Monthly Archives: September 2011

Boxwood Growth Over Time

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Boxwood, Q and A
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This is a two part post in response to a comment left a few weeks ago by a reader. Kim’s question was two fold, first how long before her tiny boxwoods would grow to create a hedge. And second to recommend plants to use between a boxwood border and hydrangea. I hope this helps you out Kim and would love to see after photos!

Boxwood Growth Over Time:
There are a few rules with planting boxwoods for optimal growth. First check the rate of growth for the species you are planting. A species like Buxus ‘Faulkner’ is a medium grower in full sun and should be planted with a 2′ center. While slower growers like Buxus ‘Green Velvet’ are much smaller and should be planted on 1’6″ to 2′ centers. Next, boxwoods like cool roots so mulch with 2″ of leaf compost/mulch.

The final variables on growth will depend on sun exposure, water and the organic matter in the soil, but below is a time lapse between 2005 to 2011 of boxwoods I planted here in Central Ohio. (The boxwoods used are Buxus ‘Faulkner’).

Here are the Boxwoods planted in 2005.
Later in the season in 2005.
Here are the boxwoods from 2008.
Between 2005 and 2008, we trimmed the top and fronts to encourage horizontal growth. 
Another view in 2008. 
And finally, here are the boxwoods in 2011, completely hedged together. 
Another view from 2011. 

Green, White, Silver and Purple:
I think this is a classic color combination for the garden, and even use it in my own landscape. It works well with almost any type of house style and depending on the plants used can go traditional to modern. For Kim’s particular landscape I recommend Nepeta ‘Walker’s Low’ for the pop of purple flower and silver blue foliage. Also you can plant Alliums for some spring flowers. Both of these grow well in Central Ohio, however the alliums require full sun.

Photo of Nepeta.
Image from Flickr.
Photo of  Nepeta.
Image from Flickr
You could also use English Lavender, however in Central Ohio it is not a long living perennial.
Image from Flickr. 
Spring Allium bloom. You can also get alliums in white. 

Design 101: Brick Paver Patterns

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Brick, Design 101
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This is my first post in what I hope will be an ongoing series of Landscape Design 101′s on popular styles and terms used. My goal is to provide the basic knowledge for novice designers to either do a project themselves or talk to a professional installer/designer about what they would like for their home. If there are any particular topics you would like for me to feature, let me know.

My first 101 is the top four brick patterns used in the garden; Running Bond, Stacked Bond, Basket Weave, and Herringbone. There are millions of ways these patterns can be installed, intermixed and used with different types of hard surfaces. Once you know these basic patterns you can start experimenting. 


Four Basic Brick Patterns
Running Bond is one of the most common patterns used. It is easy to lay and  works great in areas that are tricky shapes .
This is a very simple pattern, but not commonly used.  I could see this simplistic pattern used in a modern landscape, compared to a more traditional space.
Depending on the size of your brick this can be done with two or three bricks.  
There are two types of Herringbone patterns, 45 degree and 90 degree. You can see the difference by comparing the next photo. The 45 Degree is the most difficult and most expensive to lay since it has the most cuts and wasted material. 
In comparing to the 45 degree herringbone, you can see that this method is easier to lay, and would require much less cutting. 
In laying bricks a Soldier (or Sailor) Course is often used to transition between styles or along the edges. You can see from the photo below the use of a Soldier Course in both cases.

Four Types in Use
Now, here are examples of the four different types of patterns used in the landscape. You can see the different types of patterns can be used in may different types of landscape styles. (I am missing an example of stacked bond, but will keep looking.)

90 degree Herringbone walkway
45 Degree Herringbone on the thin edge of the brick.
Running Bond. See how it emphasis’s the circular bed.
Running Bond on thin edge of brick.

Basket Weave that transitions into Running Bond.
Image from Flickr.

A Little bit more on Bricks. 
There are two main types of bricks (handmade and factory), and within those two types there are many different color and finish options. I typically prefer handmade bricks that have a little age and quirkiness to them, but you if you do your research you can find some factory bricks that look handmade.

