For their article about the best places to live in South Carolina real estate company Redfin recently invited me to comment about why living in my hometown of Charleston is great. In my comment, I stated that communing with the natural environment of the South Carolina Lowcountry is a transcendental experience. That is, the beauty…
Daniel Island is a pretty place. The houses are gorgeous, and green spaces are abundant. However, Daniel Island landscape design isn’t without its challenges: Much of the island looks man-made. In many ways, there’s less harmony with the natural Lowcountry environment on Daniel Island than there is in other parts of the Charleston area. Notably,…
In Charleston landscape design, details are important for a number of reasons. Obviously, paying close attention to details is an integral part of harmonizing Charleston area properties with the natural Lowcountry environment…my native, low-maintenance landscape design philosophy. is predicated on the fine details of the unique maritime ecosystem that is the South Carolina Lowcountry. Similarly,…
Ubiquitous and soft due to the large quantities of water they hold, native palmetto trees were used to line the walls of Ft. Moultrie during the Battle of Sullivan’s Island in order to minimize the impact of cannon balls fired from British ships. The iconic native species did an admirable job of protecting the fort:…
As residents of the Lowcountry, we’re able to enjoy countless serene coastal vistas: creeks winding through our salt marshes, the Atlantic Ocean caressing our beaches, pelicans resting on our docks. The list goes on and on. Unfortunately, despite the abundance of tranquil seaside views the Charleston area offers us, few of us are blessed…
The 2016 growing season is ramping-up, and many of you are visiting this site for the first time. I’d like to welcome you and, in addition to providing a brief introduction, give you an overview of my Charleston residential landscape design and installation philosophy. 1) Use as many native plants as possible. I’m…
I believe in lifelong learning, and I’m constantly conducting research for my residential landscape design projects. Through my research, I frequently come across videos I believe would be of use to current and potential customers. So, I’ve decided to share them via the new landscaping videos page. As with my landscaping photos page, I’ll…
Spanish has played a significant role in my life, both here and abroad, since I began studying it in 8th grade at James Island Middle School. As such, I’ve decided to share my aptitude for Spanish by tutoring part-time while I grow Lowcountry Vistas. Through my organization, Charleston Spanish Tutor, I’m offering Spanish tutoring…
Happy New Year! As many of you know, I’m an avid amateur landscape photographer in my free time. In celebration of the coming new year, I’ve decided to share some of my photos with you via a new Charleston landscaping photos page. I have thousands of shots to go through and I take new…
El Niño, Spanish for “the child” because it typically forms around Christmas, is a current in the Pacific that brings especially warm winters to the Charleston area every few years. During El Niño years, the Lowcountry, which typically enjoys winters warm enough to enable most landscape installations, can have “cold seasons” warm enough to…
I’m downsizing, and I’m looking for the opportunity to exchange my residential landscaping services for tenancy in the Charleston area in lieu of rent. This could be an ideal situation for owners of investment property or part-time residents. In exchange for tenancy, I’d be disposed to do anything landscape-related that would increase the aesthetic…
Although you wouldn’t know it by looking at the thermometer, it’s Christmastime in the Lowcountry. Due to unusually-warm El Niño weather, we in the Charleston area are experiencing a unique continuation of the growing season into the end of the calendar year. Today, on Christmas Eve, sounds of lawnmowers abound. People are sprucing up…
I’m currently working on a multi-faceted yard makeover in West Ashley that has required the clearing of brush and the creation of stone paths and a centerpiece fire pit area. Eventually, the project will require the installation of topsoil and sod, the creation of a bench area on the marsh, and the installation of shrubs…
Although the Lowcountry’s climate is warm enough to allow winter planting of deciduous trees/shrubs and evergreens–even some of the palm variety–, only a select group of cold-tolerant Lowcountry plants will really pop during winter doldrums. Let’s take a look a some of these wintertime wonders. Pansies: It’s ironic that the name of these…
The end of the growing season is upon us here in the Charleston area, and that means it’s time for us to apply potash to our lawns to strengthen them for the upcoming dormant season. Unlike winterizer blends sold by big box stores, pure sulfate of potash sold at local nurseries raises potassium levels…
This is an image of the front of a new apartment complex on James Island. Located just 3 miles from the sands of Folly, the complex’s primary selling point is its proximity to the beach. The property’s location is so important to its brand, in fact, that the complex has adopted the slogan “closest…
This eye-catching image is from the entrance to a James Island car wash. I like this landscape design because it uses a combination of native Charleston plants to create a radiant coastal motif that looks good year-round. (It reminds me of long summer days on Folly Beach.) Some people have an aversion to “spiky”…
The recent historic flooding in South Carolina has left many Lowcountry lawns submerged. This is a precarious situation: Much of the inundated grass has been weakened, and weakened grass is susceptible to damage from fungus and grubs, which will proliferate for some time after the soil dries. Ultimately, some of the grass will die.…
Did the recent days of torrential downpours and historic flooding from the stalled front and Hurricane Joaquin make a mess of Charleston landscape? As a residential landscape designer who works in the field, I’m offering a yard cleanup special for a limited time: Lawn repair Debris removal Trimming dead branches Raking Blowing and bagging…
In recent years, zoysia grass has become a popular sod choice for Charleston lawns. It produces golf course-quality turf (in fact, many Lowcountry golf courses use a variety of zoysia for fairways), is heat and drought tolerant, insect resistant, can be used in sunny and shady areas, and initially spreads laterally as much as…
The other day, a local landscape architect inquired about my academic landscape design credentials. I replied that, while I don’t have a degree in landscape architecture, I started my Lowcountry landscaping career when I was 9 years old, I have an eye for design that you can’t learn in school, and, as a Charleston…
Colorful butterflies add to the beauty of fall in the Lowcountry. If your residential landscape design includes fragrant flowers in full sun or partial shade and you limit the use of outdoor spray pesticides, your yard is likely brimming right now with an abundance of fluttering allure. (They LOVE lantana in sunshine.) Click to…
In my residential landscape design work, I’ve come across many adjacent yards whose beautifully-designed and maintained beds and paths are tragically sullied by unkempt lawns. I don’t understand the logic: If someone takes enough pride in their yard to spend time and effort perfecting some elements, how could they overlook–literally and figuratively–the largest element,…
Evergreens are valuable elements in residential landscape design because of their permanent nature: They look nearly the same during winter doldrums as they do in the heat of summer. As permanent fixtures, many evergreens–particularly Leland cypresses–make excellent natural partitions, particularly between properties. Many people don’t realize, however, that evergreens include all plants that retain…
