February 16, 2019 Flowers and Plants

Great Design Plant: Butterflies and Autumn Sage Brings Color

Many fans of fall blossom (Salvia greggii)will rave about its beautiful flowers. Others are going to praise the fact that deer and rabbits leave it alone. Desert gardeners love it is going to thrive underneath their preferred tree, while Southern gardeners like to plant it in full sun. And folks aren’t the only ones who find the flowers irresistible — thus do butterflies and hummingbirds.

Noelle Johnson Landscape Consulting

Botanical name: Salvia greggii
Common title: Autumn sage
Resource: Native to Texas, New Mexico and Mexico
Where it can grow: Hardy to 0 degrees Fahrenheit (USDA zone 7; find your zone)
Water requirement: Low to moderate
Light requirement: Filtered color in the low desert; total sun in other climates
Mature size: 2 feet tall and broad
Benefits and tolerances: Drought tolerant once established, but looks best with deep watering per week; attracts butterflies and hummingbirds
Seasonal interest: Flowers in autumn and spring at the low desert; blooms in summer in warmer climates
When to plant: Fall or spring

Noelle Johnson Landscape Consulting

Distinguishing traits. Autumn blossom is a little- to medium-size shrub that thrives in lightly shaded regions. Tubular flowers appear in autumn and last until spring in low-desert gardens. In cooler climates the flowering begins in spring and continues into summer.

The bright green foliage is attractive and resistant to both deer and rabbits.

Shown: Vibrant pink fall sage implanted around a Foothills Palo Verde tree, which creates protection from the hot Arizona desert sun.

Noelle Johnson Landscape Consulting

The colorful, bright blossoms are irresistible to hummingbirds in addition to butterflies, which is why this plant is a must-have for any butterfly or hummingbird garden.

Noelle Johnson Landscape Consulting

Autumn sage (Salvia greggii)often hybridizes using Salvia microphylla. The hybrids are sometimes referred to as Salvia x jamensis,with flower color variants including peach, light pink, purple, white and bicolor. The hybrids have the exact same growth habits and prerequisites as fall sage.

Shown: ‘Playa Rosa’

Noelle Johnson Landscape Consulting

The best way to utilize it. This tiny perennial shrub looks great paired with yellow-flowering perennials such as angelita daisy, coreopsis, damianita and rudbeckia.

Use fall sage as an understory plant by incorporating it about a tree which produces light shade. It can grow in full color, but flowering will be reduced. Avoid placing it in regions that get full day sunlight — northern or eastern exposures are greatest.

Shown: Autumn sage implanted with yellow pansies at the University of South Carolina

Noelle Johnson Landscape Consulting

Autumn sage may be used to line a pathway as a gorgeous backdrop to a perennial bed.

Shown: Autumn sage implanted alongside a pathway at The Living Desert in Palm Desert, California.

Noelle Johnson Landscape Consulting

Planting notes. Plant it in well-drained soil. Prune it back to 1 foot after the last freeze date and apply a slow-release mulch. The compost will assist the autumn sage manage the warm temperatures of summer more easily.

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February 13, 2019 Life

Grow Herbs for Fresh Flavor and Great Looks from the Garden

Herbs have been used throughout recorded history to get a massive range of functions: culinary, aroma, medicinal and much more. But if you have not grown them they can appear intimidating — should they do this much, developing them should be complicated.

However, most herbs are simple to grow. They’re minimally fussy and suffer from few pests and diseases, making them suitable for beginning gardeners. They’re also fantastic landscape plants. They are sometimes used as part of a regular garden bed, set off as a garden feature by themselves, integrated into container houses, grown over walls or in window boxes, or used as a ground cover.

Get plants from the nursery for any vacant spots on your baskets or borders — or take a new look in your yard for a dedicated place to get a full size herb garden. Here’s how to get started.

Sterling-Huddleson Architecture

Decide on your garden layout. Would you like a separate herb garden? Your options include an official layout, including a knot garden, or even a more casual backyard bed. If the herbs be in a series of containers, maybe on a terrace outside the kitchen, where they will be readily available? Would you wish to utilize some as a ground cover, between patio pavers or to create a path?

Decide on your own plants. Most popular herbs have culinary uses, but as soon as you’ve gotten started on herb gardens, then you will probably want to look into more unusual offerings, even if they are not edible.

Spread the love. One great thing about herbs is that they’re usually easy to spread by seeds or cuttings. Propagation is a superb way to practice your backyard abilities.

