Dargan Landscape Architects

Create Nourishing Flourishing Home Utopias

garden design lectures

Learn About Creating the Oasis of Your Dreams at Mary Palmer’s Rutgers University Lecture

Learn About Creating the Oasis of Your Dreams at Mary Palmer's Rutgers University Lecture
Source: Dargan.com

While aesthetics are a large part of the landscape design equation, we always make sure to emphasize the synergistic effects of well-designed outdoor spaces. Looks aren’t everything; creating the oasis of your dreams is just as much about positively impacting your health and longevity – as well as the planet’s.

Mary Palmer’s Rutgers University Lecture: Create an Oasis That Facilitates Health & Longevity

Fortunately for gardeners – both novices and experts – in the New Brunswick, New Jersey area, Mary Palmer Dargan, of Dargan Landscape Architects, is presenting a lecture titled, Timeless Landscape Design: The Top Four Secrets to Breaking the Genetic Code on your Property to Create the Oasis of Your Dreams.

When:  Wednesday, December 3, 2014 at 6 p.m.

Where: Rutgers University, Cook Student Center Meeting Room B/C

Audience members will have the opportunity to listen career landscape architect Mary Palmer as she outlines the Four Secrets to creating a landscape that aspires to your visions while simultaneously working to enhance your life as well as your local community and beyond.

Many of the topics she will be covering are pulled from her top selling book, Timeless Landscape Design. After her presentation, Mary Palmer will be available for a special book signing, creating a perfect opportunity to purchase a lifelong resource for the avid gardeners and landscapers on your gift list.

Some of the topics covered in the presentation include the four-part master plan used to create gardens and landscapes. Together, they provide visual, mental, and emotional pleasure for generations to come and include:

  1. The Approach and Arrival Sequence

  2. The Hub

  3. The Perimeter

  4. Passages to Destinations

Careful consideration of the above results in a proportional and soothing landscape, rather than a hodge-podge of parts that don’t quite integrate to comprise a whole.

Of course, a critical component of breaking your own landscapes “genetic code” is to use healthy landscape and gardening techniques that replenish and nourish the soil, water, and air that will keep the code healthy for decades to come.

To learn more about Mary Palmer’s Rutgers University Lecture, contact Dargan Landscape Architects or Katja Patchowsky at [email protected].

 

Join Mary Palmer and Hugh Dargan in Memphis, Birmingham and Charleston this Spring!

As we shared in March, spring will be a busy season for the team here at Dargan Landscape Architects! Mary Palmer and Hugh Dargan are hitting the road this month for appearances at various events throughout the South. Their upcoming appearances include the Memphis to Milano Flower Show in Memphis, Tenn., April 5-6; the Little Garden Club of Birmingham’s Ribbons of Green event in Birmingham, Ala., April 7-9; and The Garden Club of Charleston’s 79th Annual Walking Tour of Private Houses & Gardens in Charleston, S.C., April 11-12.

We hope you’ll join us at one of these great gardening events. We’ve included more information on each event below:

Memphis landscape architect
Source: Dargan Landscape Architects

Memphis to Milano Flower Show, Memphis, Tenn., April 5-6
Mary Palmer will be judging the horticulture and conservation exhibitions at this free and open to the public garden event to be held at the Dixon Gallery and Gardens in Memphis. The show’s purpose is to exhibit outstanding horticulture, conservation, floral interpretations of fine art and photography, as well as to allow youth to participate in an educational exhibit. Show hours are 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Saturday, April 5, and 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Sunday, April 6. For more information, check out the event booklet.

Birmingham landscape architects
Source: Dargan Landscape Architects

Little Garden Club of Birmingham’s Ribbons of Green event, Birmingham, Ala., April 7-9
Delegates from Florida, South Carolina, Georgia and Alabama will convene for a general business meeting of the Garden Club of America, where Mary Palmer will be judging horticulture and conservation exhibits.

