North Bay Woman

S P R I N G 2 0 1 6 | NORTH BAY WOMAN 11 From left: This gas fire pit in Corte Madera offers warmth and light on cool summer nights in Marin. – Photo by Bon Terra Landscapes. Savard fountain pergola plant detail adds interest to your back yard. – Photo by Dig Your Garden Landscape Design. Corten steel planters, planted with water-wise plants, give a cool, modern look to a garden. – Photo by Bon Terra Landscapes Above: Bel Marin Keys circle area with chaise and pillows. – Photo byDig Your Garden Landscape Design. 320 Bon Air Center | Greenbrae 415-461-7688 | framecraftersgallery.com OPEN MON-SAT • 10AM-6PM "e Art of Framing" Love The Walls You Live In Photographs Prints & Posters Custom Framing Art Oil Paintings Maximize with mulch Give your planting beds a finished look, help them retain soil moisture and suppress weeds all at the same time with mulch, suggests Eileen Kelly of Dig Your Garden Landscape Design. Her favorites? Bark chips, a combination of shredded mulch and chips (a good choice for hillsides), black-colored chips (for modern landscapes), or gravel. Lighten up Kelly likes to illuminate nighttime gardens with low-voltage landscape lighting because of the safety, drama and ambience it lends to a garden. For pathways, "stagger the lights on either side to avoid the unnatural runway look," she says. "Lighten up dark areas and use spotlights to accent a focal point and direct them up into the branches of the trees. String lights are great for arbors and pergolas." For warmth and light, "we like fire pits or fire urns," says Theresa Robertori, who with her husband Robert, owns Villa Terrazza Patio and Home in Sonoma. "There is nothing like sitting around a fire pit, sipping a glass of wine with friends and family, their faces bathed in the warm, flickering glow of the fire," she says. "And a gas fire pit won't throw sparks or billow smoke, but the warmth it gives off is real." Colors pack a punch "Add splashes of color — in plants, containers, or pillows — for drama, choosing colors that complement your home and your garden's palette," Kelly says Besides the punch of color that comes with pillows, consider outdoor rugs. "They anchor a vignette and are indiscernible from indoor rugs," she says. "Plus, it feels so nice to walk on a rug in bare feet compared to concrete." Throw shade Umbrellas are wonderful in offering sun relief but winds can be damaging.That's why Robertori likes the stylish, commercial-grade TUCCI umbrellas. "They withstand wind gusts up to 50 mph," she says. "And, every component on them is replaceable, so they never need to be thrown away." Cool off with water Add a water feature, or at least a bird fountain. "A fountain offers soothing sounds, promotes a relaxed ambiance, and serves as a focal point," she says. "It also offers a needed drink to birds on hot days. And why not attract birds? Their color, movement and songs enhance any garden, for free. Resources ■ Bon Terra Landscapes, (415) 755-5624, bonterralandscapes.com ■ Dig Your Garden Landscape Design, (415) 602-6282, digyourgarden.com ■ Villa Terrazza Patio and Home, (707) 933-8286, villa-terrazza.com. ■

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