“Beauty surrounds us, but usually we need to be walking in a garden to know it.” – Rumi

Happy Holidays from Simmonds & Associates 

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A new book shows how beauty and sustainability in landscape design go hand in hand. Closer to Nature: The Alluring Landscapes of Simmonds & Associates showcases the sustainable landscape design strategies of this Northern California-based landscape architecture firm. Released this week by Whitespace Press, the illustrated book by Lee Anne White explores the ways in which the firm has created beautiful, inviting and contemporary environments while embracing creative strategies for conserving water and other natural resources.

The founder of Simmonds & Associates, Inc., landscape architect Warren Simmonds, explains, “We have created innovative outdoor environments that are ecologically sound and deeply rooted in nature since opening our doors more than 20 years ago. We have always embraced the use of native plants and were among the first firms to introduce low-maintenance, drought-tolerant ornamental grasses to the San Francisco Bay Area—long before these plants were widely recognized as appropriate for the region’s unique climate.”

The firm has also adopted creative strategies for conserving water and energy, recycling landscape materials, and reducing the time, cost and chemicals required to maintain a landscape. The designs celebrate the beauty of site-appropriate plantings that require minimal water and care. “But what makes these projects really stand out,” says White, “is their beauty. These are alluring outdoor spaces that feel natural, but not wild. They are clean, crisp and contemporary, with a nice balance between built and planted spaces that invite you to sit, relax and renew.”

Closer to Nature: The Alluring Landscapes of Simmonds & Associates features 11 projects, which range from residential landscapes to urban cityscape to equestrian ranch. With more than 100 color photographs and numerous site plans, the book is packed with design inspiration, sustainability strategies and innovative ideas for landscape design and outdoor living.

Closer to Nature: The Alluring Landscapes of Simmonds & Associates, by Lee Anne White. Whitespace Press, 2015. 80 pages, 113 color photographs, 8 site plans. ISBN: 978-0-9887928-5-2. E-book (downloadable PDF) $12.95. www.whitespacepress.com/closer-to-nature/

www.whitespacepress.com | [email protected] | 770.329.5449

Closer to Nature

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If so, you are not alone. These images are pretty typical this time of year, especially when you’ve got a 50-year storm on your hands. Yes, plants need water but sitting in water can be just as bad if not worse than lack of water.
Soooo…. What can you do?
There are plenty of ways to combat this issue. We’ll limit it to just a few steps and design alternatives to get your garden winter ready!
First things first: notice how your property naturally drains. Is it all channeling out to a single corner? Draining onto your neighbor’s property? Or creating a giant puddle smack-dab in the middle of your native garden, which has temporarily turned into a wetland.
What to do?

1.) Create a swale
So you’ve got rivers running through your yard, well why not embrace it? You can have your own little moat protecting your family’s fortress.

There are specific water-loving plants that thrive in bioswale environments, while also fending well during the non-winter months
Bioswales are designed to help recharge the groundwater table and direct excess water to a designated area, thereby helping to avoid oversaturating your planting areas and allowing your bioswale plants, like juncus and carex, drink up all the water that would have drowned your succulents.

2.) Rainwater harvesting
Is all your rooftop water is draining to a puddle on the side of your home and just getting bigger and bigger?
Once again, let’s embrace it! Fill it up with layers of sand, gravel, and river rock to allow optimal drainage and fill it in with some water loving bioswale plants.

3.) Good Drainage = Happy Succulents
Succulents have most definitely been in vogue for the past few years, which comes as no surprise given their architectural style, extreme low maintenance, and being the pack leaders in the xeriscaping brigade.

But if not given the proper drainage, these beautiful succulents can wither away with this rain.
The secret is to percolate the water down through the soil away from the succulents’ roots, thereby feeding the water table and not drowning your aloes.
To do this layers of sand, gravel, and rocks are set when the succulent is initially planted. Clay based, or fine grained soils are the main cause of ‘puddles’ in the landscape. The larger the gain of sediments the more space is offered for the water for escape.

