Several months ago I began discussing with The Virginia Hospital Center the possibility of designing several planting areas scattered around the hospital grounds, difficult, high traffic or neglected areas of opportunity. During the course of those conversations we were offered a fabulous opportunity: Develop & design a new outdoor space at the confluence of three [...]

So I was very happy to learn that the residential clients for the project on Elmwood Avenue in historic Oak Park, IL wanted to move forward before things got really cold (and the ground unworkable). These past few weeks have been controlled insanity as a major renovation/addition project is ongoing at the house, so what’s [...]

One thing I really enjoy about this profession is the incredible diversity of client wishes that are incorporated into master planning. For example, last week I was approached to do a real top-to-bottom makeover– a client recently purchased a home which– while truly lovely otherwise- had some crazy chaotic plantings throughout the space (banana trees? [...]

Dear friends outside of Chicago recently purchased a lovely old home in Oak Park; they’re gearing up for renovations/additions and want a better way of utilizing their narrow but deep yard in the rear. This elevated door is the usual entrance for both husband and wife, after parking in the garage they use this entry [...]

Use “denial and reward” to enrich passage through the built environment. “As we move through buildings, towns, and cities, we mentally connect visual cues from our surroundings to our needs and expectations. The satisfaction and richness of our experiences are largely the result of the ways in which these connections are made. Denial and reward [...]

I’m enjoying using this style for conceptual style presentations, I think the rendering allows the client a better feel for the possibilities of their design over a plan view in many cases. click photo for humongous version Previous entries on this design here & here

Recently I was approached by Albert Short, President of Harmony Ponds in Fairfax, VA. Harmony Ponds is one of the premier water feature design/build/maintain firms in the Midatlantic region; Al’s projects include the fountains and other water features for the largest expansion to date of the Virginia Museum in Richmond, as well as the Martin [...]

Recently the owner of The Settlement Group approached me to address a– how should I describe this charitably– woefully neglected exterior for one of their branch locations in McLean, VA. Around the backside is even worse, with two enormous cracking Bradford Pears leaning out precariously over the old drive-through roof, broken and pruned branches from [...]

One challenge I’ve faced in graphically representing all aspects of a woodland design is the groundplain, which is often heavily layered with colonizing bulbs, perennials, groundcovers, and ephemerals. In the past I’ve done trace overlays, weird or awkward (to me) ‘maps’ with keys explaining what goes where, CAD drawings with all other layers turned off [...]

A tiny copse of mature lovely deciduous hardwood trees. No understory plantings to break up the strong vertical lines of the mature trunks. Two bare earth beds with a turf path running between them. What to do? I say plant in massive amounts of colonizing woodland ephemerals and perennials, along with flowering vines. Crocus-Spring – [...]