & Wildlife Service!)

So let's look at some of our recent projects with permeable driveways:

This historic estate in Lakewood needed parking for family and guests. But the house sits between two creeks, and a lot of concrete would be both aesthetically and environmentally bad taste. A large circle drive of mixed decomposed granite and pea gravel allows for turning and parking without destroying the country-in-the-city feel of this house, or polluting the creeks with runoff.

Here's a beautiful modern house with a view of White Rock Lake. Again, the owners needed parking for parties, but there's no room behind the house. They didn't want to see cars or parking lots between them and the lake. Sinking the car court out of the view and surfacing it with gravel reduces the impact of this parking on both the eyes and the lake. Trees are planted so that as they grow, they soften the view and shade cars parking between them.

This University Park homeowner really wanted a front circle drive, but was up against the limit of impervious surface he could add to his lot. A gravel drive bordered with bluestone complements the existing stone porch and the formality of the house; the border keeps the gravel out of the street. This driveway is also healthier for the oak trees in the front yard.

This new LEED-certified house needed a 'green' driveway to qualify for its permeability points. The gravel entry court with bands of concrete fits with the modern style of the house, and meets the LEED standards.

Vintage Place, a tiny circle of homes that emulate historic Lakewood styles, aimed for an overall consistency to the landscapes and a 'country lane' sensibility. Each entry drive has a mix of gravel and decomposed granite border with stone, which gives the homes the feel of a timeless and established neighborhood.

Finally, we practice what we preach. This is Dave's front entry courtyard, where the crunching of tires on gravel lets you know that company has arrived. Plants love it too--the Japanese plum yews at the entry grow happily in gravel, because the drainage is perfect and the roots have room to run.

It's an up-and-coming movement: tearing out tired old pools and lawns to make fascinating, dense--and sometimes edible--landscapes. Here, an unused and decrepit backyard pool was filled in and replaced by a koi pond with multiple rills and streams.

An intimate fireplace patio and tumbling waterways along changes in elevation create separate rooms, with hidden walkways awaiting discovery.

Beautiful gates add substance and mystery to the lushly planted entries. A sweet gum scatters golden stars about the scrap of remaining lawn in the fall, and successive waves of perennials enliven the seasons and feed the bees who live in two hives near the rear fence.

Best news: although we worked with a previous owner years ago on this landscape, the current owner has agreed to let visitors in for this spring's Garden Conservancy tour. Mark your calendar for May 21--we'll see you there!

For more ideas about how to deal with a pool you no longer want, check out our new educational website at

http://greenpooldemolition.com/