There are also two main type of installation methods for brick walkways, driveways and patios; Wet and Dry. This is totally your personal preference for installation and aesthetic. Wet means it is set in concrete on a concrete base. Dry means it is on a stone aggregate base and is kept in place by using and edger (Metal or plastic). The joint are then filled with sand (I prefer using a poly-sand).  All the images above are dry, but below are two examples of wet. Which ever way you choice, make sure the sub-base is sufficient for the installation method, planned use and climate.

Source: nick mccullough
Running Bond (wet laid)
Wet laid herringbone and running bond

Steal this Look – Crisp Green and White Courtyard

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Steal this Look
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This garden is from an April 2010 Issue of Veranda. I have it tagged for small garden inspiration, because I like the simple plantings and timeless feeling. The space provides space for outdoor entertaining, but with the use of the Hornbeams and additional plantings give enough greenery to make the space a garden oasis. Below are details on the plants and materials used create the look at your home.

Details of the Plantings 
The photo only shows the right side of the garden, but I assume that the plantings are mirrored on the left side for a formal design. Repetition of the same plants and colors creates a calming effect and by placing beds long the walls the hard edges of the Limestone and Brick are softened.  
Detail of Flowers on Table
The Angelonia are planted in the basket. This allows for the flower arrangement to last much longer that traditional cut flowers. 

The Dining table in the garden was from Mecox Gardens and the chairs were from Michael Taylor, both of which are very expensive. You could get a similar look with these Restoration Hardware chairs and a table from Oly Studio.

Country Living Fair in Columbus and First Peek of Fall.

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Personal
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This past weekend was the Country Living Fair in Columbus. I was not able to make it down, but my wife went with James and brought me some cool seed packets for next year.

Seed packets from Hudson Valley Seed Library.
Allison purchased from High Falls Mercantile, from High Falls, NY.

This weekend was my transition into Fall. While driving home on Friday we passed all the Southern Ohio farms harvesting their pumpkins, and the photo below of James at the Country Living Fair with the beautiful pumpkins is another reminder.

Tower of pumpkins created by The 200 Acers.

I do declare. Day trip to Savannah

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G A R D E N S
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We took a day trip over to Savannah during our vacation. We enjoyed eating at Paula Dean’s Lady and Sons, Shopping and walking the different Squares. The trip was the perfect balance to the days spent at the beach.

This was our first shopping stop in downtown Savannah. The whole store was a palate of natural woods, grays and pops of orange.  We did not make any purchases but I would go back!
The hanging containers outside Paris Market. So smart to use the Rosemary in the containers. Gives a wonderful fragrance while walking by. 
An orchid flower arrangement inside Paris Market. 
Another Flower arrangement of Orchids and Chinese Chestnuts inside Pairs Market. 
Here is James reading a map of Savannah while the rest of us shopped in Circa Lighting. 

Very cool pet sign in one of the squares. It is always interesting to see how different cities treat their pet signs. 

Creeping Fig covering steps to town house.  I love how it is trimmed around the steps and the windows. 
Detail around of it clipped around the steps. 
I really don’t know much about Savannah architecture, but I heard that these downspouts are unique element.. 

Beautiful Sago Palms running along a building. 
This is a brilliant idea that I am going to totally recreate.  The wire frame can house a flowering vine to provide tree like height, and within a limited space, in a  specific shape you want, and it a fairly quick time. 

This house was my absolute favorite. The house was your typical Southern Savannah home, with a modern garden.
Tri-colored Banana, Mondo Grass and a low hedge were used to create movement. 

For a fence behind the plantings, a water jet fence of cutouts of little leaves blocked the view of the garden behind. 
I managed to get a quick peek behind the fence to see a POOL! I would have to believe that a pool in Old Savannah is not common.  Not sure if the pool is just low on water or if there is a reason why so low. 
On our way out of town we stopped at the Equestrian stables for SCAD. The facilities were beautiful, and while driving through even had the pleasure of watching a few riders The main stables are pictured above. The ivy growing on the pillars between the individual stalls. 
Additional views of the stalls and the barn. 
It was an amazing vacation, and we had a great time exploring the South. We also had the realization that Atlanta is just a 8-9 hour drive from Columbus. We cannot wait to plan that trip next, maybe yet this year. 

