Feb 13, 2023
The owners of this scenic Creston ranch property requested a master plan for select areas throughout in order to improve both form and function. The goal was to keep the space as natural as possible while adding ample and varied space for entertaining and family gatherings.
Our design focuses on aesthetics, efficiency, and usability. Key elements include eye-catching plants such as Agaves and Phlomis at the front entrance, trees and greenery along the driveway, multi-use entertainment spaces, natural stone retaining walls, and more.
Close to the house is the main covered patio area with a stone-veneer fireplace and outdoor kitchen, space for a hot tub, and plenty of seating. Moving away from the residence, the landscape transitions to green lawn for family play, then planting space and dg paths that feather out into the natural expanse beyond. Smaller seating pockets are spread throughout the landscape in order to enjoy the views and the new landscape’s beauty.
Every plant picked achieves the owners’ desire for aesthetics while still achieving drought tolerance and low maintenance goals. The plant palette includes many Central Coast natives such as Manzanitas, Coffeeberry, Carex and Calamagrostis grasses. A re-designed irrigation system achieves maximum efficiency while the lighting plan ensures enjoyment even after dark.
Want more information on our landscape design services? Contact our landscape designers at [email protected] or (805) 466-6263.
Jan 19, 2023
Eight Winter Bloomers for the California Central Coast
During the colder months on the California Central Coast, many of our plants fall back and go dormant. Throughout the region, from inland San Luis Obispo to coastal Morro Bay and north county’s Paso Robles, central coasters love year-long landscapes. With so many beautiful bloomers that thrive in our area, we can count on flourishing flowers to take the stage during any given season.
Here are eight of our winter favorites.
Aloe Striata
Aloe striata, or Coral Aloe, is memorable for its tall floral stalks the color range of a citrus sunset, but its leaves take the cake. Elegant and pale, their reddened edges lend a delicate blush year-round, even as it blooms in the winter.
Arctostaphylos
Drought-tolerant and robust year-round, these Manzanitas shrubs are popular for their handsome, red-toned bark and bunches of round, gentle flowers.
Erica Canaliculata
This showering splash of flowers is commonly known as channeled heath or hairy gray heather. Its bell-shaped flowers bloom in a cloud of pink to purple, lending waves of colorful body to every landscape it flourishes in.
Agave Attenuata
While the Foxtail Agave is typically known for its year-round architectural form and drought-tolerance, mature specimens will put out massive flower spikes once in their lifetime. Vibrant green, cool blue, and beautiful variegated cultivars are available, and will spread from basal shoots, eventually filling in a sizeable area.
Viburnum Tinus
Another shrub bursting with fragrant and elegant blooms, the Viburnum tinus not only blossoms in the winter but provides a burst of metallic blue from its berries as well. It is well beloved by butterflies, bees, and clients alike..
Aloe Camperi
One of the few aloes with verdant green leaves, Aloe camperi or Popcorn Aloe, is a mid-rise plant with beautiful apricot flowers and a spindly, dramatic shape.
Grevillea ‘Moonlight’
Large, fast-growing, and with lovely flowers reminiscent of loose embroidery, Grevillea ‘Moonlight’ is a bushy evergreen that brings its luminous ivory to your winter landscape.
Ribes ‘Spring Showers’
The pendulous pink flowers of this dainty plant come alive in winter, a vibrant display that can almost cover the foliage.
Looking for a landscape with plants that bloom in the winter? Talk to our landscape designers for a design tailored to your specific climate. Some of the species in this list are better suited for milder coastal climates, while others are bullet-proof even in frosty north county. Contact our landscape designers at [email protected] or (805) 466-6263.
Dec 1, 2022
Transforming a landscape can be overwhelming—there are so many places to find inspiration, and there are drastically different styles to consider. It can be helpful to work with a professional—landscape designers are trained to see the big picture and identify opportunities that elude most homeowners.
Maximize Your Residential Landscape
Written by Daniel Mazawa, General Manager
Originally published in Living Lavishly
Here are a few steps homeowners can take to understand the design process and get a grasp of what they want from their landscape:
Analyze the Site
On the Central Coast, there are several different natural backdrops that most homes enjoy. Whether it is a distant view of rolling oak woodlands or a beachfront bluff experience, it is important to understand the setting of a place as influenced by the natural world. Take stock of existing trees or plants on site as well as sun and shade.
The architecture of the home and the neighborhood aesthetic may set the tone for the landscape design style. Consider the experience of driving up to the house and walking around the yard. A guest arriving at the home should know right where the front door is and where to park. The movement around the landscape should be functional and beautiful. Where are the areas of interest? What is the flow and the circulation? Identify the opportunities and constraints in a setting before figuring out what to do.
Establish the Functions
It is easy for someone who owns a home to identify what they want, but it can be a little more difficult to define what they need. Everything takes up space, so prioritizing functions is extremely important. Figure out how much usable space is needed for parking, outdoor entertaining, open utility areas, connecting pathways, and any other high-frequency functions. Pools, hot tubs, sport courts, outdoor kitchens, vegetable gardens, and other secondary functions can be fun additions to fold in.