Beertje Vonk Artist

Prepare your distance. Most herbs want full sun, but other than that, you do not need to fret too much. Many of the more popular herbs, such as thyme and lavender, will grow in poor conditions. Some, such as mint, will grow almost everywhere. In fact, mint could be so invasive, so it’s ideal to set it in a bud raised off the ground.

Even though your chosen plants are undemanding, doing some simple soil preparation such as tilling the soil and incorporating any amendments that your chosen plants may need will still be helpful.

Aloe Designs

Edb layouts

If you are growing herbs in containers, choose ones that will be big enough to maintain the mature plant. Employing fitting containers will help your garden look clean and organized.

Amy Renea

They’re also easy to harvest and preserve. Part of the enjoyment of culinary herbs is working with them in the kitchen, whether you use them whether you dry or freeze them.

Next: How to develop some favorites of cooks and gardeners:
How to increase basilHow to grow thymeHow to grow sageHow to grow dillHow to grow marjoramHow to grow rosemaryHow to grow mintHow to grow tarragon

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February 8, 2019 Fireplaces

The Weepers and the Creepers: 10 Intriguing Trees For The Garden

Trees are an acquired taste, much like good wine. I often joke with my customers that anyone can grow and love a tree which grows up, but it requires a unique person to raise and love one that crawls along the ground, twists or grows up before diving back into the ground. If these trees could speak, I feel certain they would draw us to your dialogue, share wisdom and share a few stories that are unforgettable. Sound intriguing?

Most gardeners are familiar with the old standbys, like weeping willow, weeping cherry and Harry Lauder’s Walking Stick. Maybe youpersonally, however, are searching for something a little different, something to express your identity. Allow me to introduce you to 10 of my favorites and discuss how to use these to make them really yours.

Jay Sifford Garden Design

Pendulous Norway Spruce
(Picea abies ‘Pendula’)

This spruce is a real workhorse in the backyard. Nursery growers will generally stake this tree to a height of 6 to 8 feet. The tree is then free to state its identity as it turns and slowly heads back to the ground, developing unique twists, turns and cascades. No two are alike, so it’s important to choose the tree considering how its shape will enhance the overall look of your backyard.

I have four of these in my own garden. Three are displayed on a high ridge and named “The Elders” since they remind me of austere old men.

USDA zones: 2 to 2 (find your zone)
Water and soil conditions: Average water; well-draining soil
moderate requirement: Full to partial sun
Mature size: Generally 8 to 10 feet tall, depending on how the plant is staked
When to plant: Fall or spring

Jay Sifford Garden Design

Weeping Blue Atlas Cedar
(Cedrus atlantica ‘Glauca Pendula’)

This North African cedar is just another workhorse in the backyard. The species comes in many diverse forms, all fantastic, but many specialty nurseries will generally carry one of two yelling forms: either trained in a serpentine pattern and staked, or inside a hooked pattern in which the tree springs and heads straight toward the ground. Its powdery blue foliage is a perfect complement to the burgundy foliage of a Crimson Queen Japanese walnut or a purple smoke bush. It’s a slow grower but can eventually become very big, so some pruning and training will be necessary.

I made a living fence in my backyard using five of these weepers trained along a horizontal rod. It’s an excellent background for the perennials. A lone specimen is also great for anchoring of mattress of burgundy heucheras, zones 4 to 9, or low-growing Purple Pixie loropetalums, zones 7 to 10. Add a patch of Japanese iris, zones 4 to 9, since the contrast between the weeping tree along with the vertical iris makes a real statement.

USDA zones: 6 to 9
Water and soil conditions: Average water; well-draining soil
moderate requirement: Full to partial sun
Mature size: 10 feet tall and 15 feet wide in 20 years unless pruned; larger with age
When to plant: Fall or spring

Jay Sifford Garden Design

Cascade Falls Bald Cypress
(Taxodium distichum ‘Cascade Falls’)

Bald cypress is a wonderful conifer, partly because it is one of the few conifers that is deciduous. This weeping variety has delicate fern-like foliage which emerges chartreuse in the spring and turns a rich orange in autumn. It also develops amazing flashes in summer time and has beautiful exfoliating bark. A bonus is that this shrub will grow in very wet soil as well as ordinary soil. If your garden has a challenging wet place, this tree may be the one for you.

If you experience an arbor in your backyard, try one of these trained up rather than a pedestrian blossom to cover the construction. Your clematis-loving friends will be envious.

