The wonder of nature right at home Email
Written by Colorado Green NOW   
Wednesday, August 10, 2022 01:00 AM

Colorado Green Now

“I love bringing the feeling of nature into the spaces people live in,” reveals Johnny Moore, designer at Tree of Life Landscapes, Mead. The beauty and joy of nature that speaks to Moore, is something he wants to capture when he designs.

“When we first talked with this Boulder- based client about her yard, she didn’t have a detailed vision for her landscape renovation,” says Moore. “What she did know is she wanted to remove most of the sod and create perennial gardens more suitable to the Colorado climate. My work as a designer is often to help clients realize a vision they can’t articulate.”

Four seasons of immersion and mystery

The perennial garden Moore designed in 2017 included removal of all sod on one side of the driveway and a portion on the other side. “Our vision was to create four seasons of interest. Color in the spring, summer and fall and in the winter a lot of texture and different hues of brown. There is a lot of richness and depth to the winter textures that can’t be seen in other seasons. Leaving the seed heads allows the birds some winter food. We are creating more than a garden. It’s an environment for not only us but the other inhabitants.” To Moore’s point, this property has earned National Wildlife Federation habitat certification.

The design includes a walking area throughout. The walking area serves three functions: it ties the areas in the design together, it provides immersion from within the garden among the plants to enjoy them up close, and thirdly and importantly, it provides ease of maintenance.

Although some plants were originally planted “lightly” to give space for growth and spreading, and will eventually make it dense, another area bordering the neighbor’s yard was densely planted. From Moore’s perspective as the designer, the dense area was ideally suited for the immersive experience the walkway provides.

And there is more to the design of the path. “The walking path keeps going from the driveway adding mystery as it curves, providing an invitation to explore,” says Moore. “Every great garden needs an aspect of wonder and mystery.”

Tree of Life received the 2021 ELITE Gold award in Residential Plant Design for this project. This is an excerpt. Read the entire article in Colorado Green.