Consider the best locations for all functions as far as convenience, sun exposure, views, and feel. For example, both an outdoor kitchen and a vegetable garden are convenient near an indoor kitchen, but the garden wants open sunshine and the outdoor kitchen benefits from shade or shelter. Also consider the indoor/outdoor connection as perceived through windows and doors from inside. A pergola can feel like an extension of an indoor room, or a distant view can be framed to be enjoyed from inside.
Define Design Style
A good first step is to decide whether a landscape is going to be geometric and calculated or free flowing and natural. A modern home may work better with a straight-lined landscape, but these forms can deconstruct as they move away from the structure. A natural setting such as a woodland can work well with curves and natural pathways especially if preserving existing trees.
People who like control, simple bold design, or tidy surroundings gravitate towards straight lines with geometric configurations. People who like tranquility, natural settings, or designing with nature gravitate towards flowing curves. Bold Modern style utilizes straight-line end of the spectrum and Natural Style falls on the curved line end. Mediterranean, Southwestern, Cottage, and Japanese gardens fall somewhere between. Having a clearly defined style that repeats and transitions smoothly will make a landscape feel complete.
Design Spaces Before Features
While design features are important, the spaces they create are more important to the user experience. For example, a tree may be a beautiful feature, but the shade and shelter a tree grove provides can create a comfortable room complete with walls and a ceiling. Comfortable spaces are often perceived as a bit wider than they are tall, or 1 to 1.618 height to width per the golden ratio. A pergola 16 feet wide by 10 feet tall is a good example. The same comfortable feeling can be achieved with shrubs and trees.
Conversely, putting too many plants next to a front door entry can make it feel tight and uninviting. Open it up and make the path wide, prominent and inviting. Wide open views will feel more comfortable when framed with trees or from a comfortable viewing patio. The psychology of spaces can be overwhelming, but it is obvious when a space feels right.
Work Out Transitions
Landscape is the glue that holds together spaces and structures. Transitions can be the most dynamic aspects of a landscape, or they can be eyesores. Complex hardscape features such as patios, retaining walls, fences, pergolas, outdoor kitchens, water features, and fire features will often intersect and connect with one another.
Figure out how connections will work to make a seamless transition point. Formal landscapes will often transition to a natural area. Utilize decorative bunch grasses on the edge of the landscape to blur the line between mulched landscapes and natural areas. When utilizing multiple design styles, create transitional landscapes to blend gradually. For example, a contemporary landscape may transition to a natural area going from straight lines to calculated arcs and then to a curved path.
Iron Out the Details
Details in the landscape should emphasize the overall design style and theme. In most cases, color themes should be complementary, so they don’t clash. Choose colors for concrete, stone, wood, paint, mulch, and plant material that paint a picture that goes together.
Textures should also be considered. Fine texture details such as exposed aggregate concrete, small ledge stone, or small plants can feel lost in a large space. Bold coarse texture details like large boulders or big leaved plants can feel overbearing in small spaces. Perennial plants provide color, texture, and movement.
Plants should fit the design style with color as well as layout. Bold masses of plants work well with contemporary landscapes, while multi-species combinations can work well with natural areas. Finishing details can make the difference between a hodge-podge yard and a cohesive landscape.
There is a lot to think about when trying to maximize a landscape. A professional can help. Landscape designers can take ideas and dreams and turn them into a buildable design. Knowing the process before starting design or construction can be invaluable to being able to communicate goals and expectations to create a successful landscape to enjoy for years to come.
Ready for a landscape design and not sure where to start? Contact our landscape designers at [email protected] or (805) 466-6263.
Nov 30, 2022
Madrone was hired to design a low-water landscape and irrigation plan for a new commercial building on an existing half-acre empty lot in Paso Robles. The placement of trees and shrubs was critical to creating an appealing front entry and visual screen for the sizable building.
Native plant species were selected for year-round interest with low maintenance requirements. Tree plantings were arranged to enhance views toward the building entry, screen certain areas, provide seasonal interest, and shade during summer months. The company color, visible in a band on the building, has been reflected in seasonal color accents within the landscape.
As part of the design package, Madrone created a 3D landscape rendering to visually communicate both the landscape and proposed structure.
Want more information on our landscape design services? Contact our landscape designers at [email protected] or (805) 466-6263.
Oct 26, 2022
A collaborative project with Signum Architecture and Pederson Construction, Clos Solene Winery’s tasting room area is in its design phase. With multiple indoor-outdoor rooms and access to a new wine “cave” built into one of the winery hillsides, the project is coming together with structure and poise.
Our job has been focused on plans for planting, irrigation, lighting, and hardscape decomposed granite areas, all while giving careful attention to beautiful views. Everything is oriented along vine rows with sight lines maintained over a foreground of waving grasses.
With an emphasis on flow from space to space, the main walkways from the parking lot and the cave intersect at a junction with a water feature and lush grasses, the plant layout forming a smooth transition between architectural spaces.
Clos Solene’s many nooks mean precise planning and placement of various plants in our native and mediterranean palette—from the perfect tree for a narrow planter to low-growing grasses softening the central corridor. The plan is coming together with exciting promise and a beautiful payoff.
Want more information on our vineyard design services? Contact our landscape designers at [email protected] or (805) 466-6263.