Charleston landscape architects
Source: The Garden Club of Charleston

The Garden Club of Charleston’s 79th Annual Walking Tour of Private Houses & Gardens, Charleston, S.C., April 11-12
Mary Palmer and Hugh Dargan will be signing their books at 11:30 a.m. on April 11. Come have your copy signed and then enjoy the tour where you can see several of the historic Charleston gardens they’ve designed. The tour features some of the finest houses and gardens in Charleston’s historic district, as well as flower arrangements by club members.

The cost is $45, and hours are 2 to 5 p.m. on both Saturday, April 11, and Sunday, April 12. Proceeds benefit the garden club’s ongoing projects, including maintaining the gardens at the Manigault House, the Heyward-Washington House, the Gateway Walk, the Healing Garden at MUSC, the Museum Courtyard Garden and the garden at the Historic Confederate Home. Visit The Garden Club of Charleston’s website for more details.

We hope to see you on the road! Visit the Events page of our website to keep up with Hugh and Mary Palmer Dargan’s upcoming appearances! Future events include the Southeaster Flower Show “Showing & Growing;” the Memphis Master Gardeners meeting; and the grand opening of Dovecote to name a few!

Hugh and Mary Palmer Dargan to Speak at the Spring Garden Festival in Murrells Inlet on March 22

Atlanta-Charleston landscape architect
Mary Palmer Dargan, ASLA, APLD

Spring is going to be a busy season of speaking events for Dargan Landscape Architects’ Hugh and Mary Palmer Dargan! This Saturday, March 22, they will kick things off at the Spring Garden Festival at Brookgreen Gardens in Murrells Inlet, South Carolina.

If you’re looking for expert gardening advice, this is the place to find it! Hugh and Mary Palmer will give a lecture in Brookgreen Gardens’ Lowcountry Center, Learning Lab 1, beginning at 11:15 am. During their lecture titled “Lifelong Landscape Design: Gardens for Health and Longevity,” Hugh and Mary Palmer will discuss how to design a lifelong landscape that will allow you to produce food, enjoy healthy activity and reduce stress! A book signing will also be included in the event, so bring your copies of Timeless Landscape Design and Lifelong Landscape Design with you.

South Carolina landscape architect
Hugh Dargan, RLA, ASLA

Other highlights of the Spring Garden Festival include:

  • Lectures on topics ranging from photographing spring flowers and increasing efficiency and decreasing garden maintenance to best garden practices for all Southeastern gardens, etc.
  • A photography workshop in the Gardens.
  • Demonstrations on beekeeping; techniques for installing, cleaning and maintaining water features in your garden; easy, natural ways to decrease the use of harmful chemicals in our environment; a pruning workshop and more.
  • A silent auction featuring unique container designs from Brookgreen’s horticultural staff.

We hope you’ll make plans to join Hugh and Mary Palmer for the exciting Spring Garden Festival at Brookgreen Gardens in Murrells Inlet this Saturday. The festival is free with garden admission. Visit the Spring Garden Festival site for more information and a schedule of events, and keep an eye on Coastal Observer for an upcoming interview. We look forward to seeing you Saturday!

gardening festival in Murrells Inlet/Pawley's Island SC
The Spring Garden Festival at Brookgreen Gardens is a “must” for anyone in need of expert gardening and landscape design advice.
Source: Facebook.com/BrookgreenGardens

If you can’t make it out this weekend, below is a list of our upcoming events. Mark your calendars now – we’ll share more information on these events in the near future!

  • Memphis to Milano Flower Show, Dixon Gardens, Memphis, TN; April 4-6
  • Nashville, TN Book signing; April 5 and 7 – Location TBA
  • Little Garden Club of Birmingham, AL, Ribbons of Green Zone VIII Meeting and Flower Show (Private Club Function); April 7-9
  • Book signing at the Historic Charleston Foundation, Charleston, SC; April 11 – Time TBA
  • Charleston Garden Club Tours of Homes & Gardens – Hugh and Mary Palmer will hold book signings and several of their gardens will be featured on the tour; April 11 and 12
  • Southeastern Flower Show “Showing & Growing” in Atlanta, GA, April 25-27 – Hugh and Mary Palmer will have a display, sign books and hold a drawing.

