ABOUT

• the owner of the Portland Home and Garden show approached 12 APLD garden designers to design 12 zodiac-themed gardens; we took on the sign of Leo

• show gardens begin with a slab of concrete in the middle of a large empty room

• because this garden was one of 12 in a circle, the space was wedge-shaped

PROJECT GOALS

• create a captivating garden that met the theme of 'The Leo Garden' as one of 12 Zodiac Gardens.

• use the countries of Leo: Provence, France and Italy as inspiration.

• provide a change of height

• provide a water feature
  

• incorporate lions

• keep visitors out of the garden, viewable only from the front and coordinate elevations with the designers on either side

DESIGN CONCEPTS

• Using a steel-framed gazebo, we created a circular patio within its confines

• we added height at the back and created a stucco-looking wall with colors inspired from Italy and Provence

• we selected plants that would normally grow in either of those two locations and would also grow in the Pacific NW

• we emphasized the theme using a Provencal tablecloth, Paris park chairs, and a typically stone-topped wall style from the area

• instead of using the predictible lion head fountain, we chose to have a local artist create a lion's head in ceramic as an ornament on the water feature wall