Are you prepared?
Call us- we love to tromp around the puddles in our Wellies!

by Amanda

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In 2011 we won a competition for the 2200 Pacific Homeowners Association to transform their landscape into a contemporary, elegant entry fitting for a 1960’s Modern, 12 story building. The design brief described a desire to create a “wow” factor while dealing with large vents in the street-side planters that take up over 50 % of the space, and cannot be blocked!

Stainless steel trays hover above the vents and hold a soft, naturalistic planting, which contrasts with new polished black granite walls and an architectural planting of barrel cacti in front of the walls, which reflect in the highly polished surface. A new street number column completes the streetscape. From the porte-cochere side, the planters are screened by 3-form Ecoresin panels, which hide the vents and trays, while allowing the planting to be seen from the lobby.

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The focal point of the front yard is a fountain, also found at the Sausalito Art Festival, whech is set in a “Persian carpet” of New England brick, a reminder for the client of his East Coast heritage.

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The Smith Residence, Kentfield

Vote for us…

We are in the running for the Pacific Sun’s BEST OF MARIN, in the “Landscape Designer” category.  We would very much appreciate your support!  You can vote at http://pacificsun.com/best_of/voting/form.php  Voting ends Sunday, so please cast your vote this week.

Substantial design takes off…

In 2011 we joined forces with Linda Novy to develop a business model for sustainable landscape rehabilitation of multi-family and corporate properties.  Linda was founder and owner of Gardeners Guild Landscape Management Company from 1976 to 2003 and has since been an active landscape management consultant for large properties, advocating sustainable practices to reduce the expense of maintenance and the expense of valuable resources, such as water, that are required to maintain these landscapes.  You can read more about Linda at www.lindanovy.com.

In May of 2011 we received our first contract for a phased, multi-year rehabilitation of Crown Colony Homeowners Association in Daly City, a 27 acre property.  We have completed the mapping and prioritization, and 2012 will see the design and implementation of the first significant phase of the rehabilitation.  Below are before, proposed, and newly installed photos of a small test area that was done last summer.

The sod is low water, “no-mow” fescue, and all the plants, with the exception of the Japanese maple against the garage, are local California natives.  We will have more on our web site soon about this exciting project.

Moving into 2012

2200 Pacific Avenue, San Francisco

In 2011 we won a small competition for the 2200 Pacific Homeowners Association to transform their entry landscape into a contemporary, elegant entry to a 1960’s Modern, 12 story building.  The design brief described a desire to create a “wow” factor while dealing with large vents in the planters that take up over 50 % of the space, and cannot be blocked!

Our solution is to create stainless steel trays that hover above the vents and hold a soft, naturalistic planting, and contrasts with a new polished black granite wall and architectural-looking barrel cacti in front of the vents.

The planters under the porte-cochere will not receive a traditional landscaping treatment. Instead, the one by the building entry, approximately four feet wide and thirty-six feet long, will feature 3form Varia Ecoresin panels with a ripple-like texture in translucent blue.

The panels, which will lay flat above LED strip lighting, are a tribute to the San Francisco Bay, with a shoreline of stainless steel edging containing crushed glass “landforms.” The LED under-lighting will provide striking visual interest for residents and guests entering the building. On the wall above the installation, stainless steel ripples will enrich the view from the street.  Construction began last week.  To read more about this project check out:  www.prweb.com/releases/prweblandscape-architect/san-francisco-bay-area/prweb9123729.htm

A Conservatory

A  conservatory for a Kentfield house  receives a living wall, a stainless steel planter with Australian plants and Aboriginal totems, and “Air Plants” suspended on cables from the ceiling.

Bureaucracy, bureaucracy…

As many of you are aware, much of our job is to shepherd plans through the design review and building permit process.  In recent years, this has become more difficult.  It seems as though the public servants who’s salaries we pay, are more interested in saying “no” or submitting projects to unreasonably lengthy processes.  We have opened discussions with new County Supervisor, Katie Rice about this topic.  She has asked that we put together a small group of like-minded professionals.  The intention is to meet in February with Brian Crawford, head of County Planning Dept. to discuss solutions to this roadblock to the construction industry.  If you have any specific concerns you would like me to bring up, don’t hesitate to contact me at:  [email protected].

Best regards, and looking forward to serving your landscape design needs in 2012,

Warren Simmonds

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