USDA zones: 4 to 10
Water and soil conditions: Wet to ordinary soil
moderate requirement: Full to partial sun
Mature size: Generally 8 ft tall, depending on how the plant is staked
When to plant: Fall or spring

Jay Sifford Garden Design

Twisty Baby Black Locust
(Robinia pseudoacacia ‘Lace Lady’)

This shrub grows like a more vertical kind of Harry Lauder’s Walking Stick, reaching an average height of 15 feet. It’s an excellent terrace tree that is certain to start a dialogue. This locust could be pruned to encourage contorted growth and also to control size and shape. The foliage is very attractive, with glowing green panicles of little round foliage hanging in the branches. The foliage turns yellow in autumn.

I grow mine in a huge pot to give it more presence in my backyard.

USDA zones: 4 to 9
Water and soil requirements: Average, well-draining soil
Light requirement: Full to partial sun
Mature size: 15 tall and wide if unpruned
When to plant: Fall or spring

Jay Sifford Garden Design

Ryusen Japanese Maple
(Acer palmatum ‘Ryusen’)

That is one truly outstanding walnut, unlike any other. You’ll see it at specialty nurseries, usually staked to a height of 5 to 10 feet. It heavily weeps when it reaches its preferred height. The foliage is green and turns a gorgeous yellow-orange in autumn. This walnut is magnificent planted beside a pond, in which it reaches down to, and can be reflected in the water. It also looks great grown in a tall ceramic pot, giving an Asian look to a backyard.

USDA zones: 5 to 9
Water requirement: Average
moderate requirement: Partial sun
Mature size: As much as 10 feet tall, depending on how the plant is staked
When to plant: Fall or spring

Jay Sifford Garden Design

Weeping Canadian Hemlock
(Tsuga canadensis ‘Pendula’)

This group of dispersing conifers has elevated arthritis into an art form. Some specimens creep along the ground, meandering and fanning outward. Others are staked vertical, then cascade gently back to the earth. All are worth growing. Cultivars to Search for include Sargeant’s Weeping, Cole’s Prostrate and Verkode’s Recurva. As with the Norway spruce, it is ideal to handpick this shrub for your specific space. Use extra caution when transporting these as some cultivars are rather brittle.

A caution regarding hemlocks: if you live in an area of the country that’s been invaded by the dreaded bug called woolly adelgid, then you may choose to skip over this group of conifers. Most of these hemlocks remain relatively small and may be sprayed if needed.

USDA sets: 4 to 8
Water requirement: Average
moderate requirement: Full sun to partial shade
Mature size: Generally from 2 to 8 feet tall, depending upon the cultivar and how the plant is staked
When to plant: Fall or spring

Jay Sifford Garden Design

Blue Snake Deodar Cedar
(Cedrus deodara ‘Blue Snake’)

This conifer is a dwarf among the deodars, reaching a 10-year height of 8 feet. It may be found in two forms: either staked before the central leader strengthens, which makes it efficiently an upright but yelling tree, or even more thickly developed unstaked and left to meander across the ground in authentic snake-like fashion. Its bluish foliage gives it additional impact as it wanders down pathways and between perennials. I grow mine in a tall ceramic pot, enabling it to fall overboard.

USDA zones: 7 to 9
Water and soil requirements: Average, well-draining soil
Light requirement: Full to partial sun
Mature size: Up to 2 ft in height within 10 years should staked; larger with age. If unstaked, 1 foot tall, trailing to 15 ft)
When to plant: Fall or spring

Jay Sifford Garden Design

Ruby Falls Redbud
(Cercis canadensis ‘Ruby Falls’)

This newly introduced redbud unites the gorgeous foliage of this Forest Pansy redbud with a beautiful weeping form. The shrub blooms prolifically in early spring, with clusters of small pink flowers tightly hugging the bare branches. Beautiful big heart-shaped foliage then stalks, dark purple at first and finally turning black toward to end of this summer.

Ruby Falls creates a excellent little patio tree, usually reaching a height of 8 ft prior to cascading back toward the ground. It would look great behind a mass planting of Blue Star junipers, zones 4 to 8, perhaps with an accent of ‘Kim’s Knee High’ coneflower, zones 4 to 9.

Jay Sifford Garden Design

Another similar-size redbud cultivar to search out is ‘Whitewater’. This weeping redbud, which is apparently a weeping type of ‘Floating Clouds’, boasts heavily variegated green and white foliage, ideal for underplanting with Patriot Hosta, zones 3 to 9, and Visions-In-White Astilbe, zones 3 to 8, or even maybe endorsed by Casa Blanca lilies, zones 5 to 8, in a white garden.

