Calbi-Orrantia Residence
Silverlake, CA

I had great fun in this garden in the Silverlake hillside district. The house is built on a very steep hillside causing the rear garden of the house to be 2 stories below the 1st floor and accessed only from the street by the use of a side yard stair. The rear garden was a neglected weedy mess with 2 undaunted citrus trees. Luckily the rear slope wasn't too severe and I created multiple levels with low garden walls so that it could be enjoyed as an entertainment space and when viewed from the living room balcony, the geometries form an imaginative patchwork of shapes and rich combinations of Mediterranean perennials and South African succulents for contrast. The garden was lightly planted, allowing for ultimate size and growth patterns and is already bursting forth and the pictures show it off nicely.