MUG | Mike's Urban Garden

June 13, 2010

Angel Island

In the San Francisco Bay, Angel Island has no bridges and no private cars. This is an extremely easy, completely undemanding, overnight bike camping trip.

May 27, 2010

Bernal Hill Cottage Garden

This was one of my very first gardens. I start here in 2003; Lot's has changed.

April 05, 2010

Dearborn Community Garden Plot #45

Plot #45 under the plum tree: Collards, Peas, Arugula & Mustard Greens.

March 15, 2010

L.A. Garden Tour with the Hortasexuals

Beautiful weather for a 3-day tour of private gardens in Los Angeles.

February 13, 2010

Bernal Heights Entry Garden

A beautifully simple entry garden on Bernal Hill. One you will only see if you walk around San Francisco neighborhoods.

February 12, 2010

Alamo Square Entry Garden

This is my second design for this front terraced garden. This first was too wild. The owner enjoys the contrasting textures and colors the succulents provide this entry garden.

Aeonium 'Cyclops' with Agave 'Blue Glow'

My Path

Garden Fluffer, Personal Gardener, Fine Gardening, Market Gardener these are some of the names I have toyed with as my official title or job description. Most would classify me as a maintenance gardener. But i do things much different than your basic gardening crew. It is all about the process or procedures that I use to make my green spaces.

Simple things, done well. A gardener’s influence on a space is through control. Pruning, thinning, dividing and moving plants around to create an authentic natural look. But this is far from Nature. Step lightly and preen like a large herbivore. Leave all clippings around its source to replenish and shade the soil, creating a good environment for seeds to germinate. Only remove weed seed heads, diseased material and anything sharp like rose thorns, all other green material is made into compost either in a formal pile or as a light mulch. Nothing looks more authentic than a plant mulched with it’s own leaves and twigs. That is my gardening process. Simply well.

This is on top of picking the right plant in the right place. When I am looking to fill a void, no matter if it’s an annual or perennial, tree or shrub, evergreen or deciduous; I start with California and Western US native plants. If nothing fits my requirements (exposure, water, form and floral timing, client preferences) then I look at plants from the other Mediterranean regions of the world.

This blog is my chance to show my work and those things that inspire and influence.

MUG | Mike's Urban Garden | MUG