Interview: Extraordinary Landscaping through Smart Design

Guest Blog #45, Entry #435, March 2, 2011

As we get March underway and we continue the theme of “Home Renewal” I think it’s important to focus on your exterior home. While the interiors are where you spend your most time, the exterior of your home is where the harsh winter has taken a beating, and spending time beautifying it will be key to you enjoying your outdoor home this Spring.

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Today I have the pleasure of bringing you the Landscaping Design pair of  Lindeman/Stevens. They offer a vision of an “American” Garden combined with a unique “afterC.A.R.E.” program to help keep your landscaping looking and thriving for years into the future. See how they approach landscaping design for their clients, as well as give you helpful tips and inspiration for your outdoor home.

STAGETECTURE:

1.) How long has Lindeman/Stevens been in service, and what is your focus for helping home owners beautify their outdoor environment?

LINDEMAN/STEVENS:

We officially joined forces in Spring 2010 after working together off and on for the past

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10 years. We each have extensive histories in the business. Dennis (Stevens) has been doing landscape design for 20+ years, and Karla (Lindeman) has been in the field for 10+ years.

Beautifying the outdoor environment is really quite simple.  We could take a house on a street and for a reasonable amount of money completely change the ambiance in 4 hours through colors, containers, and providing added character through unconventional manipulation of existing elements.  For example, if there are shutters on the outside, they could be painted a fresh color; OR you could add shutters, perfectly installed, but then cock one a little so it’s not quite perfect. One of the aspects we all find interesting about older, character-heavy homes (often on East coast or abroad) are the slight imperfections.  Another idea is to add one really great pot and change the plant’s annual color in it. Or add more pots.  And if you are active for the holidays, change out your plants thematically.

Put the detail into your plant material, because (and this is one reason we LOVE trees) you really only need to trim trees every five years, so there is not much change there.

Now, for a little more investment, we first interview a client and see what excites them, which is so personal and subjective. Our goal is to help bring “character” to the outside, bringing attention to what is strong and leaving alone what may be a weaker element.

If you have a good amount of money and time, we suggest removing elements that aren’t working, rethink your space, keep great things, feed them, thin out, and add additional plant material to make it all more interesting.

Finally, we recommend getting an aftercare plan in place; it makes all the difference in the world.  With regular small investment in upkeep, you will save a lot of money in replacements down the road. We actually have a program called “afterC.A.R.E.” and you can learn more about it at Lindeman/Stevens.

STAGETECTURE:

2.) Many home owners are turning to zen gardens and meditation spaces for their outdoor environment. Do you all see this trend, and what amenities would you suggest for Stagetecture readers to achieve this at their own home?

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LINDEMAN/STEVENS:

Instead of calling it a ‘trend’, we believe instead that people are going to be creating spaces outside their home that change based on need.  For instance, a space may actually be two separate patios separated by panels on a daily basis but can be opened up to create one large continuous space for a cocktail party.  This idea came from being around Japanese gardens and how their homes open and close and become larger/smaller.

If you want to think along the lines of your question, we are firm believers in walkways and little areas to sit down where you feel good, want to read a book, just sit, think or talk.  Creating that space—your haven—is better for your health than any other investment!

Another idea, often tied to these haven-like areas, is creating art in the garden, which is simple, and does not have to be expensive. For example, buy a big chunk of wood and place it in the ground at an angle and plant a vine that grows up it and then the majority of foliage is near the top and near the ground stem.  This way you are controlling the art formed by the landscaping and wood.  Or if you can afford to crane in a big rock, and plant a variety of unusual junipers around or through it…that’s another idea. Nature likes to be manipulated in beautiful ways like this!These little spaces can become your favorite part in the yard, so develop it — with stones, or even add a great chaise lounge (or 2).

STAGETECTURE:

3.) Stagetecture readers love to employ “do it yourself” measures in their homes. What landscaping suggestions do you have for them, and which projects would you suggest they leave to the professionals?

LINDEMAN/STEVENS:

This really depends on the budget of the person. There are so many options out there right now, but you sometimes need someone to help point you in right direction. Even on a small budget, we recommend that you meet with a landscape designer to get direction. We interview the client and find out how well educated you are in the garden – have you taken any classes? How much gardening have you done? Do you read books?  If you’ve gone to seminars, for instance, there are a vast number of things you can do on your own. Everyone has a wish list, so create it first!  You can do things yourself but stay with a wish list that is simple.  Don’t start working with things that need cranes, landscape gullies, etc.  Work with things that can be built up and added to.  Keep in mind that a lot of professionals ARE willing to work on a decoration” consultation fee vs. the design fee.  Sometimes they’ll even listen to your idea during consultation, and develop a sketch so that you know what you are aiming for.

But one big key for designing: You DO need a great imagination, and that’s often where great designers also come into play and provide great value.

STAGETECTURE:

4.) With the onset of green home initiatives, what practices does Lindeman/Stevens employ throughout their projects? Do you teach home owners to care for their landscaping after you are gone?

LINDEMAN/STEVENS:

Our traditional vision in America of the perfect landscape is what we copied from European architecture, which often includes symmetry and lushness.  I’ve done a lot of projects that have such a classic tenor, but I really want now—as often as possible–to provide confidence in creating what I call an “American” garden which uses what makes sense for where we live, creates a haven uniquely our own, and also cleans the air as one important benefit.

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Additionally, the financial and time savings are really timely benefits to choosing an “American” garden. Using appropriate and beautiful regional plants results in longevity of survival and simplicity of maintenance.  Right now, we’re really excited about dwarf trees, groundcover, artificial turf and artificial putting turf, as well as hedging to create privacy and interest in the house as an architectural element.  Where you would build a wall, maybe plant a hedge instead.  These are certainly sustainable concepts, for the environment and for people’s personal finances. And the look is sophisticated and cohesive.

We are so excited about this idea that we’ll even lay out the plans for free if the client will let me implement it. There was a sort of tract home Dennis did a while back (in the desert), taking it from ‘blah’ to really interesting using this idea. He bought 10 small date palms to make a mini grove, reminding him of the orange groves he grew up with. He and the client spread them evenly in the backyard, then added a groundcover, and then walkways to a center terrace where the owners dined, another one where could sun, and another where they could BBQ.  The walkway was the lawn, and the larger groundcover was the dirt.  It looked amazing.

STAGETECTURE:

5.) What new trends for outdoor living do you see for this Spring and Summer 2011?

LINDEMAN/STEVENS:

In California, where we are based, it’s going to be a really good season to plant a cutting garden—especially roses–because of the rains we’ve had…the ground is swollen with water.  Natural vegetation is cleaned off.  Annual colors can be cut and brought in the house regularly!

As a whole, for the U.S., we’ll slightly contradict what we said above and say that yes, we think people will (or should!) create meditation or just ‘quiet, special’ places in their outside areas.  We all need our haven. Just even get your lounge chair, put it a little away from everyone else, and get sun on your face and think and rest up.

Lindeman/Stevens provides unequalled personal attention to homeowners, Architects, Interior Designers and Contractors. And their unique “afterC.A.R.E.” program helps maintain the designs for years to come. Lindeman/Stevens is a member of the Institute of Classical Architecture & Classical America, and involved with the Los Angeles Conservancy, The Nature Conservancy, and Los Angeles Art Association. Twitter: @LindemanStevens

For more Landscaping ideas on Stagetecture, click here.