Houzz TV: Curves and Surprises Transform a Dry Backyard
A landscape architect’s decision to build a detached studio leads to a whole new backyard full of low-water plants and salvaged treasures
Margot Hartford
July 12, 2016
Houzz Contributor. Interiors photographer in the Bay Area for over 15 years. Publications include Veranda, California Home & Design, Sunset Magazine and Better Homes and Gardens.
Houzz Contributor. Interiors photographer in the Bay Area for over 15 years. Publications... More
The decision to redesign this property began with the desire for a backyard cottage for guests or work. Today, it’s an evolving set of welcoming outdoor rooms and a demonstration garden of low-water plants in beds representing Australia, South Africa, the Mediterranean and California. Succulents provide color when the native plantings go dormant, and salvaged materials, vintage garden chairs and a hidden “circle garden” add to the yard’s surprises. “The garden is still a work in progress, which is fine with us,” says owner and landscape architect Chris Kukula. “It gives us something to look forward to.”
Watch on Houzz TV: Tour this hillside garden now
Backyard at a Glance
Who lives here: Chris Kukula and Pat Barry, with their cat, Bobbi
Location: Piedmont, California
Yard size: 2,835 square feet (about 263 square meters)
Year house was built: 1925
Garden renovation timeline: Begun in 2003; cottage finished in 2007; most hardscaping finished in 2008; planting started in 2010
Kukula and her husband Pat Barry, a general contractor, reshaped the hill to create three outdoor garden rooms defined by strong geometric forms: a patio off the house, a gently sloped planting area and an upper yard where the cottage sits.
Backyard at a Glance
Who lives here: Chris Kukula and Pat Barry, with their cat, Bobbi
Location: Piedmont, California
Yard size: 2,835 square feet (about 263 square meters)
Year house was built: 1925
Garden renovation timeline: Begun in 2003; cottage finished in 2007; most hardscaping finished in 2008; planting started in 2010
Kukula and her husband Pat Barry, a general contractor, reshaped the hill to create three outdoor garden rooms defined by strong geometric forms: a patio off the house, a gently sloped planting area and an upper yard where the cottage sits.
BEFORE: “We bought a derelict property and have expensive aesthetics,” Kukula says. They expanded the house from a two-bedroom, one-bath property to four bedrooms, three baths and a cottage. “We did much of the work ourselves, so it is taking some time, as we both work full-time.”
The garden renovation started with the removal of more than 50 cubic yards of clay soil.
The garden renovation started with the removal of more than 50 cubic yards of clay soil.
Barry designed and built the 120-square-foot cottage, which sits at the top of the sloping backyard. While it’s now used as the couple’s office, it could someday be converted to a guest room.
Limestone steppingstones finish the curve from the sweeping limestone stairs to the entrance of the office. Sheet mulching, made up of cardboard and tree chips, is used to suppress weeds and improve the soil. “Worms love cardboard,” Kukula says.
Bonus video: See how to use cardboard to feed the soil and get rid of weeds
Bonus video: See how to use cardboard to feed the soil and get rid of weeds
The cottage does not have indoor plumbing, but outside the structure are a sink and potting counter.
Inside the cottage, a desk, filing cabinets and custom Douglas fir flat files that match the office trim run along the longest wall.
The Douglas fir wood used for the trim, ceiling and wainscoting was salvaged from construction jobs and from found and recycled materials. The space was designed to include more than one workstation.
Original art hangs on clipboards above Kukula’s desk.
The long work surfaces provide plenty of space for laying out landscape plans.
This old iron bench is a treasure Barry found.
The rusted metal slats on the seat made it unusable as a chair, so Kukula planted chamomile and Echeveria instead and turned it into an art piece.
A decorative hummingbird is perched above a succulent pot filled with Aeonium canariensis, Aeonium ‘Kiwi’, golden sedum (Sedum nussbaumerianum), Echeveria fimbriata and pork and beans (Sedum rubrotinctum), which add color to the yard when winter rolls around. Much of the garden is designed to provide food for hummingbirds.
A mix of succulents, primarily sedums, lines the creases between the treads and risers, adding interesting patterns and color to the journey to the upper garden. Here, Sedum ‘Makinoi Ogon’ is planted above, while Sedum spurium ‘Red Carpet’ is below.
Two decrepit chairs being thrown out on a trash day found new life with a sandblast and powder-coat finish. “We call it treasure hunting,” Kukula says of their search for found items.
Kukula designed a custom stone lounge chair, built by master mason and friend Michael Lohan, that sits below a live oak tree in the California native garden. Bobbi the cat checks out a niche that was created for special objects.
Watch on Houzz TV: See how the owners found the perfect armrest for this stone lounge chair
Watch on Houzz TV: See how the owners found the perfect armrest for this stone lounge chair
A small gravel path curves beside the office to separate the cottage’s South African low-water garden from a small vegetable bed.
Many of the edible plants are along the edges, making them easier to pick. Mandarin orange, lime and lemon trees, along with artichokes, strawberries, blueberries and native California huckleberries and currants, can be easily grabbed en route from house to office.
Kukula attributes her love of plants and the outdoors to her childhood. “Growing up near the Great Lakes in Northern Michigan, we were always outdoors playing,” Kukula says. “We didn’t have many toys, so I spent a lot of time observing, collecting and making art from bits of nature.”
The fountain on the patio was selected for its resemblance to Italian urban plaza drinking fountains. Both Kukula and Barry studied in Italy, and the country’s architecture and urban design continues to influence the way they live, work and design.
Kukula, seen here with Barry, shares her passion for landscape and design with her husband, who practiced architecture for many years before becoming a general and finish contractor. Here they’re enjoying their yard and outdoor dining room.
Watch on Houzz TV
Owners transform their dry, sloped backyard
See how to use cardboard to get rid of weeds
Watch on Houzz TV
Owners transform their dry, sloped backyard
See how to use cardboard to get rid of weeds
Miss an episode? Find all Houzz TV stories here
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wow such a wonderful story and concept!
Nice
ingenious..artsy...practical...beautiful... calming...filled with surprising rooms....nature loving
...I love this garden