Landscape design and swimming pool in Palm Springs

 

This is one of our projects from 2023 in Palm Springs, CA, were we have provided an integral design of a new house in the desert, plus landscape and swimming pool. Rounded clusters of succulents and cactus are shown at the front yard, in contrast with the orthogonal shape of the new house.

A winding stones path on the north is leading to a rest rear area, as the end of the perspective there is the pit with a (shadow) trellis. Next to it, towards the south, we have located the  swimming pool with three square planters plus one round, all of them with native plants. The ground is covered with pea stone except the solarium area which has permeable pavers.

The house has a patio cover as an extension of the family room, providing a continuous space from the public interior areas to the exterior. 

The house is surrounded by beautiful mountains, with views from west to east. The address is not provided here due to privacy for our client.

Part of the swimming pool cross sections

Senna Pendula- Cassia Splendida

 

Senna Pendula as seen during Fall season. Photo by Myriam Mahiques, personal archives 2023

This is a splendid flowering tree that I came across in my neighborhood. It is called Senna Pendula or Cassia Splendida. The branches were extended to the sidewalk and to the neighbor's driveway, creating such a beautiful canopy. 

From Wikipedia: 

"Senna pendula, also known as Easter Cassia, Christmas Senna, winter Senna, climbing Cassia, golden shower, pendant Senna and valamuerto, is a plant of the Fabaceae family with a shrub habit that is native to South America. It used in various parts of the world as an ornamental plant and is an environmental weed in Australia. The flowers are yellow and the name pendula means 'pendulous' or 'drooping'. It is a fast-growing, spreading, scrambling or erect shrub that reaches 2–4 metres in height with multi-branched and arching stems and branches. Its single-compound, hairless leaves feature three to six duos of wide leaflets that are 1–5 cm long and 5–20 mm wide with rounded tips and salient yellowish margins. Its bright yellow flowers, which are about 3 cm across, have five large petals and are foaled in leafy clumps at the tips of the branches. The fruit is in a cylindrical pod (10–20 cm long and 6–12 mm wide) that hangs down. It flowers prominently at Easter in the southern hemisphere (or early autumn), hence its common name. It also has an insignificant flowering season in early summer (around Christmas in the southern hemisphere)."

Here more photos from my own archives:

Le Meridien: a fabric landscape

I am sharing here one of my favorite projects, Le Meridien 6,000 sq m of landscape, in China.

I was looking at a similar project today on Dezeen, a roof with square bands instead, and I am wondering if it has become a sort of fashion. Nevertheless, I think the grading is interesting for public spaces, and per the description on V2.com, there is a reason for this pattern:

"Paying tribute to the historical textile weaving industry of Zhengzhou, Shma created sculptural-like landscape weaves and folds to reveal an aesthetically pleasing public space. A series of undulating lawn stripes represent the silk being woven - up and down - into fabric sheets by traditional machines. An interval space is defined by matching the existing lobby pillars and architectural orders to stitch the landscape and building together in the master plan, seamlessly integrated with the car parking layout. A water feature with a sculpture is proposed in front of lobby drop-off area as a main welcoming element."

All pictures belong to Arch-exist and are downloaded from this post:

https://www.v2com-newswire.com/en/newsroom/press-kits/3165-01/le-meridien

 

What is a trellis? The beauty of a trellis

 

A touch of red color flowers in combination-contrast with the green trellis.

When we offer a client to design a "trellis", most of the times they ask what it is. A good synonym is "lattice". A trellis is a light-frame construction, with posts (usually 4"x4"), light roof rafters across and very thin 1x or similar, perpendicular to those rafters. Most important, the trellis is not a solid roof, the main purpose of it is to support climbing plants, to hang them, provide shadow, and create a dramatic effect of textures, light and shadows.

Some trellis are free-standing in gardens or as part of the hardscape, others are beautiful to enclose porches or delimit paths.

Though it is a decorative installation, sometimes it may require structural calculations, if the span is long and specially if the framing is attached to a house or any other main building.

It means the construction of a trellis might require a City permit, depending on the conditions and design.

I am sharing some photos that I have taken of my favorite trellis so far. The green one is at the Rancho lLos Cerritos, Long Beach, CA, and the next one is at the Sherman Gardens and Library in Corona del Mar, CA.

All photos belong to my personal archives.

A fantastic Wisteria in full bloom is hanging from the Rancho Los Cerritos trellis. 

The path is well defined here, and we see the light at the end of the dark perspective. We are invited to walk and follow the direction. A sort of "virtual" enclosure is proposed on the side with a light lattice. See the lattice is discontinued, which adds informality according to the (controlled) wilderness around.

The tortuous trunks on the left are intertwined with the posts.

It is interesting to move our point of view and enjoy the effects of the light and shadow in the perspective.

Needless to mention how much dramatism is added to a hanging plant. Sherman Gardens.

This was part of the Halloween Decoration in the Sherman Gardens. Floating vertical "spider webs" in combination with the upper grid.

This trellis in Sherman Gardens is combined with brick supporting elements and alike grids as a virtual enclosure. The restaurant is on the right side. See how the posts are much wider, due to the important overall size of the trellis.

The game of light and shadows. The doors are built alike.

Ferns are located in this fantastic path full of textures. Sherman Gardens

The beauty of a foliage garden with ferns, palms and huge leaves under the front trellis at the Sherman Gardens. See how the sides are also enclosed with the grid, and there are two openings to allow passage through.

