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The APLD International Design Conference

Marti-Neely.jpgNot familiar with the Association of Professional Landscape Designers?  This is taken verbatim from their website: The Association of Professional Landscape Designers (APLD) is an international organization founded in 1989. Our mission is to advance the profession of landscape design and to promote the recognition of landscape designers as qualified and dedicated professionals.   APLD members adhere to a code of professional standards, encourage continuing education, and stay up to date about new developments and latest trends throughout the field.  We offer members a certification program – the only one of its kind – that provides professional recognition to those designers who can pass a rigorous peer review program. Who are we looking at here?  Marti Neely, the current president of the APLD, and owner of DMS Landscape in Omaha Nebraska.

Susan-Cohan.jpgWho’s this? Susan Cohan,  President elect of the APLD for 2014.  Susan has a landscape design practice in the metro New York City area.  Via her website, I can see she has a special gift for landscape design.   http://www.susancohangardens.com  She writes a blog-Miss Rumphius Rules.  She has an art background, a passion for the landscape, a love of great architecture-I have admired her work for some time, from afar.  She wrote a few months ago to say that she and Marti would be in Detroit a few days ahead of the yearly APLD conference-did I want to meet?  Oh yes.  Meet, we did. A late dinner this past Wednesday, a day spent touring on Thursday, and dinner together Thursday night- the pleasure was all mine.

landscape-plan.jpgRob and I spent the day with them-touring Woodward from Pontiac to downtown,  Palmer Park, the Boston Edison district, Campus Martius, the Rouge plant, the old Packard plant, Pewabic Pottery , the conservatory on Belle Isle-an overview tour of the good and exciting, and the astonishing decay.  Both Marti and Susan were keenly interested in everything they saw.  Both of them have an astonishing ability to absorb, and inquire.  They commented, and they listened.

landscape-drawing.jpgLandscape design has been the focus of my career for going on 28 years.  I find that the design process is endowed by every effort I make to be educated.  I collect books on landscape design, and I read them.  On occasion, the photographs are more compelling than the read.  No matter the vehicle, anything a designer has absorbed informs their work.  The drawing is about the hope represented by the future.  And the knowledge accumulated from the past.  These two women educated me about how important it is to be connected with one’s peers.  One day with the two of them was a big education.

landscape-design.jpgWhat I write about via Dirt Simple is an effort to discuss my design process.  My design process?  It may be good, it may be average-it may be of no use to anyone else.  But that process has enabled me to communicate with my clients-those people known to me who have a love of the natural world.  There are always two of us.  A client with a house and property-and an idea about how to live.  Me-I have an idea about what is graceful, and beautiful.  The interaction produces a design. A good design is never about one, or another.  It is the product of a relationship.

landscape-design.jpgThe APLD is a group about which I knew nothing, until I became interested in the work of Susan Cohan.  This organization of landscape designers has been active since 1989.  Where was I?  I have never been so much interested in participating in group efforts.  No doubt I black out when I am asked to serve on a board.  Part of what enchants me so much about the garden is that solitary experience.  The birds singing.  The rain falling.  The change of the seasons.  That very engaged and solitary time known as weeding.  The peace, and the quiet.  But both Marti and Susan have made me rethink that.

landscape-plan.jpgThe time I spent with Marti and Susan made a dent in me.  They had lots to say.  They spoke up.  Susan remarked that she valued the APLD, as it made a place for her to talk to and engage other landscape designers.  She was passionate about sharing.  Marti-as patient and willing as she is sharp.  It was a very good thing for me, to meet the both of them-face to face.

landscape-plan.jpgIf you are a professional landscape designer, I would recommend that you consider joining the APLD.  If you are a homeowner who is thinking about hiring a landscape designer, review those designers who are affiliated with the APLD.  Marti and Susan-I was delighted to meet the both of them.

M-Cat.jpgExposure to a very powerful and compelling force-who knows what will eventually come of that.  I have the feeling that the time I spent with the two of them will be influential.  Marti and Susan-I am so lucky to have had the time to meet them.

 

 

The Branch Catalog

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Last fall I contacted Jonathon Hofley, owner of Motor City Publishing, about doing a project for Branch.  He has handled all of the print advertising for Detroit Garden Works, from the first day we went into business.  He is responsible for everything we do to speak and spread our story-from inserts in the New York Times, to the lettering on our trucks.  He maintains the garden cruise website, he arranges to have our landscaping company and garden cruise tee shirts printed. He answers me, even if I write him on a Saturday night.   If you have a business that needs an advocate, he and his brother Eric do an outstanding job.  For the record, they write and publish the Michigan Gardener magazine.  We pass out their free publication like crazy every month.  Both of them are serious gardeners.  The both of them have a mission to spread the good gardening word, which makes them an ideal partner.

