MUG | Mike's Urban Garden | MUG: February 2012

February 29, 2012

Potrero Hill Entry Garden

Spring came early with many sunny days and little rain.

February 01, 2012

Here's a roof patio in Pacific Heights a year after I planted it. It is a southern facing patio that can really bake on those sunny days. In the top photo from the upper left: Phormium, Chamaerops h. cerifera, Lotus berthelotti and Philodendron xanadu.

In the next photo from the left: Cordyline soledad with Lotus berthelotti, Podocarpus gracilior, Cussonia transvaalensis again with Lotus. And the last photo is a Cycad with an amazing fern I got at Flora Grubb Gardens but can't remember the name.

Eureka Valley Deck Planting

Blending this planting into the San Francisco skyline.

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

February 29, 2012

Potrero Hill Entry Garden

February 01, 2012

Pacific Heights Roof Deck

Eureka Valley Deck Planting

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