Drive Down South to see a Living Wall

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Green wall
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On our drive down to Hilton Head, we scheduled a rest stop in Charlotte, NC. Thanks to roadfood.com, we found a great Carolina BBQ place called Bill Spoon’s Barbecue. The pork BBQ and banana pudding were amazing and everyone was so nice. All the waiteress knew James by name, were interested in how we landed in Charlotte and shared their own Ohio connections.

The same exit off 77 as Bill Spoon’s also took us to Capital, a high fashion woman’s clothing store. This was a desirable stop for my wife for window shopping and for me to see the living wall by Patrick Blanc. I learned about the existence of the wall from a recent Garden & Gun article, and it made the prefect break in our 11 hour drive.

Again, the women in Capital were so nice to us. They allowed me to take photos of the wall and allowed me to go up stairs to take photos from the second floor. The design of the store was a square with an open center courtyard that is open on three sizes on the first floor, and then three walls of windows on the second floor. The Living Wall then cascades the two floors. 

The woman that guided me up stairs informed me that it is the only Patrick Blanc Living Wall in the south. However, because of their installation a larger version was going to be installed in downtown Charlotte. I guess we will need to stop and visit that one during our next trip to Hilton Head.

View of the bottom of the wall, drainage and herringbone floor tile. 

The view looking up the wall, into the open air. 

I have been taking a lot of photos all vacation so will have some more to share this week of our trip to Savannah, GA.

An Eventful Week and Hello Vacation!

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Uncategorized
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This was a very busy week with getting award entries wrapped up and delivered, gathering information for an up coming article in Ohio Gardener Magazine and celebrating the Country Living Blog nomination (and contacting everyone I know to vote). Next week I am on vacation with the family and good friends. I am looking forward to the time to relax at the beach, just hope there is not the rain on the forecast.

Thank you to everyone for your votes this week! and I will touch base on the blog a few times while out of office.

Selections of work that was entered into an award this week.
Will do a complete  write up  later on the design, plant id, etc. 

Hello, My name is Nick.

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My Work
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I figured with the Country Living Blogger Award, there might be some new visitors wondering: who is this guy? Here is some background on me, why I am passionate about landscape design and why I started this blog. 
I live in central Ohio with my wife and my two year old son, James.
My son James from earlier this summer.
I attended The Ohio State University (Go Bucks!) and received a B.S. in Landscape Horticulture and minor in Art History. I started my family managed landscape design/build/maintain business (McCullough’s Landscape & Nursery) when I was still in high school by mowing lawns and it grew from there. We are now verging on our 15 year in business.

This is one of the first big design projects I completed and one of my favorites.
The bottom image is of a 3 acre hill of wild flowers we planted. 
I am a plant geek. I am known to call out the Latin names of plants no matter where I am. For “fun” I like to weed and work around the garden at the home or at the Farm, where our offices are located. I think mowing the yard is relaxing.
(PHOTO OF LANGFORD COURT)
One of the most influential experiences on my career and design esthetic was a study abroad program in England while I was in College. While there I was able to tour amazing gardens, from traditional to modern. Top on my list of places to visit is Holland. 

These two photos are from a modern garden in England from my study abroad trip.
My personal design aesthetic is tight hedges, limited palate of hues and limited plants used in mass. My favorite plants are Japanese Maples.
This garden includes my all time favorites, boxwoods and German Automobiles.
See more photos here. 
Besides landscape design I am passionate about German cars, The Buckeyes and Columbus Blue Jackets.  And if I am not working I am visiting favorite Columbus haunts with my family, watching Columbus sports teams,  or renovating our 1970′s home.
You can see the whole family are Blue Jackets fans.
 I started this blog because I had so many inspiring photos, amazing gardens, and design knowledge that I wanted to share. Also, I thought there was a hole in the blog world of someone talking about design in the garden beyond plant types and vegetables. I wanted to provide the knowledge and tools for homeowners to get the look they see in books/magazines and feel confident to experiment in their own yard.  I hope you enjoy reading this blog and if you ever have any questions, please comment. I will do everything I can to get you an answer.