It has been common knowledge in the gardening industry for a long time that fall is the best time to plant.  I know as soon as the weather gets nice, the spring rush to plant begins and I think this is the reason many people think that spring is actually the ideal time to plant.  One of the reasons I prefer planting in the fall is because I don't have the summer heat chasing me down but the other reason is because in the wild, nature "plants" in the fall and if thats what happens in nature, I have a nagging feeling that it might be happening for good reason.  Here is a good article from the seed company American Meadows that sums up all the reasons why you should skip spring and wait for cooler weather. 

Why Many Experts Feel Fall Planting is Best

You know its fall when you see Mums and Flowering Cabbage everywhere in New York City.  A lot of people always ask me if there is anything else they can plant to spruce up their garden this time of year.  Here are some ideas:

1. New England Aster  

Also known as Michaelmas Daisy, this North American Native is a great alternative to Mums.  They most famously come in purple but their are other cultivars that offer more colors. These are a great perennial so don't be afraid to give it a permanent place in your garden.  

2. Creeping Wintergreen 

Pinch of one their berries and you will know where the taste and smell of every "Wintergreen" gum comes from.  This plant makes a beautiful, evergreen ground cover that offers year-round interest but is quite a compliment to a garden or planter in the fall. 

3. American Beautyberry

The small flowers that start on this shrub in the spring eventually turn into beautiful clusters of purple berries that make for a nice fall display.  Cut the stems off later in the season and put them in a vase or in your holiday plantings.  

4. Autumn Fern

It doesn't take a genius to figure out why this call Autumn Fern.  This plant is native to Eastern Asia but adapts quite well to the climate here in New York and shows off a beautiful display of colors in the fall.  The other upside to this low-maintenance plant is that it is semi-evergreen.  

5.  Bearberry

Also known as Kinnikinick, this is one of my favorite ground covers: an evergreen with hardy foliage thats low-maintenance and provides fall color.  Looks great around boulders, in planters or under your favorite deciduous tree. 

Here are some more photos of a project we did this spring/summer.  We used mainly native and adaptive plants for this modern garden such as Mountain Laurel, Inkberry Holly, an Eastern Redbud tree and a number of native ferns.  We took these photos as we were installing the low-maintenance lawn that will be done entirely out of Pennsylvania Sedge.  Look for final photos of the project soon.

Here is a nice shot of the cedar fence we built. 

We also installed a gravel path around the perimeter of the garden for easy access.

Hey Friends! We were just featured and interviewed for a feature piece in New York House Magazine for our recent landscape design projects.  You can read the New York House Magazine Article here or by clicking on their logo below and thank you all for the support!!

This is a full backyard renovation that we recently did in Fort Greene.   Our client came to us with the idea of a U-shaped retaining wall with a water feature and a large enough patio space to entertain plenty of guests.  Here are some pics of how it came out.  Below you will find the before shot.

And here is the after...

Here is the outline of the waterfeature in-progress.

During the renovations, the homeowner found this ornate, iron fireplace plate and wanted to incorporate it into the design somehow...

So we decided to make it the face of the weeping wall waterfeature we installed, pictured below.

And here are a few more pics just for fun.  The site had three existing River Birch trees and a Japanese "Bloodgood Maple" that the homeowner wanted to keep, so they acted as the backbone of the garden as we worked around them and incorporated them into our design.  We also installed a number of drought-tolerant and native species including an Eastern Redbud.

Here is a sneak peak of a cedar fence we are currently doing for a design/build project in Cobble Hill, Brooklyn.  Before we got there the backyard was truely wild, with a large mosquito population that was calling it home (the majority of them have since relocated).  For this project we are building a custom red cedar fence, recycled bluestone patio and installing an almost fully native landscape (the only thing that will not be native is a Japanese "Bloodgood" Maple, which is a fully adaptive tree for the New York City area.  Keep you posted on the end result soon...

I haven't blogged in a bit and here is why, we've been busy making people happy.  We got this note from a big fan of ours and it really means so much to us when we receive these tokens of appreciation. Thanks Joan!

The economy is definitelty getting back on its feet. How do I know? Because we have received a boatload load of requests for designs this year (keep posted for how they turn out).  Whenever we are doing a design, you would find one or all of the books I've listed below nearby.  Use these books if you're taking some design and gardening into your own hands, you won't regret it.

New York Gardener's Guide by Ralph Snodsmith

This was one of the first books I bought and it never lets me down.  It has incredibly important information regarding the best and most relaible trees to plant in the New York climate.  We especialy like the dedication to native species and a section on water efficient plants and planting.

Garden Design and Decoration by Peter McHoy and Tessa Evelegh 

    We found this book at a used book sale for a dollar.  This is a hard find but a great design tool.  It gives the reader a ton of ideas and styles to choose from and explains in detail how to build everything yourself. 

Small Gardens by John Brookes

For the New York City area, we like this book because it acts as a pictoral encyclopedia of a bunch of different ideas you would never think of on your own.  Definitely worth checking out. 

This season, it seems that sedge lawns are finally catching on and we are replacing a number of traditional grass lawns with the lower maintenance sedge.  We have been planting Pennsylvania Sedge and Catlin Sedge so check back for pictures once they have established themselves.  All this alternative-to-turf talk makes me want to write a little bit about how turf lawns are actually good for the environment, just to stir the pot a little bit, so check back soon for that blog. In the meantime, here is some information about native sedge lawns from an article by the Brooklyn Botanical Garden. 

