England in Florida

A dark and weedy front yard, crowded with sick old trees, was utterly remade into an English cottage-style garden. This design was the first full scale design-build I took on. It required absolutely everything: replacing the pure sand with rich potting soil, installation of a complete sprinkler system, the removal of several unhealthy old trees, designing, sourcing, and installing a brick front walkway, outdoor lighting and power box – heck, we even got the city to pour a new sidewalk.

The concept of a cottage garden was tweaked to fit the maintenance budget and available summer-tolerant plants: I aimed for a look of floral enthusiasm. Florida standbys, like pentas flowers and vinca, were mixed with locally short-lived flowers like echinacea and butterfly gaura. Salvia ‘Mysty’ and white tropical sage provided an upright element while dwarf tibouchina, azaleas, and a few select roses gave a more permanent structure. The garden was deliberately allowed to overgrow and self-seed in its first season, and it continues to evolve today.