slope drainage

Questionwe have a home built on top of a small slope. The slope is approximate 10-12 high but we can walk down it. It goes around about half of the house - maybe 500 ft long around#?#. Problem - we planted blu

landscaping up against foundation

QuestionAn inspector has told me that one area on the front of my house is lower than the yard causing water to collect there. He says I should build the area up 4-5 inches and then gradually taper it out into

oyster shells in patio use

Question patio Hi, I want to use oyster shells in between the the stepping stone patio I have built. The joints are about 1inch wide. I was thinking of using a product called Ekoflo, a permeable aggregate bin

Gravel path on a steep slope

QuestionHow can I stabilise a gravel path that runs straight down a steep slope? Unfortunately we dont have the opportunity to widen the path or create any curves. The path is very slippery due to the steep a

Rocks next to cement patio.

QuestionHi, I am digging out some banana trees next to my cement patio. I noticed there is a couple of inches of river rock next to the cement. I was going to remove them because I am wanting to plant grass, but w

Oyster Shells in Southern California

QuestionHi, Im in the LA area and have been searching tirelessly for a supplier of oyster shells for landscaping use here. All I can find are places on the East Coast. Do you know of a supplier in Southern Californi

type of ground cover

QuestionQUESTION: I have a small side/backyard < 500 sf it is shady, I have a medium size dog. I plan on staying in the house for 20 yrs+. I live in the Pac NW. considering pea gravel, river rock , stamped

hillside that ends at property line of neighbor who does not cut the grass

QuestionWe have a seasonal home in NE Pennsylvania that is lake front. Our side yard was built up to accommodate the septic field. it then slopes down (rather steep in spots) and ends at the property lin

Shrub/tree selection on retaining wall

Question Andromeda Thanks for the help in advance. I have six foot talk retaining wall along the street in front of my house along the walkway to the front door (walkway to front door is the top f

Grading-culvert

QuestionQUESTION: Can I get by with just grading on a slope or would a culvert be better ANSWER: Hey, Kim. Whats your goal? If youre attempting to divert rainwater, generally a culvert would be better, but we kno

Drainage

QuestionHi, Im in the pacific northwest. I have a back yard (about 1.5-2 acres of grass# that is relatively flat. However, there are 5-6 low spots that collect water when it #rarely :-)) rains. I w

Landscaping materials

QuestionWe recently bought a house and are finding a number of issues since move in. Today, we found a huge mold spore growing under a brick. Its slightly bigger than a pie pan in diameter and about 4 inches thick.

japanese magnolia

QuestionMy father planted a japanese magnolia in a garden bed approximently 6x16 but the tree will be surrounded by sidewalks rite outside of garden bed. I think as the tree matures I will have a.problem with root s

Grading on a 45 degree angle slope

QuestionQUESTION: Hi Marc, We just finished pushing our slope which is very steep and built a retaining wall. Our problem now is that the slope ends a little bit higher than the retaining wall by about 2 feet.

raised bed next to fence

QuestionIn march 2012 you answered a question about building a raised bed along a cedar fence. I found the image on google by searching raised bed natural needless to say Im in love with the design! Im lookin

Step stone material choice

QuestionHi, I would like to know what material is the best choice when looking for pre-made garden stepping stones. I only need 4-5 of them total to have a path from the edge of a concrete slab patio so Im not trudg

Interview

QuestionDear Russel Ray, I am working on a research paper about landscape architecture and am very interested in becoming a landscape architect. If you would answer the following questions, that would be grea

help with selecting the right evergreen trees

QuestionI just moved to a yellow house on one acre with a built in pool which can be seen from the street. I want to plant a small cluster of evergreen trees halfway between the pool and the street for beauty

Pricing fall cleanup

QuestionHi,what is the average rate for a fall cleanup? I have a client that I have had for 2 years and now her husband is complaining that it takes to long when we are working. Her yard is huge and it does take awh

determine if trees should remain

Questionwe will be purchasing a newly constructed home from a contractor and are wondering if it is better that we instruct the backyard to be cleared from all trees and shrubs and later on plant trees should we des