Designing with SucculentsHow to incorporate succulents and cacti into your garden design
Cheri and Naren Shankar ’s 1959 shabu - and - concrete home , a pristine object lesson of midcentury modern excogitation plant on a hillside in Trousdale Estates , a development in Beverly Hills , could not have been more gross — inwardly . “ We completely fell in lovemaking with the house , ” says Cheri , a political and animate being rights militant . “ The fresh pedigree , the indoor - outdoor spirit of it . But then you ’d depend alfresco and think , ‘ Wow , that ’s kind of pitiful . ’ ” Out front , generic , water - hog locoweed report a steep slope ; in back , an impressive pocket billiards and fountain were becloud by an overgrown hodgepodge of tight - growing industrial plant . “ There was nothing to draw you into the yard , ” says Naren , a tv writer and producer . “ The whole space matte up mad and closed off . ” So the Shankars go with it until finally they just could n’t , and teamed up with a landscape designer armed with a vision — and a few dim-witted rules — to translate an unruly mess into a special setting .
An outdoor dining localize by Plain Air , with chairs covered in material by Holly Hunt and benches covered in fabric by Trina Turk . Photo by : Gemma & Andrew Ingalls . SEE MORE pic OF THIS GARDEN
Trained as a painter , Judy Kameon has an eye for colour , constitution , and pattern , and a sense of adventure . At their first meeting , when Cheri mentioned that she want a fire pitfall at the end of the pool — a space overgrown by a bulwark of bamboo — Kameon at once scrambled into the brushwood , Cheri alongside her , to see what it concealed . “ I palpate like I ’d discovered a treasure chest , ” allege Kameon . “ There was this great curving wall centered on the pool . I said , ‘ This is your seating area ! ’ ”
The actual groundbreaking ceremony start out in the front , where Kameon removed a patch of lawn and echoed the planetary house ’s white wall and black trim by create a black - and - white garden filled with succulent . “ It ’s important to have a focused industrial plant palette , ” says Kameon . make up one’s mind that palette need mistreat back and look at the whole . “ For instance , look at your house color , the passementerie , what ’s on the patio — all the different elements that make up the outdoor space . ”
Kameon ’s creative rendition of shameful and white features milky - grayCleistocactus strausii ; ivoryEuphorbia ammak‘Variegata ’ ; silverArtemisia‘Powis Castle ’ andPlectranthus argentatus ; and black - tippedAgave parryivar.truncata . The setup not only slaked Cheri ’s unlawful streak , it also prize her eco - knowingness , subbing a low - water alternative for a previously thirsty one . For Kameon , removing or keep down a front lawn also gave them a chance to do something unique . “ You need the front of your home to present beautifully yr - pear-shaped , ” she says . “ You ’re not going to end dealings with just a green lawn and a few plants constellate around . ”
impost flak pit and bench by Elysian Landscapes . pic : Gemma & Andrew Ingalls . SEE MORE picture OF THIS GARDEN
In contrast to the front ’s military reserve , Kameon and the Shankars decided to amp up the glamor out back . Both the princely consortium and outpouring recall a time in Trousdale chronicle when Rat Pack fabulousness dominate ( literally : Dean Martin and Frank Sinatra were Trousdale denizens ) , so once the bamboo was gone , a loungy seating room arena and dramatic fire pit seemed a natural conniption . “ There was something quite glamourous about having this very commanding , over - the - top fountain as the focal point of the whole back garden , ” say Kameon . The curving retaining wall was work up up and out to give it more presence against the towering hillside behind it , and a build up - in bench and cove ignition were add . Previously — and contrarily — there was no space for poolside chaises , so a patio was added to comfortably conform to a duo . As for the chaises , Cheri and Kameon chose two vintage lounger that Cheri had reclaim in stripy fabric . “ outside furniture is so often an rethink , ” notes Kameon . “ But you want thing that are go to not only look proficient but be comfortable and working . ”
The back garden ’s colors were inspired by elements of the home ’s Department of the Interior — specifically a set of stylized birdie print by modernist artist Charlie Harper . Kameon was so taken by the vibrant hues — dot yellow , persimmony oranges , shimmery bronzes , and Mediterranean blues — she rive them into the plants and furniture . Oranges bloomed in kangaroo hand , Anigozanthos‘Orange Cross’,Euphorbia tirucalli‘Sticks on Fire ’ , and a wall dotted with shiny planters sate with succulent . Bronze present up inPhormiumand the chaises ' striped upholstery ; wild blue yonder took root inAgave‘Blue Glow’,Senecio serpens , and the tufted cushion in the seating area ; and yellow glow in the flowers ofEuphorbia×martiniiand the impost tile dining table and bench upholstered in whimsical Trina Turk cloth .
White Architectural Pottery vessels planted with sansevieria . Photo : Gemma & Andrew Ingalls . SEE MORE PHOTOS OF THIS GARDEN
As for choosing the composition of works , Kameon looked for a balance of grain , form , musical scale , and people of color ( in both flowers and leafage ) . “ You want to polish off all those notes so when flush are out of season you still have points of interestingness , ” she enjoin . “ In terms of weighing machine , it ’s important to have wide-ranging heights and silhouettes — it ’s nice to have strappy matter against moundy things or leafy things . ” Dynamism also came into play at the Shankars ' , where waving grasses were added to provide movement in demarcation to the static forms of the succulents .
Another divisor in the garden ’s Book of Genesis was Cheri ’s love of birds , so Kameon opt plants to attract them — along with bees and butterflies — withEpidendrum orchids , kangaroo paws , lavender , and salvia . The results were immediate . “ Now there are bees and ladybugs , hummingbird , bushtits , finches , and mockingbirds here all the time , ” says Cheri . Kameon also made sure to rodent - proof the distance using preventive method , encasing the beginning of plants ( gophers ' identification number one target ) in ground squirrel baskets and planting trailing rosemary ( gophers ' number one turnoff ) . “ passive coexistence was our goal , ” Kameon say .
refer : How to Keep Gophers Out of Your Garden
While the goffer are reserving their applause for the transformation , the Shankars are thrilled . Hardly a day passes when they ’re not by the pool , which now offer a gorgeous view of the planetary house and a perfect setting for dinner political party . “ It ’s elegant without being stuffy , ” enounce Kameon . “ Which is a thoughtfulness of the citizenry who live there . ”
Sourcebook : For information about Judy Kameon ’s landscape designs , or unvarnished Air outside furniture ( elysianlandscapes.com;plainair.com ; 213 - 380 - 3185 ) . Find sheeny planter at ( architecturalpottery.com ; 858 - 385 - 1960 )
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