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But back to last fall-I had a special project in mind.   The Branch Studio has been producing great ornament for the garden for going on ten years.  Manufacturing anything takes an incredible amount of time to get right.  The Branch boxes, pergolas, and fountains underwent countless revisions.  Revisions in size and proportion.  Revisions in construction details.  We were at the point where I felt we had  beautifully made and weatherproof ornament for the garden.  I felt it was time to formally introduce ourselves to people who had both professional and personal interest in ornament for the garden.  To gardeners and designers in other places who were not in a position to visit Detroit Garden Works.

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I told Jonathon that I wanted to imagine, produce and print a catalog for Branch.  I wanted a catalog with great pictures that would tell the story.   He immediately suggested we engage a photographer whose skills we admired.  I already had a photographer in mind, a local photographer named Roy Ritchie.  His photographs of Detroit are graphic, edgy, and beautifully composed.  I especially like how the raw image itself is a starting point for his work- and not necessarily the end result.  How he handles light and color makes him, in my opinion, an artist.

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November last we began shooting the photographs.  Roy wanted to take a picture of a box, in a garden, in a way I would have never have imagined.  Though Roy’s ideas about this first picture made my head swim, we went with his recommendations.  We hired a photographer, an artist, and an expert. Once we spent enough time with him, explaining the history and the process, we got out of his way, and gave him the freedom to work without restriction or commentary.

the-Branch-catalogue.jpgWe have been making steel garden ornament long enough that I had lots of pictures of Branch objects in gardens, and in a variety of seasons.  Once Roy shot the major full page photographs, Jonathon took on the job of laying out each page, and arranging each of the photographs.  With the exception of a few paragraphs about the company and the products, the catalog is an illustration of who we are, and what we make.

Branch-catalogue.jpgThe back page is the back of of our house.  We show the sizes and styles of the stock pieces we build.  12 boxes, 3 vase shaped pots, 3 pergolas, and three fountains. Each piece is dimensioned.  Of course we have the capability to manufacture by special order.  We mailed out 650 catalogs the end of March.  We’ve been very pleased by the response.  Buck and his group have been busy non stop, producing both stock and custom pieces.  I especially like that all of the hard work and effort Buck has put into bringing this enterprise to life is getting some attention.
Branch Catalogue (14)If you are interested further, there are plenty of pictures, and a digital version of the catalog at   www.thebranchstudio.com

 

The Music In The Background

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I have devoted several posts to Branch in the past week.  Over the winter, we designed and made a catalog detailing all of the products we made.  I had the idea to introduce our made in America ornament for the garden to a broader audience.  I felt we were ready.  The past 10 years has had its successes, and most certainly setbacks and failures.  Bringing a hand made object to market takes a lot of time.  There are mistakes made every step of the way.  Solving problems creatively is not about minutes.  It is about months, and years.  As Seth Godin said, “all boats leak”.  No matter the best of intentions, it takes time and effort to hone a design and a manufacturing process such that your product stays afloat, the majority of the time.

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We were a new company that needed time to get our house in order.  Given that we are just about at 10 years sorting out who we are, and who we hope to be, I think we are ready to introduce ourselves to other people, in other places, who love the garden.  Most of that introduction via our print catalogue is visual.  But we printed a few paragraphs about who we are, and where we come from.  Much of that commentary had to do with where we are from-the rust belt.

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Our work in steel is grounded our history and experience.  I grew up in Detroit. I rode my bike to JL Hudson’s downtown, now and again, for a chocolate soda, when I was 12. And again when I was 14, 15, and 17. The gritty city-everything about that bustling urban downtown enchanted me.  I biked it.  This means I was on the ground floor whizzing by every factory and shop for 22 miles from my home. Those experiences made a big impression.  There are many many things I cannot remember, but I do remember the city. So much to see.  So much energy. The growing I could see every place I turned-loved that.

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I so admire and appreciate the sculpture produced by the automobile industry.  There was a time when Detroit made the issue of transportation an art.  I am not such a fan of horsepower and speed as Buck is.  I like the shapes.  I love that the design is beautiful, functional, and made to last.   Manufacturing is an idea that not only interests me, it is part of that music that plays in the background no matter what I am doing.   Buck grew up in Texas.  His grandfather was a carpenter.  His father was a riveter at General Dynamics in Texas, in his earlier years.  He became head of production some years later, until his retirement. If you are not familiar with General Dynamics, they were and are a huge defense contractor. They built the F-111, and the F-16 fighter jets.  His Dad supervised the building of jets.  Buck comes from a long line of makers, whose work involved steel and wood, and whose work involved great precision and exacting standards of construction.

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The music in one’s background-what is that?  Simply stated, every person comes with an attitude, instincts, a history, a point of view, a skill set, a mind set, an aura that that makes for a particular music that plays in the background while they work.  The fabrication of the Branch boxes, Italian style vases, pergolas, and fountains are infused with the music playing in Buck’s background.

pergola-under-construction.jpgThis pergola involved making very thick steel tubing conform to a round shape.  The accumulation of a lifetime of fabricating skills, and a love of both geometry and industry is evident in all of the work he produces.  His spheres are riveted.  His pergolas are bolted together, so they can be broken down and shipped.  They also have that industrial aura about them that recalls the history of structural steel buildings and bridges.