USDA zones: 6 to 9
Water and soil requirements: Moist, well-draining soil
Light requirement: Full sun to partial shade
Mature dimensions: 8 to 10 feet tall, depending on how the plant was staked
When to plant: Fall or spring

Jay Sifford Garden Design

Alaskan Cedar
(Chamaecyparis nootkatensis)

This exceptional conifer species can look quite majestic or even a bit ghoulish, particularly if backlit from the setting sun. Heavily weeping, dark green fern-like foliage earns this shrub a spot in virtually every garden. There are some wonderful cultivars, such as ‘Pendula’ and ‘Green Arrow’, but my favourite is ‘Van den Akker’. This cultivar reaches an average height of 20 to 30 ft, yet a width of only 2 feet following the reduced juvenile branches are removed. It’s spectacular when planted in groups of 3, as every tree has a somewhat different crying habit. Planted this way they almost seem as a group of people huddled in conversation.

USDA zones: 4 to 8
Water and soil requirements: Moist to average soil
Light requirement: Full sun to partial shade
Mature dimensions: 30 feet tall and 2 feet wide
When to plant: Fall or spring

Jay Sifford Garden Design

Raywood’s Weeping Arizona Cypress
(Cupressus glabra ‘Raywood’s Weeping’)

This gorgeous bluish-gray weeping type of ‘Blue Ice’ is a celebrity in the backyard. Beautiful branchlets hang down from the trunk. A well-behaved narrow tree which should be staked to its preferred shape, Raywood’s Weeping will reach an average height of 12 to 15 ft in a decade in the backyard. Two are great positioned on each side of a garden entryway, since they’ll naturally form a household arch. I cannot say enough good things about this tree that is unique.

USDA zones: 5 to 9
Water and soil requirements: Average, well-draining soil
Light requirement: Full sun
Mature size: 15 feet tall
When to plant: Fall or spring

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February 4, 2019 Small Bathroom

Bathed in Color to Get White Right from the Toilet

There are plenty of gorgeous, vibrant bathrooms on , but let us concentrate on white bathrooms this week. White is a popular option for bathrooms because we associate the colour with purity and cleanliness. But most find all-white spaces stark, cold and boring. The secret to working with whitened would be to pay attention to the materials used — specifically to their texture and sheen. You also have chances to play up interesting accessories in a white area, because the hue is a terrific sterile canvas. I suggest putting some wood components or hot neutral tones to counteract coolness, also.

Continue on for more tips to creating a light and inviting white toilet, and examples of whitened done correctly.

Nest Architectural Design, Inc..

A minimalist white toilet can easily veer toward institutional and cold. Have a hint from this magnificent bathroom by adding lots of warm wood via the lavatory cabinet or the flooring. It will ground the space and give it a homey and inviting feel.

If you have concerns about installing hardwood flooring in a wet area, have a look at some of the wood-like flooring tiles now available.

Try this white: Snowbound SW7004, Sherwin-Williams

TATUM BROWN CUSTOM HOMES

The counter tops and tile in this lovely modern bathroom have nice patterns that include visual interest in a space with a very limited color palette. Because warm whites were utilized, the toilet doesn’t feel cold or austere, despite all the white.

Try this white: Warm Welcome OW-4-3, Mythic Paint

HoneeDo This’n That, Inc/Southwest Tile & Marble

If you opt for an all-white bathroom, pay attention to the details, since they can make the difference between dull and sublime.

This hip bath is attractive, thanks in part to interesting touches such as the floating mirror, floating marble counters and cool accessories and hardware.

Try this white: Distant Gray 2124-70, Benjamin Moore

Trey Hoff Architecture

If you are blessed with large bath windows and a killer view, such as in this magnificent bath, keep things clean and simple so the view can be the star of the show.

Try this white: Angel Touch 7004-24, Valspar

Studio Frank

Bright, bold colour is an easy way to add drama. However, you might also add oomph through abundant textures and materials. I like the interplay of the handsome wood-clad wall and the tasteful wall and flooring tiles in this toilet. The mix is very chic.

Try this white: White Fur W-F-610, Behr

Min | Day Architects

This bathroom’s pure white walls and interesting ceiling layout have an elegant artwork gallery vibe. In case you have unusual architectural components that you would like to take centre stage, a palette of white and light neutrals will help play up them for optimum impact.