Plus more events to come through May, June and July! We’ve also got events on the calendar for fall. Stay tuned for more information!

Dargan Landscape Architects Shares Tips for Four Season Gardens and Lessons from the Field

If you haven’t registered to receive Dargan Landscape Architects’ Landscape Your Life ezine, you’re missing out on some great information! Our ezines are filled with great landscape design inspiration and tips, videos from the field, our latest events and appearances and more. Here’s a look at what we shared in our latest ezine!

Atlanta landscape architects
Dargan Landscape Architects

Tips for a Four Season Garden
Much like woodland creatures, we tend to let our gardens hibernate in the winter and early spring. However, gardens are meant to entertain us all year long! At the 1st Camellia & Garden Symposium a few weeks ago, Mary Palmer and Hugh gave the keynote lecture sharing planting design ideas, camellia underplantings, edgings and two case studies, as well as how camellias can be used to enhance our landscapes all year long for a true four season garden.

Lessons From the Field
In another video, we show how Mary Palmer and Hugh tag teamed to transform what was best described as a “Sticky Widget” of a landscape into a lush, gorgeous landscape. With our clients’ vision in place, Hugh began work on the bare bones of the landscape, while Mary Palmer later added the embellishments to the family home landscape.

Fertile Thoughts?
With spring right around the corner, there’s no better time to make plans to turn your landscape design dreams into a reality. Think about where your landscape and home environment are now and where you’d like for it to be this year, and then contact us online or at 404-231-3889 for a free worksheet and a complementary garden design consultation.

For more landscape design tips, ideas and information, be sure to check out our blog. Also, register your email address with Landscape Your Life to receive our ezines, as well as free worksheets and webinars covering a variety of topics to help you create a healthy and vibrant landscape you and your family can enjoy!

Join Mary Palmer Dargan on January 15 at Bellingrath Gardens

We’re pleased to share that Mary Palmer will be lecturing at Bellingrath Home and Gardens on January 15, 2014. We invite you to join us for this “Super Wednesday” program – a part of Bellingrath Gardens and Home’s Winter Wednesdays series – to learn how to get your garden ready for spring!

Atlanta landscape architects
Mary Palmer will be lecturing at the beautiful Bellingrath Gardens and Home on January 15.
Source: Facebook.com/bellingrath

During the lecture, Mary Palmer will share easy problem-solving and landscape design tips that will help you solve your most pesky landscape and garden issues during both morning and afternoon sessions. Participants are encouraged to bring along a picture or drawing of their landscape issues, so Mary Palmer can provide suggestions and advice.

Lunch will be included with the cost of the event, in addition to these informative sessions. Mary Palmer will also be selling and autographing copies of “Lifelong Landscape Design: Environments for Health and Longevity.”

We look forward to a great session on January 15, and we hope you’ll be able to join us from 10:30 to 2 pm. Invite a friend to come along and learn with you, and be sure to stick around and explore all the gorgeous gardens among Bellingrath’s 65-acres of blooms. Reservations are required for this event, so call 251-973-2217 extension 110 to save your spot. The reservation fee is $10 for Bellingrath members and $20 for non-members.

For more information on Dargan Landscape Architects’ events and appearances, or if you’re interested in learning more about our services, please visit our website. We’d love to meet with you – virtually or in person – to discuss your landscape’s needs and how we can help you create a master plan or tune-up to transform your space into an energized, nourishing and stress-free living space.

Also, don’t forget about our first holiday sale, happening now through December 18! Check out our special offerings that make perfect gifts for the gardener on your list.