Author: csDevTeam

Born in São Paulo, Brazil, Roberto Burle Marx was a renowned artist and landscape architect who achieved fame throughout his life for his appealing park and garden designs. In addition to his influence on tropical garden design, he is also credited with bringing the concepts of modernist landscape architecture to his home country of Brazil. In 1949, Marx became the owner of the Sítio de Santo Antonio da Bica, a large estate in the outskirts of the city of Rio de Janeiro. Over the years, he turned this land into his own personal garden and nursery; today, the Sítio Roberto Burle Marx is considered a Brazilian national monument.

Marx’s Approach to Landscaping

With the exception of some of Marx’s designs along the Copacabana and Flamengo beaches, much of his public work has been poorly maintained. However, the Sítio Roberto Burle Marx has been kept in pristine condition, offering a peek into this amazing landscape architect’s mind, even years after his death in 1994. Marx was an avid painter, and he saw the Earth as a canvas. His designs turned the landscapes he completed into living paintings through his botanical choices and the placement of plants and other elements.

Marx’s Private Estate

As Marx’s own private estate, the Sítio Roberto Burle Marx is perhaps the best example of his work. The grounds, which cover nearly 41 acres, house more than 3,500 species of plants collected during Marx’s expeditions into the Brazilian rainforests in search of new botanical wonders to incorporate into his designs. In addition to the gardens and nursery, the Sítio Roberto Burle Marx also contains five reflecting pools, seven buildings, and a museum collection that includes thousands of Marx’s artistic works, including sculptures, prints, drawings, and tapestries.

An outdoor kitchen adds functionality and convenience to your home, providing a place for anything from a quick snack to major meal preparation outdoors. When creating your outdoor kitchen, drawing inspiration from your yard and your existing indoor kitchen can help you design an outdoor living space that perfectly suits your style and needs.

Consider Existing Outdoor Features

Your outdoor kitchen design should mesh with the existing style of your home’s exterior features to create a seamless transition from one space to the next. When choosing the materials for your kitchen, consider the look of your home’s exterior, as well as the styles you’ve chosen for other outdoor spaces, such as your pool or deck. By pulling colors, materials, and styles from your existing features into your kitchen’s design, you’ll create a completely new space that looks like a complementary part of the whole.

Maximize Your Layout

Space is often at a premium when designing an outdoor kitchen layout. Ensuring there is a clear path through your kitchen to access both your home and your yard will make moving through this space easier and more convenient. By placing certain appliances that require electricity or gas near existing lines, you can reduce the time and financial costs of kitchen installation.

Keep Function in Mind
The function of your outdoor kitchen will play a significant part in the ideal design for this space. If you plan to use your outdoor kitchen primarily for snacks and simple meal preparation, a smaller, less high-tech design that features seating and storage space may be best. Alternatively, if you need your outdoor kitchen to handle large-scale meal preparation during parties, you’ll want to include plenty of counter space and larger appliances capable of storing and cooking a larger volume of food.

At Santa Rita Landscaping, our landscape design team in Tucson can also help you create the perfect outdoor kitchen or living space to complement your home. We invite you to check out our landscape installation and maintenance service on the web, or give us a call at (520) 623-0421 to get started.

Green spaces are of ever-growing importance as the world becomes more centered around cities and the infrastructure therein. When you are deciding how to landscape your Tucson yard, keep in mind some of the great gardens of the world as inspiration. Innisfree Garden in Millbrook, New York, is a 200-acre garden located 90 miles north of New York City that opened to the public in 1960. Drawing inspiration from Asian artwork depicting gardens, Innisfree uses natural elements to put nature into a more framed, organized garden. Read on to learn more about this stunning garden.

Origins

Innisfree Garden is recognized as one of the world’s best. It took over 50 years to complete the garden, with work done by landscape architect Lester Collins and his client, artist Walter Beck. Beck and his wife, Marion, began working on Innisfree in the late 1920s, as it was originally the location of their country residence. Asian art influenced Beck’s own work, his collecting, and ultimately, provided the inspiration for the style that Innisfree drew from. When Beck found the work of 8th century Chinese poet and garden maker Wang Wei, he was able to focus on the specific elements that he wanted to use for his own land.