Try this white: Designer White 33-1, Pratt & Lambert

Lisa Petrole Photography

If you like white bathrooms but need something more minimalist and more modern, inject classic elements to the area. This delightful bathroom might have a simple color palette, however its claw-foot tub, pedestal sinks, oversize styled mirror and retro fixtures ooze charm.

Try this whitened: Silver City DE6337, Dunn-Edwards Paints

Tell us Is whitened all right, or do you want more color in a tub?

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February 1, 2019 Basements

Basement of the Week: Amenities Aplenty in Minnesota

Seeking some extra space where he could work and unwind after a long day, this company executive and his family had a lengthy list of desires for their unfinished cellar. The full arrangement for your space comprised a billiards area, a walk-up wet bar, a theater and family room, a wine cellar, a workplace, a guest room, an exercise room, a fireplace plus a homework space. To put it differently, your basic adolescent and adult dream space.

After several preliminary layouts, Jenny Jorgensen of Finished Basement Company produced a relaxing layout that incredibly incorporated everything on the wish list, done in a clean and comfortable transitional style.

Basement at a Glance
Who lives here: A couple and their teenage children
Location: Lakeville, Minnesota
Size: Around 1,400 square feet, such as guest room

Finished Basement Company

Though they possess a traditional-style home, the homeowners lean toward modern. Thus Jorgensen added accents such as dark moldings to the coffered ceiling to accentuate its own ardently contemporary grid pattern.

Finished Basement Company

Clean lines continue throughout the slick wet bar, with darkish Shaker cabinetry plus a gridded backsplash tile pattern. Jorgensen smartly put the pub between the family room and game room for convenience.

Finished Basement Company

The living room does double duty as a movie-watching area, even though a bar offers extra seating and a fantastic place for the kids to do their homework.

Jorgensen framed the TV to keep the display out of a floating black square on the white wall. The frame mirrors the moldings used in the ceiling coffers.

Finished Basement Company

The trimmed coffers also link the media space to the bigger billiards area.

Finished Basement Company

An elongated arch swoops on the entryway to the workplace and a trendy firebox, which is surrounded by an innovative concrete microtopping that adds texture and warm color.

Finished Basement Company

The curves continue in this hallway for a counterpoint to the added blank lines. Maple molding and trimwork also create connections between the spaces.

While engineered timber covers the majority of the cellar floor, carpet is utilized in the theater room and office, since the floors have a tendency to get chilly in the Minnesota climate.

Finished Basement Company

More subtle arches appear above the vanity and along the surface of the mirror in the full bathroom, creating a nice contrast to the straight lines of this countertop, cantilevered vanity and tiles.

Porcelain tile and Cambria counters include interesting patterns to the feel palette.

Finished Basement Company

A full bath with a steam shower solutions that the most important space in addition to the guest room.

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January 27, 2019 Tropical Style

Fantastic Design Plant: Firecracker Penstemon

Pass by any landscape which has firecracker penstemon (Penstemon eatonii) and you can’t help but be attracted by its brilliant orange-red blooms. Native to arid areas of the American Southwest, this low-maintenance continuing brings a welcome splash of colour to brighten a winter landscape.

Noelle Johnson Landscape Consulting

Botanical name: Penstemon eatonii
Common title: Firecracker penstemon
Resource: Native to arid areas of the American Southwest
USDA zones: 5 to 9 (find your zone)
Water requirement: Low
Light requirement: Full sun
Mature size: 1 to 2 feet wide and two feet tall when in blossom
Benefits and tolerances: Drought tolerant but does best with supplemental watering; attracts hummingbirds
Seasonal interest: Orange-red flowers appear in winter and continue through late spring; in warmer climates it will bloom during the summer.
When to plant: Plant seeds or bark plants in fall.

Noelle Johnson Landscape Consulting

Distinguishing attributes. Plant firecracker penstemon and you’ll have gorgeous flowers, winter colour and flexibility with little maintenance.

Who would not wish to put in a perennial that gives much-needed colour to a winter scene? Especially when there’s not much else in blossom. Another bonus is the vibrant orange-red blossoms will continue through spring. In cooler climates flowers appear during the hot months of summer.

Don’t allow this colorful perennial’s delicate appearance fool you; it isn’t fussy. It needs no fertilizer and needs pruning just once annually to remove spent flowering spikes.

Noelle Johnson Landscape Consulting

How to utilize it. Plant it alongside angelita daisy (Tetraneuris acaulis),brittlebush (Encelia farinosa) or damiantia (Chrysactinia mexicana),whose yellowish color will contrast well with the bright orange-red blossoms. The delicate white blossoms of Blackfoot daisy (Melampodium leucanthum) make a wonderful pairing.

