Parker-Kecman Residence

This remodel of an existing garden in Altadena has the added benefit of a beautiful turn of the century Craftsman style house with nearly mature native oak trees. The original garden was inherited from the previous owner and consisted of mostly native plants and no irrigation. The owners needed to have more reliability in the look of the garden in the front (lack of summer irrigation was too much for even the natives) and the rear yard required rethinking to provide better access to a recently added artist’s studio in the rear yard and a more functional outdoor space for relaxing and entertaining without losing the rustic qualities of the space.

In the rear yard, we added stone paths to the studio and expanded the 3 charming existing brick circles with an additional larger circle that could function as a outdoor dining area. The adjacent decomposed granite area included 4 small stone “seat” cubes for a gathering of friends and the surrounding garden worked mostly with native plants or drought tolerant non-natives to create a lush shady garden under the existing oaks. Most importantly, these new spaces allowed the owners to literally pitch a tent in the summer months and sleep under the stars in there own back yard.

The front yard kept much of its original character with a remodeled brick entry walk and a new central thyme “lawn” that replaced the worn out grass lawn as well as mend existing shrubs and perennials and adding a few new ones. The overall effect didn’t drastically change the space but dealt with a light touch to preserve much of what the owners originally liked about the garden.