[Navid Mostatabi]

We are having a three day workshop in San Diego for LARE section E – April 22nd-April 24th.

See the Land8lounge events page for more information.

[Navid Mostatabi]

Attached are a few maps.

[Navid Mostatabi]

I like the idea of the silent neighborhood. No lawnmowers, leafblowers, etc..

The use bunch grasses or groundcovers can give the same clean effect as a lawn with much less water.
Does anyone have water consumption data comparing a turf alternative like berkley sedge or mondo grass to a tall fescue?

Carex can look identical to a turf lawn if you are moving at 25mph or faster. I have noticed that if planted on a slope it should be planted a bit tighter to give the same blurred green effect, otherwise you start to see the patchiness.

For my residential projects the first thing I recommend to my clients is that they remove any unused lawn areas. I try and sell the idea that texture and color will add more interest and habitat quality.

[Navid Mostatabi]

I thought the Hall of Champions was a good venue and the overall event operations were smooth. I know how difficult it can be to run a PowerPoint alone (Interrobang), I can’t imagine the work it took to format all the Music, Film, and slide show content.

I would have preferred a moment of silence and a bunch of heads scanning the room when an onion was announced. Even though the emcee was hilarious, he was too quick to call Ted up to the stage to cover for the onions. I don’t recall any onions in the landscape category which may be the reason the event seemed geared more toward architecture this year.

I was a big fan of the Guerrilla, tequila agave plantation. I like it when people take the initiative to make something happen.

The event was fun for a first timer and the website was really well done. Check out http://www.orchidsandonions.com if you didn’t get a chance to attend the event.

[Navid Mostatabi]

Hi Karen-
Check out this landscape that appears as if it is underwater. Not a natural look yet quite stunning.
http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&sa=X&oi=spell&resnum=0&ct=result&cd=1&q=solana+succulents+del+mar+fair&spell=1

In San Diego we are fortunate in that we can use succulents such as Senecio and Agave to make a garden pop in texture and color. Perhaps you can find a few native plants in your region, take them out of their native habitat where they might get lost visually, and put them on a pedestal in a garden where their true form can be appreciated. Steve Martino does a great job of using local plants and placing them in a clean modern landscape where they can really show off. I think when you can make natives work in modern landscapes (I define modern as little variety in plant choice and repetition to show off similar texture and color) you can make them work in any other application.

A local nursery in SoCal has cut sheet that gives native alternatives to commonly used ornamental plants. Perhaps you can find something like this in your region.
http://californianativeplants.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=69&Itemid=93

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