Noelle Johnson Landscape Consulting

Firecracker penstemon may be utilised in many distinct ways from the landscape. Plant it along a desert wash, around trees, either by a swimming pool or along paths. It seem greats planted by a large boulder. The seeds of the versatile perennial may also be utilised in the combination for a wildflower garden.

Noelle Johnson Landscape Consulting

Planting notes. Penstemon can be easily grown from seed or bought in the nursery in a container. Be sure to plant it in well-drained soil. Water established plants once a week in the summer and every other week during cooler months.

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January 24, 2019 Tropical Style

Summer Crops: How to Grow Eggplant

Though technically it is a fruit, the majority of men and women understand eggplant as a comfortable summer vegetable. It truly enjoys warm summer weather, requiring just two to three months of hot days and hot nights to thrive. Fortunately, it is a pretty sight in the garden while climbing, a small bush with large leaves which have a purplish cast, light lavender flowers and fruits that are stunning. You’ve got your choice of fruit colours, from the traditional purple to green, pinkish red, white and striped, as well as shapes, from either oval or oblong to the Asian or Japanese types.

seedsavers.org

Days to maturity: 62 to 90
moderate requirement: Full sun
Water requirement: Frequent
Favorites:
Oval: Black Beauty, Burpee Hybrid, Casper (a white variety), Diamond, Dusky, Hansel, Florida High Bush, Listada de Gandia, Rosa Bianca, Purple Rain, ZebraAsian: Fairy Tale (good container selection), Farmer’s Long (good container alternative), Ichiban, Millionaire, Neon, Pingtung Long

seedsavers.org

Planting and care: Choose a website with fertile, well-drained soil in which you didn’t grow eggplant the preceding calendar year. For the best results, start seeds inside one and a half to 2 months before your planting date, then place them (or nursery starts) out once day temperatures reach 70 degrees Fahrenheit (21 degrees Celsius) and nighttime temperatures remain above 65 degrees Fahrenheit (18 degrees Celsius). Set them at least 18 to 30 inches apart; leave 3 feet between rows. If you’re increasing the eggplant in containers, select ones which are at least 16 inches wide and one foot deep.

Water regularly and intensely, mulch to keep the soil moist and marijuana regularly. Taller plants (they could reach 4 feet in height) may need to be encouraged, particularly when they’re still young or when the fruit is large.

Great growing practices and adequate watering can help prevent problems, however, eggplants continue to be subject to a number of pests, including aphids, Colorado potato beetles, cutworms, flea beetles, lacewings, spider mites, tomato hornworms and whiteflies. They are also more prone to plant diseases, such as blights, blossom end rot, mildew and wilts.

Amy Renea

Harvest: Cut (don’t pull) the fruit from the plant once it matures and has color but until it loses its glossy sheen.

More: How to Begin Your Summer Garden From Seeds

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January 22, 2019 Patios

When to Paint Your House Brown

Using its affiliation with the organic world, it’s no surprise that the colour brown became the de facto choice for Prairie and Craftsman homes. Brown, from dark to light, fit these fashions in a way other colors couldn’t. Maybe this is because these fashions are celebrations of the organic and natural world that rely less on a cool and cerebral system aesthetic and much more on emotion and craft.

I really do, however, find homes painted brown with no relief or variation to be a little overbearing. Brown homes that incorporate other colours in the details would be definitely the most fascinating and rich, because you’ll see here.

Thomas Lawton Architect

A home nestled in the woods is an perfect candidate to be painted brown. Having a stone bottom and brown body, this home appears to be another structure set in among the trees and ground, particularly because its proportions stress the perpendicular.

Thomas Lawton Architect

Adding an accent colour, such as forest green, to a number of the details, like the window frames, further reinforces the home’s connections to the website while at the same time dividing what could be an overwhelming amount of one colour.

Smith & Vansant Architects PC

The inclusion of an accent colour definitely enlivens and enriches the exterior that’s painted brown. While a brown body colour will accommodate nearly any accent colour, maintaining a similar hue for every will soften the overall bulk of the home.

MCCORMACK & ETTEN ARCHITECTS LLP

A more polished and urbane scheme is a better fit for a suburban setting. In this case, a brownish body colour paired with white trim gives the exterior more presence and stature. This scheme works particularly well for a big structure like this one, because the white trim and accents break down what could be an overpowering bulk.

