leaves
It's a plain fact: Nothing cools the affection of a new owner faster than confronting an under-equipped swimming pool's need for lots of routine maintenance. He or she doubtless wanted the watershape for the good times it would provide; vacuuming the walls and floors and skimming leaves off the surface were definitely not part of the conceptual bargain. That's why, as this video relates, it's so important to include some form of automatic cleaning system along with the pool right from the start. Yes, there are
It's that time of year when our thoughts begin turning to the beautiful colors of the fall - and the subsequent bareness of winter. Whether you're in the coldest northern reaches or enjoy the relative warmth of the Sunbelt, we all are aware that fall is a transition to a time when the annuals will fade once and for all and the deciduous plants will drop their leaves. But I propose that it doesn't have to be so - or at least that we can minimize the seasonal holes in our gardens through thoughtful use of evergreen trees and shrubs. These are the most abundant of all plant types, after all, and the bones of
Nobody seems particularly thrilled by environments devoid of light. Even at times when a lack of light is welcomed - as in the desert when you want to see the stars, or on a holiday night when you want to see a fireworks display - the events are related to light in some important way. The same attitude about light comes up when we speak of landscapes. We're always talking about "brightening up" a dark corner, for example, or "adding light" at one point or another. Whether the absence of light makes us uncomfortable or its presence is simply a
As fall looms before us, it's timely to consider a question that should be a factor in every design we prepare: To drop or not to drop? This question is a good one to ask before you start planning and has to do with how much natural debris your clients will be willing to fish out of their watershapes once you're gone. In other words, while it's always important to decide what style of plants to put around your watershapes, it's also important to think about types - that is, evergreen vs. deciduous. I'm sure most (if not all) of you are aware of the general distinction, but here's a short
