TeriCA

Michelle,
Thank you for sharing your garden with us, it is so nice and inviting. I also truly admire the wonderful job your hubby did on the arbor, lattice, and fence. I love the Clematis idea for growing over your arbor, and I also have one other suggestion, but I'm not sure it will grow in your zone. (This grows in Sunset Zone 4-24.) I'm putting in a Carolina Jessamine (Gelsemium). Evergreen,needs full sun to part shade, and the 1 1/2 inch long yellow flowers will bloom in late winter and early Spring. They are supposed to be very fragrant....the one drawback I see with this plant is that the whole plant is poisonous.....but who comes along and munches down on your flowers and vines? Best of luck in choosing whatever will grow around your beautiful arbor.

Michael,
I too, have become a fan and look forward to tomorrow's pictures! I have a question for you...is that straight red and green grass growing by the driveway/side walk, Japanese Blood grass? If not, would love to know what it is....thanks!

Hey Nancy,
Beautiful tulips! I see you addressed the deer issue with a fence, and I'm also wondering if you have gophers, moles, etc. and if you do...how do you deal with them?

Hi there! So enjoyed the last photos from your yard. I have a question...did I miss a pond somewhere? 2 of the pictures look like water lilies, and I just wondered if I missed the pond...thanks.

Just spectacular! What a beautiful garden, and what a beautiful landscaping job you have done. You have motivated me to reconsider putting in the time to become a Master Gardener! And I love the Craftsman era looking home!

Christine,
Your garden pictures are beautiful! When I saw you were from Long Island, immediately I thought of Hurricane Sandy! My wish for you is that you are happily surprised at what comes back! What a lovely place you live in. It is amazing to my friend and I that when other parts of the country are being pounded by storms, here in Sacramento, CA we are usually having beautiful weather. Almost makes me feel guilty. But 2 weeks ago, we had some very COLD weather come out of the Gulf of Alaska, and a hard freeze incurred. Some of my clients plants just couldn't take it, and are lost. Really, my best wishes for the return of your garden!

Oh, and thank you SO MUCH! for identifying the plants in the picture...and I have a questions for you...the Cryptotaenia japonica 'Atropurpurea', I read that it self sows and "can" be invasive. I'm looking for about 3 plants in this color for partial shade (mostly shade)and the size and shape of the plants are perfect. But was wondering what your experience with them was.....thanks!

I am WOWed! Your garden is so beautiful!!! Please send more pictures!!!

Just wondering (a couple of days late...) what are you planning for the arched wire trellis? I'm really interested...thank you for sharing your photos...It is so great when Fine Gardening, gets pictures from around the world! If everyone loved gardening....we really would have nothing to fight about.

Just wanted to say beautiful gardens! and a big THANK YOU! for all the submitter's of photos that are identifying your plants!
I'm fairly new to this, and just love it when plants are identified, so I can keep adding to my knowledge!

HI,
I didn't vote because only 3 out of 8 had links to review...I kind of felt it was unfair to vote when I couldn't see all the entries... but I have to say that "slopes" are always a challenge, and the "Designing with Curved Terraces" was absolutely stunning!

Ali, I looked at all your pictures, including your website and your garden is absolutely beautiful. If there is one thing that can unite some of us around the world--it is those of us who love and appreciate gardening. I also liked very much your beautiful descriptions of your garden, you truly do have the words of poet!

I'm hoping also for some winter pictures of the ice show! Have to completely disagree with Tractor1, no Disney-esque, or "gHouslishness" about this garden. However I really liked Vojt's suggestion the gorgeous rock border separates it from the front yard. Open the view of that beautiful 3 ton rock and the water flow from it!! All would be in proportion to your yard! You've done a wonderful job! :)

I really enjoyed your pictures and especially the use of your native rock in your landscapes...and the plantings look great, I too would like to see these pictures in a year or so, when the plantings are mature.

Love the pictures and LOVE the identifying captions!! Thanks!

I also was wondering whether the pink was a mandevilla or Clematis??? glad you are ok, along with most of your neighbors.

OH! And TRULY enjoyed the pictures with identifying notes attached!!! THANK YOU!

Michelle,
Glad to know you are safe. My friend and I were talking about how fortunate we are to live in CA! The only things we usually have to deal with are earthquakes! And we all agree out here that we would rather deal with earthquakes, then with tornadoes, hurricanes, and cyclones!! Hope your Maple trees hang in there! And if you have to show us storm damage pictures tomorrow---bring it on! Enjoy reading your posts every day!

