Regional Landscape Design for Southern California

It’s always helpful to stop gardening once in a while to think about new ways to improve your garden or your design approach.  A recent event collaboratively produced by Pacific Horticulture and Southern California districts of The Association of Professional Landscape Designers (APLD) and held at the TreePeople’s Center for Community Forestry provided the opportunity to do just that.

Members of both APLD and Pacific Horticulture, along with the general public, attended an inspiring afternoon seminar. Carol Bornstein, Director of the Nature Gardens at the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County, presented “Re-envisioning California Gardens with Native Plants”; Randy Baldwin, General Manager of San Marcos Growers, introduced “New Plants from Australia for California Gardens”; and noted California landscape designer Bernard Trainor spoke on site patterns, observing the local identity, and specifics of place, based on his new book Landprints. Following the presentations, guests had the opportunity to network with colleagues and the speakers over refreshments.

The next morning the fun resumed with a guided walk led by Carol and Bernard through scenic areas in neighboring Coldwater Canyon Park. The informative and inspiring walk topped off a weekend that gave us new ways to improve our approach to garden design and left us feeling renewed. The collaboration between the two organizations is the first of what looks to be a promising partnership.