Designer Plant Picks

Cornus mas, Cornelian Cherry Dogwood

This small ornamental tree showcases exfoliating bark and delicate branches lined with rounded clusters of yellow flowers blooming in late March. The Cornelian Cherry Dogwood is resistant to virtually all diseases and pests and can be used as a small specimen tree or planted in mass to achieve a dense deciduous hedge.

Designer plant picks are chosen each month by one of our designers. This March pick is by Patrick.

A Mind at Peace

If you would have a mind at peace,

a heart that cannot harden,

find a door that opens wide upon a lovely garden.



French Proverb

Protect your pet

Even with the recent snowfall we are looking forward to spring and getting our garden's ready for planting. Spring cleanup is a time to replace mulch and get your garden looking tidy. When we do this we want to be mindful of our pet's health. It has recently come to my attention that cocoa mulch may be harmful to animals if it is ingested. Here is a link to the ASPCA website article http://www2.aspca.org/site/PageServer?pagename=pro_apcc_publicationscocoa

We want to keep our pets safe in the garden!

"Nothing in the world can take the place of perseverance. Talent will not; nothing in this world is more common than men [or women] with talent. Genius will not; unrewarded genius is almost a proverb. Education will not; the world is full of educated derelicts. Perseverance and determination alone are omnipotent. The slogan 'Press on' has solved and always will solve the problems of the human race."

Calvin Coolidge

Caretaker

I am a caretaker for people's moments of epiphany. I have to hold, protect and nurture those moments for my clients. They need that space in their hearts to be beautiful.

I live to design and strive to be pushing the limits of the existing site – I project each client’s unique personality into every aspect of design and transform the space into their own personal oasis.

"New Year for Trees"

Tu B'Shevat, the 15th of Shevat on the Jewish calendar - celebrated today - is the day that marks the beginning of a "New Year for Trees." This is the season in which the earliest-blooming trees in the Land of Israel emerge from their winter sleep and begin a new fruit-bearing cycle.

Photo by Katherine Field

I have always been inspired by the beauty of the natural environment – the dynamic qualities of the landscape – how it is never the same from moment to moment or season to season.

Photo by Jake Mather

Our designs shape the environment in so many ways - from managing the natural to recreating the wild. With such a light touch we take you from the human to the divine.

New feature!

We’ve added a new feature to the blog - a book recommendation list! It is located at the bottom of the page. Please check back regularly to see what’s new.

I admire the lushness leaves bring to trees - but there is a special element to the bare branches… The real structure waits beneath - the combination of line and texture, shade and shadow - the whole story doesn’t show.







Photo by Jake Mather

By living in nature one is always learning… You are in an environment that is always teaching and are constantly being reminded of Natures Gifts.

Just received the Winter Issue of Newport Life magazine!

“Snowy Scene” this color photo was taken at 2nd Beach in Middletown showing the grey and white world after one of the many New England snow storms. 3rd Place, Winter Category, 2009 Newport Life magazine photo contest.

Photo by Katherine Field

Trees in Newport - Winter 2009

Redwood Library and Athenaeum

Photo Credit: Jacob Mather

Fern Leaf Beech outside Newport Art Museum

Photo credit: Jacob Mather

Fern Leaf Beech outside Redwood Library & Athenaeum


Photo credit: Jacob Mather

Weeping Beech behind McKillop Library on the campus of Salve Regina University

Photo credit: Jacob Mather

No two gardens are alike…

and no garden ever remains the same for even one day. My goal is to craft a landscape which is a pleasure to behold, time after time, day to night, and season to season.

In the details, part 2…

This is a wall - a thing of beauty - this is real stone. Not a product from a mold... it creates character, it creates shadow, light, life, movement... The stone is dynamic.

The way that Nature works is a lifetime of learning for us to study - it is what will always inspire me in my work to push further and learn what I can from my greatest teacher.

Photo by Rob Bikash, Katherine Field and Associates

I just want to design…

Every day! I have ideas - sometimes tons of them - and I want to make them come to life!

Grey lines on the sleeping snow;
shadows from the hazy half moon.

Possibilities and What-if’s

The designer in me is always looking towards the possibilities and what-ifs. My medium and focus may evolve over time - but the actual process makes me love design and what I do.