LOL....Thank you and have a great day!!

Hi Heather, what a beautiful garden and I truly envy the time you get to spend with your kids in this mini-Eden. What a gift to all of you. It brings back nice memories of pruning our orchard when the kids were not young adults!

Michelle, I have a request, sometimes the plants are identified by the submitter,and sometimes not. Is there anyway for you to identify some of the plants when they are not done by the author, for those of us who are true "apprentices"?? Thanks,
teri

What a wonderful community you must live in to have such faithful volunteers to this beautiful garden! Just think of the possibilities if every neighborhood had something like this! Beautiful! Congratulatins!

I know this is simplistic but I love the combo of daisies and the Yarrow! Your garden is lovely!

Kimberly,
I wondered how what appears to black bark is working out for you? I was thinking of using it, but realized there is so much foot traffic around my yards, and I heard the graphite stains things....so wondering how you liked it.... It looks fantastic against the plants....wonderful pics.

Teri

I love these pictures and the use of what appears to be black bark in your mulching. My question is on the last photo today "Front, left of driveway", there appears to be a weeping silver colored conifer? And I was wondering what it was??? Thanks! Beautiful work by the way!!

Loved the mounds of Hosta's that were getting a bit of sun! Beautiful yard!!

Thank you for sharing, you have done a beautiful job, and your passion shines through!

I absolutely love the cement tree trunks and trellis. Your imagination and sculptural abilities are so apparent, as well as your designing capabilities!!

Thank you so much to both Michelle's!!! I was wondering what extraordinary thing we could do with my client's backyard pots. Now I know!!!

Oh, and meant to add I was in charge of the succulents at a local nursery...and they can stand the cold...just a hard frost will get them...their leaves are so full of water the hard freeze will make them die.....

Wow--beautiful containers! Not sure about how succulents will do but have a feeling that the climate here in Sacramento will allow me to even put succulents in the soil, only thing is succulents love poor soil, and I have abundantly GREAT soil..so they may end up in containers, but I do feel the climate is so relatively mild here in California's capitol, that they will survive just fine outside through the winter! Thanks for sharing!

I shared the article on Facebook with my friends here basically trying to show how them they can cut turf areas down, we can plant "prairie-type" landscapes out here in some areas. And almost all my clients are looking to decrease their turf area in CA, because water is becoming so expensive out here. Thank you for sharing. Absolutely stunning and very appreciative of the work you've put into it.

I would like to visit the Mediterranean Marin Garden Conservancy. The garden grows so many Mediterranean plants that are used here in the Central Valley of California and also in the Bay Area (San Francisco)and on the central coast, from which I just recently moved. Would just love to visit on a day devoted to the opening of gardens across the US. Thanks for the opportunity!

What a great group of pictures! and nice to know that Spring is springing in Ohio. The flowering trees here in CA have been in bloom for about a month...dry, sunny, winter here.

Oh heck yeah! Bulbs of any kind do great in Northern Calif. Mother nature is the refrigerator--it's not always sunny and warm in CALIF. In fact we were blasted with weather last week!

Beautiful garden! How enjoyable it must be...but that is the whole point of our gardens-correct? to enjoy...and add to the chorus of "all in 3 years"! Would love to see where the over 300 new plants go in this landscape!

Maybe see you at the SF Flower and Garden Show!!

An absolutely beautiful way to share time with your father in his elder years...it's wonderful and beautiful. I was just wondering...I see marigolds planted at the end of each row, is that helping with gopher control?

This year I vow to have a place of my own, with a little gardening area.

Hi,
I really noticed the "mirroring" of the statues, a larger one within the columns and a smaller statue in the pond. Very elegant.

Hi Michelle,
Have to say, I enjoyed the last 2 weeks, some fantastic pictures! But loved today's with all the blossoming flowers!
Was just wondering if there were some way that if you were to click on the larger picture, you would find a descriptions of the plant material used? I am definitely a visual learner and would love to know more names of plants! Thank you.

My thought: it would be nice to SEE the creek, TOO many ferns growing and obstructing the water feature part. Maybe it was just the angle at which the picture was taken.

That was my comment too...what potting mixture is she using for the succulents to attach to? Thanks!

I love this photo!!!

OH and you don't win $100, you win merchandise from White Flower Farms, that sounds like if you don't use it the first time around, that's all you get.

@kate1215 that is EXACTLY what the terms and conditions say. Makes me want to say nay to the whole contest.