Christopher A Rose AIA, ASID

While dark brown paired with bright white trim is a traditional colour scheme, a wonderful variation is to combine moderate brown with cream trim. This may yield a softer and quieter exterior whilst retaining the architecture’s classical formality.

Alan Mascord Design Associates Inc

Brown isn’t always dim, and it can be combined with varying tonalities to pronounce every element of the exterior. A very light brown body combined with moderate brown to the eaves and dark brown to the door and window frames enables each element of the Craftsman style home to be distinct.

Gardner Architects LLC

Dark brown, like black, will fade into the shadows. This is an opportunity to dematerialize a specific facet of this structure. Painting the very top level dark brown, as was done here, keeps the attention on the lower, brighter parts of the structure and allows the roof to float over it all.

Dennis Mayer – Photographer

Brown isn’t only for vertical and horizontal sidings. It adds itself to some stucco exterior, particularly in a more traditionally designed home. I discover that, because of the lack of detail and the high quality quality of stucco, it’s best that the colour be lighter. Dark brown would simply be oppressive unless there’s a plethora of other details.

mark gerwing

While the focus here has been on traditionally made homes, brown can work for much more contemporary aesthetics, given the right conditions. It’s perfect for a home like this one, that is suspended in place and employs natural materials. As such, it follows many of the tenets of their Prairie and Craftsman styles even if its structure and form tend to be more International fashion.

More thoughts for exterior paint colours

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January 19, 2019 Tropical Style

Great Design Plant: Ceanothus

In 1837 the mining ship HMS Sulphur attracted back to England seeds of Ceanothus thyrsiflorus — the very first California plant species introduced into European gardens. Maybe (or maybe not) it’s appropriate to think about ceanothus just like a Romantic poet of that same period: rapid growth, brilliant accomplishments, usually death at a young age.

Although various types of ceanothus, or California lilac, are still increased in England, frequently against a wall, now they’re almost completely grown in U.S. West Coast gardens. Back in California ceanothus is a celebrity of drought-resistant arenas — a tree or ground cover having an unmatched springtime blast of blue. If you plant one of those fast-growing, large, shrubby types, such as ‘Ray Hartman’, in just a few years you’ll have a tall, dense mass of blue each spring, accompanied by local birds and bees you have never seen before, attracted by a popular native food resource.

Botanical name: Ceanothus, many species and types
Common names: Wild lilac, California lilac
Resource: The types typically grown in gardens originate in California, from ocean bluffs into the foothills.
USDA zones: 8 to 10 (find your zone). Most types flourish only in climates with mild winters and sunny, warm summers.
Water necessity: Light
moderate requirement: Full sun or partial shade
Mature size: 1 to 25 feet tall and wide, depending on species
advantages and tolerances: All these are evergreen, drought-resistant shrubs, from creeping ground covers to bushy near-trees. They need little or no irrigation after they have become established.
Seasonal curiosity: Known for masses of blue in early spring to midspring.
When to plant: Early fall is the best time; buy young plants began before the rainy season. Planting in early spring into midspring is OK; attempt to allow the plants sit in until the summertime.

Distinguishing traits. Unmistakably blue bundles of flowers range from powder blue to deepest cobalt, depending on variety. There are less common white types. Evergreen leaves are small, shiny and fairly on some types.

Growing hints. This plant is fussy about soil — fast drainage is essential. Overwatering kills; the moisture from summer’s warm lands leads to root diseases. Water regularly after you plant, maybe as frequently as every few weeks during the first summer. The eventual goal should be no water in summer. But observe carefully so young plants don’t wilt.

Generally there is very little desire to prune. Pinch the branch tips of young plants to promote bushy growth. After bloom, cut stringy branches and then cut out dead wood. Be cautious about cutting into older wood (an inch thick or more), which might not resprout. The normal life span is 5 to 10 decades, sometimes longer.

The best way to utilize it. These are extremely useful landscape plants for dry areas — especially slopes and other wilder parts of a backyard. Pick plants on the basis of your landscape needs rather than the shade of blue which you especially enjoy, but the deepest blue cultivars, such as ‘Julia Phelps’, are tough to resist.

Earth covers. Carmel creeper (Ceanothus griseus horizontalis, shown)develops just a foot or 2 feet tall and 10 times as broad. Its light blue blossoms are not as showy as those of different types. Handsome foliage is bright green and shiny. Point Reyes ceanothus (C. gloriosus) remains lower and has smaller flowers and spiny leaves. ‘Joyce Coulter’ is around 5 feet , taller.