Shinola-runwell-watch.jpgThe moment I became aware of the Runwell watch, being manufactured in Detroit, by Shinola, I knew I had found the perfect birthday present for Buck.  Everything about their philosophy, mission, and devotion to quality I knew would really appeal to him.  But most of all, the watch is a very precisely and beautifully handcrafted instrument-made by a company in Detroit.  http://www.shinola.com/

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Precision made, by hand, in Detroit.  This is music to my ears.

Color Scheming

ageratum-artist.jpgSome gardeners come to a scheme for planting annuals based on favorite colors, or color combinations.  Others like a certain style of planting.  Others focus on the size of the flowers, or the color of the leaves.  The best plantings involve scheming on as many different levels as possible.  I plant the annuals in front of the shop in a different way every year.  That way, sooner or later, everyone will see something they like.  This is the best part of planting annuals.  Every year, there is a chance to try something new.

annual-planting.jpgLast year’s scheme was all green.  I planted panicum grass inside the boxwood.  More than a few customers said it looked like we were going out of business, as we had not cut the grass.   Like I say, everyone has a different idea of beautiful.  I knew I wanted to do something with purple. The color of this ageratum artist is so luscious.  It is a light blue/purple that I call heliotrope blue.  Lots of blue with a big dose of lavender.  Dark purple has a way of turning dull, if it does not have lively companions.  The blue salvia mystic spires has gorgeous blue/purple flowers that are so striking up close.  Plant it in a garden, and the color sinks into the background.  In the mid and background of this picture, you can barely make out the purple angelonia.

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The planting needed some friends that would make that brooding dark purple more visually appealing.  We added both lime and white nicotiana to the purple angelonia.  This plant is airy growing, simple in flower, and sports big flat leaves.  This will contrast beautifully with the narrow leaves, smaller stature and flower spikes of the angelonia. So far, the planting has three colors in the mix.

tricolor-petunias.jpgMixing colors adds depth to a planting. Pictured above is a bedding petunia called “Great Lakes Mix”. The mix of white, medium blue/purple and dark purple petunias is a lively way to visually represent the idea of purple. A mass of white, or another light color can be quite striking.  A mass of dark purple can look dull and flat.  The value of the color purple, meaning its lightness or darkness, is very similar to the value of many greens in the landscape.  Dark purple blends with green, rather than standing out from it.  Determined to have lots of dark purple?  Underplant it with lime or white.   I dropped a floret of a red geranium onto this mix. This is a scheme I have planned for a client. The red will be all the more brilliant, given the purple mix.  The purple mix is even more lively, given the red.  Color in a garden is never about a color.  It is about the relationships that define every individual color in a strong way.

the dinnerplate dahlia fluerelSo far so good.  But this is a big planting bed, with boxwood that is over 3 feet tall.  The garden would need to be anchored by something.  A four foot tall dahlia would certainly provide a visual anchor to the garden.  This white dinnerplate dahlia called Fluerel has a pale yellow center, and pale yellow green buds.  This secondary color will relate to the lime nicotiana. The big flowers will be visible from a car driving by.  The nicotiana will soften the look of this stiffly growing upright plant. We will stake it securely, early on. We will do the same with the nicotiana.  The stakes are not the best look, but plants will completely disguise them in short order.  All there will be to do next is water and wait, and how the scheme is a good one. If the scheme is a good one, all the relationships will be both friendly and serious.   KONICA MINOLTA DIGITAL CAMERAI saved the beginning of the story about this garden for last. I read the garden blog Gardenista almost every day.  Last winter they put up a post about a dinnerplate dahlia called “Cafe Au Lait”.  The story came from a the blog of a florist who features home grown flowers.  www.floretflowers.com, if you are interested. This dahlia features flowers the color of cafe au lait, naturally.  Some flowers are more pink.  Some are more towards the cream side.  I have always been reluctant to grow these dahlias.  They can be too tall, too stiff, and too ungainly.  The blog post was very detailed in how and when to pinch them.  The pinching early on results in more flowers with long stems.  But it was the astonishing color that made me ask Mark from Bogie Lake Greenhouse to order 30 of them for me, and bring them on.  The entire rest of the garden is an effort to feature these dahlias.
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Tomorrow we will add more ageratum to the edge.  I am after an 18″ wide rounded band of this color rolling down to the gravel to border the garden.  That low carpet of ageratum may not be prominent for long, but when it does fill in, it will lighten the look of all of the other plants.  There is a good while before the dahlias will have much to say. The ageratum border might be the best part of the garden, for a moment.  I am still thinking about what will go in the window boxes. Having and taking the time to look at a garden before proceeding is part of the pleasure of the process.