Sedge Lawns for Every Landscape

By John Greenlee on December 31, 2001 | Short URL

Few breakthroughs in the history of turf have been as significant as the arrival of an entirely new kind of lawn—the sedge lawn. Sedges are close botanical cousins of the grasses and look a lot like them. Properly selected and planted, sedges can function as a traditional lawn, yet they require little or no mowing, fertilizing, or chemicals. Some require less water than many conventional turfgrasses. Others tolerate wet, moist areas, and many thrive in shade. What's more, sedge lawns restore something of the character of the native sods that existed before agriculture and development transformed the American landscape.

Conventional lawns consist of grasses from Africa, Asia, Europe, and other places. These foreign, high-maintenance species have largely replaced the native sods composed of sedges and grasses. Today very little remains of the native sods. Perhaps the new American lawn is the original sod just waiting to be rediscovered.

Part of the attraction of the genus Carex, into which sedges fall, is its tremendous variety and adaptability. There are more than 2,000 species of Carex, and they are found in a wide range of habitats in nature. They vary from miniatures with foliage only 1 to 2 inches high, to specimens growing to 3 or 4 feet. Some creep, some clump, some do a little of both. They can be found in sun or shade, in wet soils or heavy clay, from coastal dunes to alpine scree. In almost every ecosystem, there is at least one sedge with good, lawnlike qualities.

California meadow sedge is evergreen in all but the coldest climates, and grows 4 to 6 inches unmowed. This informal lawn planting with spring bulbs is in Pomona, California. (Photo: John Greenlee)

Five sedges that have shown excellent promise as substitutes for traditional lawngrasses are catlin sedge(Carex texensis), Texas Hill Country sedge (C. perdentata),Baltimore sedge (C. senta), Pennsylvania sedge (C. pensylvanica), and California meadow sedge (C. pansa).These species are described below.

These native sedges have been selected for their compact growth and good, green color; most are evergreen as well. Many will tolerate varying degrees of shade and competition from tree roots. They are best grown in the regions where they are native, although most have shown amazing adaptability and grow well in regions outside their native range. As more horticulturists become aware of the sedges' potential in gardens, many more species are being collected from remnant populations in nature. Hybridization is still untapped and offers enormous possibilities for lawns of the future.

Carex texensis Catlin sedge

This wide-ranging sedge is found in nature from Texas through Ohio and has naturalized in parts of southern California. In nature, it hybridizes and mingles with closely related, similar species throughout the Southeast. Catlin sedge is adapted to a wide variety of climates, from the hot, muggy Southeast to the hot, dry Southwest. It is hardy to USDA Zone 6, and perhaps Zone 5 in sheltered locations. It forms a matlike clump 3 to 4 inches high and 6 inches wide. To maintain as a lawn, catlin sedge will require two to three mowings per year. This dark green sedge is at its best in partial to full shade. Planted in full sun, it will tend to be lighter green and require ample water to look its best. Catlin sedge makes a fine lawn mowed or unmowed, planted either from seed or from plugs 6 inches on center.

Carex perdentata Texas Hill Country sedge

This Texas native is another excellent lawnlike sedge. It is drought tolerant and moisture tolerant with surprisingly soft, medium-green foliage. Its slowly creeping, almost clump-forming foliage is a light green color growing 4 to 6 inches high. A very versatile sedge, C. perdentata grows equally well in sun or shade, heavy or sandy soils. Its evergreen foliage is dependably hardy to Zone 6 and possibly lower. It looks best when watered regularly, but like most sedges it will tolerate periods of summer drought. Plant from plugs 6 to 12 inches on center in fall or spring.

Carex pensylvanica Pennsylvania sedge

Pennsylvania sedge has a wide distribution throughout the eastern and central U.S., with one form, C. pensylvanica var. pacificum, reaching all the way to Puget Sound in Washington state. With such a wide distribution in nature, this sedge and its hybrids hold much promise for natural lawns of the future. Many distinct and varied clones are being evaluated by nurseries throughout the country. Typically found on sandy soils in dappled shade or as a constituent of low prairies, Pennsylvania sedge can tolerate less than ideal conditions in the garden. Its noninvasive, creeping foliage forms dense mats of medium green, fine-textured foliage growing 6 to 8 inches unmowed. As a mowed lawn, this sedge looks best cut two to three times per year at 3 to 4 inches high. Plant Pennsylvania sedge from plugs 6 to 12 inches on center in fall or spring.

Carex pansa California meadow sedge

This native Pacific Coast sedge is hands-down one of the finest native sedges for making natural lawns. Largely untested in the East, it has proven durable in Texas and Colorado. Slowly creeping, dark green foliage grows 4 to 6 inches unmowed. California meadow sedge will tolerate varied types of soil conditions and temperatures, from sandy, exposed seacoasts to heavy clays and hot, inland valleys. It is also exceptionally traffic tolerant. Thriving in full sun to partial shade, it will thin out in deep shade. Mowing two to three times per year keeps the foliage low, tight, and lawnlike. Unmowed, it makes an attractive meadow and remains evergreen in all but the coldest climates. California meadow sedge is fast to establish from plugs planted 6 to 12 inches on center.

Carex senta Baltimore sedge

This native eastern sedge is essentially a refined version of catlin sedge—identical except for shorter flower spikes, which lend a neater, more lawnlike appearance when unmowed. Discovered originally by Briar Hoffman growing in the lawn of a church in Towson, Maryland, Baltimore sedge is one of the best low-growing, lawn-forming sedges for deep shade. Treat this sedge as you would C. texensis. Plant plugs 6 to 8 inches on center. Like all sedges, plugs of Baltimore sedge planted in spring or fall will establish quickly.

Here is an article I came across today to promote a book called "Rooftop Gardens: The Terraces, Conservatories and Balconies of New York" (although there was only one picture in the article?!?!).  I haven't checked it out yet but will definitely be combing it for some ideas.  Check it out.  

Visiting New York's Exclusive Rooftop Gardens