Dargan Landscape Architects

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Landscape Design Tips

Starting on Tricky Places : Gardens that Fit Your Lifestyle like a Glove.

rice-14-blogWhew. Its taken a summer like 2016 when friends and family had calamities, passed away or got really sick to make me appreciate my garden and health even more… and then the specter of scary local fires burning thousands of acres in our treasured Smoky Mountains which made me appreciate our fragile ecosystem.

This blog is a personal note is to myself to review everything in Dargan Landscape Architects book of work to help my friends, their home environments and interface with nature. Like holding hands with fragile yet resilient gloves that fit perfectly.

Hugh and I have been in practice as landscape architects for over four decades. Our client’s now lovely landscapes were tricky places to make behave: with thin soils, complicated topography, owners large wish list, zoning issues, too much or too little shade, too much or too little water, not enough space, too vast a canvas, weird parking, insufficient walkways…the list goes on!  We are blessed with the honor to coax, bend and collaborate with the owners to get the best designs built, and we thank them for sharing their private worlds.

My goal is to inspire homeowners to get the best out of their precious home environment. Design it to yield healthy wellbeing, inspire you to be your best and to provide nurturing spaces. Once we finish this work together, your garden will function like a well-oiled machine, which in itself is a stress-reducing factor.

Photographer, Sarah Valentine of Highlands NC,  shot beautiful dawn shots and late summer portraits of many of our local gardens.

Stay tuned as the book progresses!

Researching Heirloom Gardens in Western NC : The American Kitchen Garden

hodges-apple-closeup-blogThe prospect of saying yes…not a decision taken lightly.

The invitation extended to chair the Jan Wyatt Symposium 2017 for the Cashiers Historical Society, by Ann McKee Austin ( from whom it is impossible to decline a volunteer invitation) and president, Connie Haire, was a surprise.

Do I shoot myself after saying yes?  NO.  I’d promised my family not to take on more projects. But the tantalizing nudge to dust off a topic thoroughly covered in my first draft masters thesis is 1977 is impossible to resist. Rafts of info laying fallow in the storage unit, mildewed and unloved, has been slowly maturing…waiting for airtime.

One does not lightly throw something together that could impact a visitors perspective of history.

On the suggestion of Macon County Librarian,Karen Hawks, a spin and TRX buddy, I hired the wonderful librarian, Emily Crowell, to type, type, type.  YIKES! The old manuscript was a dot matrix printed, accordian-paged, non-digital manuscript. Emily DOVE IN with glee on her day off from work and is quickly modernizing the document.

WE HAVE A TITLE: The 2017 Jan Wyatt Symposium The Heirloom Gardener hosted by The Cashiers Historical Society.

WE HAVE A LOCATION: The Zachary Tolbert House Grounds c 1850.

WE SET A DATE: June 21 2017.

SPEAKERS SAID YES:

Eric Jackson of Old Salem to talk about historic plant materials

Ila Hatter, wildcrafter supreme, to demonstrate cooking methods of our forefathers

And me, to demonstrate what a garden might have looked like in 1850 when Alexander Zachary built the house in Cashiers, NC.

WE HAVE A STORYLINE and I meet with the tent man next week.

DIGITAL COPIES OF ALEXANDER ZACHARY’s journal appeared (primarily apple notes, but useful nonetheless!)

Whew…stay tuned for schedule and logo next!

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How to Build the Perfect Perennial Flower Garden

How to Build the Perfect Perennial Flower Garden
Source: Dargan Landscape Architects

While many want to enjoy the benefits of a garden, the regular maintenance and grooming required can often be an unwelcome uphill battle. To combat this common problem, we recommend a low-maintenance perennial garden. 

So, why are perennials such a perfect choice for a flower garden? I love how they return each year to deliver healthy doses of color and texture. Some perennials will even bloom in the winter. Also, the multiple possible color combinations allow you to activate your imagination and look at landscaping in a new, creative way.   

How to Build the Perfect Perennial Flower Garden

The best piece of advice I can give when designing your new garden is to start small. The best way to display your perennials is in plant clumps of at least three to five plants of your favorite, most coveted species. Growing perennials together is the most practical option — it allows for easy planting, soil preparation, and care.

To create a manageable sweep, plan one that is between five and eight feet deep and twenty feet long. To define the boundaries of your garden, boxwoods or other evergreens anchor the ends and provide great edge definition. Taller-growing plants should be positioned in the back, or even at the center of an island bed, with the lower-growing plants centered in front or around the larger ones. 

