CORAL INFUSION: Behind the Scenes

How do you create a welcoming and inviting front yard while also providing some privacy. This was the challenge we faced in Coral Infusion, creating a simple solution to both goals.

How do we test our theory and know it will work? We use special analysis, 3D renderings and our experience.:

Reading the Site

Being about analyze what’s existing is the first step all Landscape Architecture students are taught. My Professor Robert Melnick wisely said while we were at Mt. Rainier for a studio “Take a thousand pictures and then take one more, it’s better to have more than too little.”

This also applies to site uses, people, water and animals. A good first step is to look around at the neighborhood so we can design something that is unique but also fits in with the local look and feel.

Hardscape, Soft-scape and Color Theory

We start our design with the paths, patios and soil, from the ground up one might say. In this design, we rerouted the foot traffic to a central Arizona Flagstone path. This leads directly to the front door and is wide enough for two people to walk comfortably side by side. Replacing two small and difficult to access paths.

Then, we added in the soft-scape. We examined differed options to screen the front room from the road while maintaining a view to the garden. Three evergreen Leucodenron ‘Safari Sunset’ plants are strategically placed to block exterior views in and maintain line of sight midway out.

Color and texture of the plant material is also very important. We choose a hot color palette with an abundance of coral blooms. Including: Echinacea ‘Cheyenne Sprit’, Hellianthum ‘Briliant’ and Leonotis to name a few. Then we balanced the seasonal perennials with fine textured grasses such as Lomandra ‘Breeze’ and Carex conica ‘Snowline’. Added in additional structural elements: the columnar Calamagrostis ‘Karl Forester’, Ulmus parviflorus and Camellia sasanqua ‘Yuletide’

Final Rendering

The final result is a warm and welcoming view from the road that screens the windows into the house. Strips of coral flowering perennials and shrubs spill into the path leading to the front door.

We render the plan in a photo realistic color palette to show the variety of colors and overall density of plantings. This project is on the schedule to be installed in May so keep an eye out for the installations process!

What challenges do you face in your front yard?