Cup Gardens

One of the most characteristic elements of Wang Wei’s garden design was the use of cup gardens, which were employed to provide a sense of place to the land. Cup gardens are smaller and focused inward, and are used within the context of the larger landscape to break up focus and allow the viewer to feel immersed. Beck utilized design techniques and advice from his artist wife to create pictures within the landscape, treating each cup garden as individual works of art. It was Lester Collins who worked with these individual gardens and turned them into a unified landscape.

Pay a visit to Innisfree Garden the next time you’re in the Empire State. In the meantime, contact Santa Rita Landscaping in Tucson at (520) 623-0421 to find out how we can help you with your landscape design. We have been providing expert landscaping services for over 30 years.

Landscaping acts to soften the appearance of your home’s exterior, increasing curb appeal and creating an inviting space for you and your family to spend time outdoors. Even if you have a small yard, there are several great ways to maximize the look of your landscaping for exactly the finished look you want.

Choose a Focal Point

When landscaping a smaller yard, choosing a focal point or feature gives you a place around which to build up the landscaping you want. This focal feature can be anything from a deck or a pool to a fire pit or a water feature, as long as it incorporates the colors, materials, and styles you want to use throughout your landscape design.

Create Zones

Even in a small yard, you can use your landscape design to create visual zones and give your yard a larger, more open feel. The zone nearest your home is often the perfect space for relaxation or socialization, while footpaths and other features can help to delineate separate zones for recreation, gardening, or grilling.

Use Color Effectively

Color is a great way to add vibrancy to your yard, making it feel cozier and more welcoming. Bolder colors work well in areas that are highly visible, while more muted colors can be used in areas where other features, such as a fire pit or bench, provide their own texture and visual interest. Succulents are a perfect choice for colorful desert landscaping, as these plants often keep their bright colors throughout the year, while also offering a low-maintenance landscaping solution.  

A smaller yard allows you to create a cozy, intimate, and sophisticated place for relaxation, socialization, and a wide variety of other outdoor activities. You can find more landscaping tips for yards of any size when you visit Santa Rita Landscaping on the web and read through our blog; you’ll also find additional information about our comprehensive landscaping services in Tucson. If you’re ready to design the yard of your dreams, you can reach us by phone at (520) 623-0421.

Your landscaping can say a lot about you, and can greatly affect your home’s curb appeal. When you are landscaping in a dry climate such as Tucson, it’s important to consider what your impact on the environment will be—particularly as it relates to water usage. Conserving water helps the environment and can save you money on your monthly utility bills, making it a smart choice. By choosing an experienced landscaping company, you’ll be able to have a plan that makes sense for your climate as well as your lifestyle. Keep reading to learn about water-conscious landscaping.

Xeriscaping

Creating a low-water landscaping plan is also known as xeriscaping, and it is a practice that is growing in popularity in the Southwest as well as the rest of the country. Xeriscaping can save you time, energy, and money, though it does require a bit of planning. By working with a local landscaping service, you can come up with a plan that will conserve water and improve the overall look of the outside of your home.

Native Plants

One of the most important aspects of water-conscious landscaping is using native plants. Native plants are already adapted to their climates, and do not require as much water as plants that originate from different environments. If you experience an extended period without rain, or extreme temperatures, these plants are hardy enough that they should be able to withstand these fluctuations. Cacti and other succulents are popular choices in a desert climate, as are certain perennials, which can add color to your landscape.

Hydrozoning

As you discuss your yard goals with your landscaping professionals, the idea of hydrozoning may come up. Hydrozoning essentially means grouping plants with similar water needs together so that your landscaping is more organized. The plants that use the most water should go closest to the water source for ease of maintenance, while the hardiest plants should be located on the perimeter of your landscaping.

At Santa Rita Landscaping, Inc., we are dedicated to conserving our precious natural resources. Call us at (520) 623-0421 to find out how we can help you design and maintain an environmentally conscious landscape that is still aesthetically pleasing. Visit our website for a look at what we do.