Another example of a trellis-porch: the entrance at the former OCMA Museum in Costa Mesa. From my personal archives, March 2019. 

A trellis inside the roses garden, South Coast Botanical Garden, Palos Verdes Estate. Personal archives, April 2024.

A trellis inside the roses garden, South Coast Botanical Garden, Palos Verdes Estate. Personal archives, April 2024.

A trellis inside the roses garden, South Coast Botanical Garden, Palos Verdes Estate. Personal archives, April 2024.

Water Garden in Tochigi

 
Photo by Iwan Baan

Today I am sharing a landscape design from 2018, a beautiful water garden in Tochigi, Japan. 

I see it as a fractal garden design with healing, calming, characteristics. Each reflection, similar and different at the same time. There is not a single detail to miss here.

From Arquitectura Viva: 

The idea that architecture is a form of nature has become a maxim that the firm Junya Ishigami + Associates faithfully follows in its work, an oeuvre now enriched by the Botanical Garden Art Biotop: Water Garden in Tochigi, Japan. The singularity of this project lies in all the recycling it involves: on the one hand, Ishigami has reused hundreds of trees that were supposed to be felled altogether, and on the other, he understood that taking advantage of an existing irrigation system would be the best way to create the watery soil on which a new kind of natural environment that has much to do with architecture would be able to thrive.

Photo by 9 Monkeys (Google)

Photo by O Kaneko (Google)

From DesignBoom:

‘the primary objective of this project was to create a new form of nature as an extension of nature as we now know it; the future of nature through the eyes of man. the site was originally heavily wooded before it was cleared for rice fields. later, it became meadowlands. by maximizing the environmental potential of this land, we will create a new landscape that fuses ‘density’ and ‘relationship’ which do not coexist in nature.’ says junya ishigami to designboom.

Photo by Tao Tao (Google)

Photo by Yaziret E B (Google)

The landscape of Amorepacific Headquarters

 

Today I have been reading about British architect Sir David Chipperfield, who has just been announced as the Pritzker winner 2023, the highest recognition in the architecture field.

From all his work, I am sharing some interesting pictures of the landscape design for the Amorepacific Headquarters in Seoul, South Korea, 2017. The photographs belong to Noshe, David Chipperfield Architects, Ute Zscharnt, and were downloaded from ArchDaily where you can read the building description in the architects' own words.

I find the view through the sculptural trees fascinating. And the combination and contrast of the rigid facades grid, with the tortuous thin trunks and the rounded planters with lots of ferns. 

The trees look so ethereal and permeable like the facades per se. Note the lighting and the floor reflections.

As described by the architects: "Nature permeates the building right up to the roof gardens, where large trees express their sculptural quality complemented by amorphous water basins."

The trees scale and the translucent floor. See how the planter is square and flat in the circulation. 

The human scale.

Another translucent element in the floor, which has a square grid.

The trees scale in the overall magnitude of the building

The "hollowed" cube and the technical grid so beautifully inserted in the existing environment. See how a different grid is used in the building on the right.

One of the floor plans with the trees planters

One of the floor plans with the trees planters

(Edible) Nasturtium Tropaeolum Majus

 

Close up of Nasturtium Tropaeolum Majus. Photo by Myriam Mahiques, 2021. Personal archives.

Long years ago, a friend of mine gave me some packages of Nasturtium seeds, of different colors.

Planting them gave me the joy of filling out my tiny garden with beautiful leaves and flowers. The plants spread very quickly, under the sun and the shadow. The cons, there were lots of snails reproducing under them.

I was curious about this plant -that resulted invasive for me-, and I've found out that the whole plant, including the flowers and seeds, are edible. The seeds are used to replace capers.

So I decided to prepare a salad for me, and it tasted pretty peppery, somehow similar to Watercress and Radish. 

The snails began eating other plants, and finally I had to remove all the Nasturtiums. Now I like to take pictures of them at the local park, observe the bright color of the flowers in contrast with the light green of the leaves, which are a little translucent through the sunlight, and one is able to see all tones of greens in one single plant.

Reading on Wikipedia, I see that Nasturtium is a genus of Watercresses and there is a clarification: 

"The genus Nasturtium should not be confused with the ornamental garden plant, usually grown as an annual, that is commonly known as nasturtium (Tropaeolum majus). Though not closely related, the leaves of the garden nasturtium also have a peppery taste."

Close up of Nasturtium Tropaeolum Majus. Photo by Myriam Mahiques, 2021. Personal archives.

A young lady resting in a "sea of Nasturtium". Here one can see how invasive the plant is. 

Photo by Myriam Mahiques, 2021. Personal archives.

From Wikipedia:

"Tropaeolum majus, the garden nasturtium, nasturtium, Indian cress or monks cress, is a species of flowering plant in the family Tropaeolaceae, originating in the Andes from Bolivia north to Colombia. An easily-grown annual or short-lived perennial with disc-shaped leaves and brilliant yellow, orange or red flowers, it is of cultivated, probably hybrid origin. It is not closely related to the genus Nasturtium (which includes watercress)."

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tropaeolum_majus

One of the most interesting aspects, at least for me that I like to take macro photos in nature, is the plant "Lotus effect", it means the leaves have a "waxy" condition that when water falls on the leaves, they clean themselves.