Alford's English Gardens » ‘Smart Gardens’

Oh La La- Low Water!

kathyalford — Mon, 19 Sep 2011 21:44:27 +0000

Blue Iris

kathyalford — Sun, 28 Aug 2011 00:48:30 +0000

Gretchen’s new low water garden is full of suprises! We added a seasonal garden that requires little water. Along with textures I added the California Blue Iris which Gretchen calls a ‘gift’! We had fun adding different plants that come and go in the garden. Gretchen enjoyed so much she sent me this picture

June 2011 News Letter

kathyalford — Mon, 06 Jun 2011 06:54:28 +0000

Cottage, Low Water, and even Zen are some of the gardens we have installed in the past few weeks.Take a few minutes and read what we have been up to in our June 2011 News Letter

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Sustainable Garden

kathyalford — Sun, 03 Apr 2011 01:33:28 +0000

What is old is new again! Sydney’s back yard was typical Lakewood tract home– 50′s style. We took an old painted (red) patio and broke it up to make a new Urbanite patio with ground cover. New veggie boxes along with citrus and stone fruit were added. A potting shed and small seating area were adding to make this working garden pleasant to spend time in. Even a clothes line was added so Sydney can hang her clothes out to dry the old fashioned way. Just like my mom did in the 50′s.

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Raised Vegetable boxes

kathyalford — Sat, 26 Mar 2011 18:24:02 +0000

Time to plant yourveggie garden!

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We designed and installed some great veggie boxes for our clients and added right into the landscape of the garden. Don’t have room see what we did with limited space.

Pittosporum ‘Silver Sheen’

kathyalford — Sun, 06 Mar 2011 00:53:35 +0000

Silver Sheen Pittosporums shine in the sunlight and block out neighbors…and block walls too.

Low Water Garden Plan

kathyalford — Wed, 22 Dec 2010 23:01:44 +0000

Joy Fisher Front Garde PDF for Website–double click to open

The plan is drawn, the plants picked, now we need some sunshine! … to install Joy’s new front garden. Lots of trees and iceberg roses and such fill the garden of this magnificiant Tudor home in Cal Heights.

A gravel pathway that will become a seating area and is the focal point in this lush garden. All the plants are in the same color pallet and will resemble a cottage garden even though they are low water. Low voltage lighting will accent plant material and make the garden usable when we are back to balmy California weather.

Butterflies in the garden– Volunteers too!

kathyalford — Sun, 05 Dec 2010 01:43:26 +0000

I had the great pleasure to design and help install a naturized garden for the Volunteer Services Department of Long Beach Veterans Affairs.

After meeting with the director, Rex Jennings, we came up with a plan to install the garden area into three areas and ask different volunteer groups to help with install of the gardens.

The Landscaping Director Chuck Franks and his staff of LBVA are terriffic! They provided the tools, equipment,materials and vast knowledge to help all the volunteers do a great job.

Of course my crew, also helped out and worked side by side with the volunteers. Guys– your the greatest, I am so proud to have you for employees!!!

What a great time and what a pleasure to do something for our Veterans– a small thank you for all you do for us

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Easy Care Parkway

kathyalford — Sat, 23 Oct 2010 15:05:38 +0000

Lauren wanted an alternative to boring grass in the parkway. She was tired of watering a small space in front of her home.

In busy Belmont Heights area of Long Beach, parking is tight and hard to find. We wanted to add some interest to front of the home but still make parking easy in the neighborhood. We added some left over stepping stones ( set with cement) and surrounded them with Blue Star Creeper ground cover. Festuca added a little punch of color.

Everything is on drip system on a timer –Easy Care!

Lavenders in the garden

kathyalford — Sat, 09 Oct 2010 18:18:06 +0000

Karen’s garden is a dream! What a great spot for entertaining! But the lavenders are the star in the garden. As a focal point amoung the large boulders and white roses, they are all the color this garden needs to say— WOW!