Shrubs. Use these as displays and background plants, in organic borders with other California natives like fremontia and bush poppy (Dendromecum). ‘Ray Hartman’ grows up to 20 feet tall and broad, and can be a heavy bloomer. ‘Julia Phelps’ and ‘Dark Star’ stay much smaller (6 feet or smaller) and blossom the deepest blue.

Joni L. Janecki & Associates, Inc..

Ceanothus ‘Ray Hartman’ shows its flexibility here trained agaist a wall in a landscape by Joni L. Janecki & Associates. A wall can provide extra warmth in a climate where ceanothus is slightly hardy.

East Bay Wilds, Pete Veilleux

Severe pruning and staking turned this ceanothus into a one-of-a-kind tree — together with the brilliance of the blue spring flowers improved by the orange-red background.

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January 16, 2019 Life

7 Strategies to Help Someone Hit by a Hurricane

My aunt Marilyn knows she is one of the lucky ones. You might question this. She fell and broke her leg a month ago and has been in a wheelchair ever since. She’d already been staying with her daughter and son-in-law for a few weeks when Hurricane Sandy torn through Tom’s River, New Jersey and bombarded her house. She lost her car and everything in her garage and a few of the bedrooms. Only the arrangement was insured for flood, so in addition to having a massive mess to clean up, she is thousands of dollars out of pocket. And she considers herself blessed.

She’s neighbors who lost everything and, without flooding insurance of any kind, are starting over. They too are thankful to be living.

This was how I felt a couple of decades ago when an arsonist randomly set our house on my family escaped with the clothes on our backs. We lost everything but were thankful to be living and were amazed by the generosity and attention of the community. It is so tough to eliminate everything and begin over even once you have an intact and thriving support system. I can only imagine the challenge when everybody around you’re equally devastated, like after Hurricane Sandy.

Federal Emergency Management Agency

What You Can Do to Assist

Nearly all people have seen the desolation caused by Sandy. In the U.S. alone: more than 110 dead, millions without power, thousands homeless, neighborhoods wiped out and whole towns ravaged. That is when those of us from a distance can measure up, reach out and be extended community, but it may be daunting to know what to do or where to start.

Maybe you have friends who lost their house or belongings in Hurricane Sandy and you want to help. I have a couple recommendations.

Before Photo

Federal Emergency Management Agency

Think before you speak. Less is truly more when it comes to words. Beyond”I’m so sorry” there isn’t a whole lot to say. It feels inadequate, and that’s OK. Odds are, your friends aren’t philosophizing, however if they are attempting to put their reduction in perspective, only listen. It is 1 thing for the people who have lost all their worldly goods to state,”It is just stuff,” and another thing entirely for you to state it, from your hot and intact home surrounded by all of your stuff.

Listen. No matter your friends have been through or lost, they have a story to tell. My friend Sue went to serve in New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina. Her group distributed food, clothing and other basics. She asked everybody who came across the line,”What’s your story?” Every single person stopped to tell her and appeared more excited to talk than to eat.

Try to find a practical need and fulfill it. Don’t say,”I want to know if there is a way I could help.” People in crisis often don’t know what they need, and when they do, might still be reluctant to request assistance. This is often said to finish a dialogue, but resist the impulse. If you truly want to be useful, figure out what has to be done and do it.

American Red Cross

Send money. Writing a check to family and friends may seem impersonal, but it’s one of the most helpful things you can do. Disasters are costly. Something the majority of us do not consider is the prohibitive expense of flood insurance. A lot of people who lost their homes and businesses were not fully insured. Even in the best cases, there are apparently endless out-of-pocket expenditures.

Assist with the logistics. Some people curl up in the fetal position in the thought of insurance types. If you’re an”I” dotter along with a”t” crosser, consider giving your time to help a friend fill out and file paperwork.

American Red Cross

Organize an image drive. When our house burned down, which I mourned most deeply was the reduction of most our pictures and videos. Friends and family sorted through their images and started to ship them. It had been great to have numerous replaced and to look through them together.

Open your home. This is one of the most profoundly beneficial and compassionate things you can do. Losing your house and all of your possessions is a surreal experience, and rebuilding is a long and arduous process. Once an whole area is ruined, the rebuilding process is much slower. Even if it’s just for the brief duration, sharing your house is an extraordinary approach to help a friend get back on his or her toes.

Resource Guide: Recovering from a Hurricane

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