TERRACED
GARDEN

\ LOCATION

Santa Monica Canyon, CA

\ SCOPE

This has always been one of my favorite gardens because it was the quintessential ‘before and after’ garden.

The owners were frustrated because about 75% of their yard consisted of a steep, weed-covered hill. They desired more usable living space and a view to the Pacific Ocean.

Both owners appreciated the rugged feeling of Santa Monica Canyon, and requested a garden that would feel at home in their neighborhood.

I turned to the hiking trails in this area for inspiration and loosely based my plant choices on the wild chaparral-covered hills of the Santa Monica Mountains.

A simple, earthy palette of decomposed granite, pea gravel and recycled broken concrete was decided upon. A serpentine pathway leads up the slope and terminates at a large, curvilinear patio, with breath-taking views to the ocean beyond.