Drainage and Infrastructure Are Not Like Milk Duds
I’m still recovering from Halloween – 538 trick-or-treaters is a LOT Of kids – and it’s still framing how I look at things. Of the nearly $200 we spent on candy we have a bowlful left, and as I was…
Tag dc landscape design
Winterberry Holly | Ilex verticillata
With fall comes an initial blaze of color as the trees turn, followed by a whole lot of brown and gray. Luckily we have a gorgeous plant for fall color: Winterberry holly, or Ilex verticillata if you like botanical names. …
Dry Streambeds for Drainage in the Landscape
Often when I’m meeting with a landscape design client in the DC metro area, drainage comes up as a concern. Sometimes the client knows he or she has an existing problem while other times I can look at what they…
Deer-Resistant Shade Perennials for Northern Virginia
When I design a landscape for a brand new home in a subdivision that was until recently a hay field, I rarely get to use shade plants. Then there are loads of established landscapes all over northern Virginia, with towering…
What is a Concrete Turndown Edge on a Patio, Anyhow?
Sounds so fancypants, doesn’t it? I have a few projects underway that need one, and it’s a simple concept that sounds more involved than it is. When installing a patio, you want it to have a slight pitch so water…
7 Tips For Getting Through The Landscape Construction Process
A few weeks ago I was talking shop with my good friend, architect Francisca Alonso of AV Architects. No matter what projects we’re discussing, the conversation always comes back to the people for whom we’re doing the work. Anyone in…