Nature likes to keep things interesting, so don’t be afraid to play along! I love Lychnis varieties, Stick Verbena, and Queen Anne’s Lace popping up in my beds. The variety is visually appealing and keeps the eye moving. Color blending your garden works well if you follow the color wheel and place complementary colors next to each other. For example, a splash of yellow is a stunning addition to a garden filled with reds and lavenders. Lighter flowers really make nearby dark flowers pop. When you choose perennials, look for full and colorful foliage with new growth appearing. 

Do you feel inspired to add a perennial garden to your landscape? Browse through our photos for inspiration, and when you’re ready, contact us at Dargan Landscape Architects to schedule a consultation. 

Relax, Rejuvenate in a Garden Spa or Sauna

Relax, Rejuvenate in a Garden Spa or Sauna
Source: HGTV via Pinterest

It’s no wonder why designers everywhere are creating spa-like environments in their client’s interior and exterior spaces. Spas provide experiences that are so relaxing and beneficial to your health that they are sought after by homeowners who want to recreate that experience in the comfort of their own homes.

When we made the decision to install a far-infrared sauna in our potting shed, it was part luxury item and part health equipment. Of course, the health benefits of far-infrared saunas are no secret.

Health Benefits of Far-Infrared Saunas

  • Detoxification: Due to a rise in the core temperature, the resulting detoxifying sweat occurs at a cellular level, outing harmful toxins.
  • Lowering Blood Pressure: Sweating encourages the heart to beat faster, which increases blood flow, thereby lowering blood pressure and aiding circulation.
  • Weight Loss: You can burn up to 600 calories just by relaxing in your garden spa! The cause is an increase in cardiac and metabolic rates, which burns calories.
  • Anti-Aging and Skin Purification: Infrared spas promote collagen production which reduces wrinkles and battles the symptoms of aging.
  • Pain Relief and Relaxation: When heat penetrates tissues, joints, and muscles, minor to severe pain can be readily decreased. And unlike traditional saunas, infrared saunas are gentle, soothing, and therapeutic. The deep tissue sweat is relaxing and invigorating. I’ve found that a relaxing swim followed by a massage or sauna is a fantastic way to de-stress!

Typically, a one-person sauna is around forty-eight inches wide and thirty-six inches deep. We absolutely prefer far-infrared saunas because they promote perspiration while allowing you to avoid the overwhelmingly hot feeling associated with traditional hot rocks and wood-fired moist saunas. Far-infrared saunas are, however, electrically powered and need to be housed in a shelter. A conveniently placed outdoor shower is equally desirable due to the high amount of perspiration.

Garden spas can be constructed of stone, self-contained in a wooden tub, or ordered in plastic form for in-ground use. Spas are often associated with swimming pools and should be located near the pool house. They have hot water and massage jets that are operated by a pump commonly housed adjacent to the spa. While sizes of spas do vary, the most efficient ones are approximately five to six feet across and can comfortably hold two people. Generally, they are three feet deep with a conveniently placed seating ledge.

To see how we can help you relax and rejuvenate in a garden spa or sauna, contact Dargan Landscape Architects today to schedule a consultation.

Build a Rain Garden for a Sustainable Landscape

Build a Rain Garden for a Sustainable Landscape
Source: Pinterest

At a typical home, rainwater gushes out of the downspout, across the lawn, into the street, and down a storm drain — never to be thought of by the homeowner again. What they’re probably not considering is pollution from storm drains is dumped into local streams, rivers, and bays. The clever few take rainfall and build rain gardens, and here’s why:

  • Your simple gutter water can be diverted into a visually stunning garden. Soil in the planting beds works like a sponge, filtering the water and allowing it to percolate into the surrounding area.
  • Because rain gardens capture and filter water from roofs, driveways, and parking lots, they actually improve water quality in nearby bodies of water.
  • You can inexpensively store over one hundred gallons of collected water to use for your garden and other outdoor purposes.

Tips on How to Build a Rain Garden for a Sustainable Landscape

Before you begin, ask your local Cooperative Extension Office to inform you about soil mix, garden size, and plants for your specific area. Start by obtaining one or more water storage barrels. You can acquire them used or online; just be sure to thoroughly clean them with soapy water. A barrel that can hold between 30 and 55 gallons is best, and you can connect two or three together as part of the same water collection system.

Creating a rich plant basin to collect and filter storm water involves three planting zones for wet, semi-wet, and dry conditions. When choosing native plants for your rain garden, you’ll need to consider the height, bloom time, color, and overall texture of each plant. Choosing plants that bloom at different times will result in a beautiful, long flowering season.

To give your rain garden the best chance of flourishing, seek out an area of your landscape that isn’t already overly soggy. We also suggest selecting plants that have a well-established root system. Generally, plants need one inch of water per week immediately after planting, so be sure to baby them!

Contact Dargan Landscape Architects today to start planning your sustainable rain garden.