Designing Eden – Connecticut Landscape Designer | Proud to be the only nationally certified landscape designer in Litchfield County

Using Annuals in the Landscape

Posted on January 5, 2013 by Richard Schipul

At Designing Eden llc, the landscapes we design and install tend to have a lot of seasonal interest. We accomplish this by using a mixture of various flowering trees, shrubs, perennials and groundcovers. For most of our clients, that approach is more than sufficient in terms of providing enough seasonal color in their landscape or garden. Some of our clients though, want to get as much seasonal color as possible. For those clients, we suggest leaving a lot of space open for annuals. Annuals provide non stop color throughout the growing season. Also, annuals will give a garden a certain ‘wow’ factor that just isn’t possible with shrubs or perennials, especially when a client is committed to rotating the annuals 3 times a year. The coolest part about this approach, in my eyes, is this strategy gives the garden a different look and feel from year to year and even season to season. Below are multiple pictures of the same Ridgefield, CT garden over a two year period. As you’ll see, this garden looks quite different from not only year to year but from season to season.Early spring pansies in front of the fence

Later that same season, the fence is covered with taller annuals given the space a different look.

Posted in 06877, annuals, Connecticut garden design, Connecticut Landscape Architecture, Connecticut Landscape Design, Connecticut landscaping, Fairfield County, Gardening, Ridgefield Landscape Design, Ridgefield landscaping, Ridgefield, CT | Tagged annuals, CT, gardening, Landscape design, landscaping, Plant combinations, Ridgefield, CT | Leave a comment

When My Hollies Get Too Big: Connecticut Landscape Experiment

Posted on November 24, 2012 by Richard Schipul

All too often, landscapers and homeowners rely on hedge trimmers to maintain plant size and height. The problem with this approach is a very dense, unnatural looking shrub where all the foliage is only at the outer most edges of the plant. A plant that is so dense is a perfect environment for diseases and insects to set up camp. Also, trimming a plant with hedge trimmers makes controlling height even more difficult because all those new little branches love to push a lot of growth. At Designing Eden, we are able to keep our clients landscapes looking natural and at a desired height for years. That could be one of the biggest misconceptions about how we maintain landscapes. When we are on new clients properties after they have gone a long stretch without any garden maintenance, clients are always delighted to know that it is possible to tame their shrubs back to a more desirable size. It’s the same story with clients who have had another landscape company maintaining their landscape with hedge trimmers for years. It is possible, it just might take a little longer to get to the desired result because we have to reverse the damage done by the years of hedge trimming. Finally, new landscape design and installation clients are pleasantly surprised when I tell them they might not have to rip out all of their overgrown foundation plants. As long as they don’t need a finished landscape when we leave their property, it is possible. Here is an experiment we did on a property in Middlebury, CT. We were on this property to improve their current landscape. Instead of replacing the existing Hollies with Boxwoods, which was the original plan, we decided to save some money and cut the hollies back hard, below the windows, and see how long they would take to fill back in. The thought was if it took too long for the Hollies to come back, we would go through with our original plan and remove them. The money savings would be significant so we all decided to give it a try. Here is the before picture. As you can see, the hollies were a foot above the windows and the clients where hoping to reduce their size by quite a bit. Here are the hollies right after cutting them back hard.Surprisingly, the Hollies are filling in nicely and quicker than anticipated. Here they are 2 months later.
Here are the Hollies after 5 months. Was the experiment successful? I think so. At the end of the day, I was surprised how quickly they responded. I originally told the client they would look acceptable by the second growing season. As you can see, the hollies are now at the desired height and looking acceptable just a couple of months later.

After 32 years of maintaining landscapes, I still don’t know all the answers. I experiment with plants and landscapes all the time. This one worked out for the best.

Posted in Connecticut Landscape Design, garden design, Garden Maintenance, Gardening, Gardening in Litchfield County, Historic Houses, landscape architecture, Landscape design, Landscaper, landscapes, Landscaping, Litchfield County CT | Tagged CT landscape design, CT landscaping, gardening, Landscape design, landscaping, maintaining gardens, trimming hollies | 2 Comments

Moving a Tree in Kent, CT

Posted on October 23, 2012 by Richard Schipul

Today we moved a tree for a client in Kent, CT. This tree was the biggest I’ve moved so far with the new tractor/loader/backhoe. Even with 4000 lbs. of lift, we were right at the upper limit with the machine for this 5″ caliper Japanese Maple with a 57″ root ball. There is finally a smile on my face because up until five minutes ago, I didn’t know if the tractor would lift the weight. I’ve moved plenty of trees over the years. With larger sized trees there is always a certain amount of anxiety just after the tree is dug and ready for moving. Just in case there are any doubters, yes we did get the tree out of the ground and on the edge of it’s new location.

Posted in Connecticut garden design, Connecticut Landscape Architecture, Connecticut Landscape Design, Connecticut landscaping, Kent, CT, Litchfield County CT | Tagged Connecticut landscape design, Connecticut Landscaping, CT, CT landscape design, Kent, transplanting a tree, tree moving | 2 Comments

Landscaping in Connecticut is Never Easy.

Posted on September 28, 2012 by Richard Schipul

I’ve been landscaping in Connecticut for over 25 years. Even after all these years, I still get nervous whenever I have to dig a trench or I have to get a large tree ball into a landscape. Why? Because I’ve dug up way too many surprises over the years. My own property never ceases to amaze me. I’m positive that if granite was worth as much as some precious metals, small little Connecticut would without a doubt be the richest locale in the world. It seems that every time I have to dig a hole on my own property, it’s inevitable that I hit a piece of granite the size of a small car. My last trench was no exception. After a really dry summer and the loss of some expensive Viburnums in our nursery, I decided that it was time to invest in drip irrigation. The task included running the main irrigation line just under the soil. Of course, thirty feet into the project, we come across an obstruction. We tried to go around it but it was a no go, it was just too large. No problem, we’ll dig it out with the backhoe. Well it ended up being a big problem! So much so, that my new backhoe could barely pop this huge stone out of the hole. With a 4000 lift capacity on the tractor, I can’t even budge this behemoth. What started as a simple task of burying some pipe, turned into a big ordeal. Before my degree in Landscape Architecture, I received a two year degree in Horticulture from a school in Long Island. I remember learning the process of balling and burlapping trees. It was so easy back then. The soil profile consisted of a couple of inches of topsoil and a lot of sandy loam. I don’t ever remember seeing a rock in two years. Looking back at the experience, I think if I had gone to school in Connecticut, I’d probably be sitting behind a desk in some office park somewhere.

Posted in Connecticut garden design, Connecticut Landscape Architecture, Connecticut Landscape Design, Connecticut landscaping, Connecticut nursery, Gardening in Litchfield County, Litchfield County Nursery | Tagged boulders, CT landscape design, CT landscaping | Leave a comment

Pruning Viburnum’s Naturally. Heading Back vs. Trimming.

Posted on August 18, 2012 by Richard Schipul

Nothing drives me more crazy than when I see landscape companies trimming trees and shrubs with hedge trimmers. Yes, Boxwoods have been trimmed for hundreds of years with hedge trimmers. Although it isn’t the most healthy practice for the plant, it is accepted. As I drive around Fairfield and Litchfield County, I see landscapers trimming all kinds of plants, beyond Boxwoods, into all kinds of unnatural shapes. It is becoming common practice for many landscape companies to trim Cherries, Dogwoods, Viburnums, Andromedas, Rhododendrons and all the other trees and shrubs, found in Connecticut landscapes, with hedge trimmers. Worse, these landscapers typically come once a year to prune every plant on a property all at the same time. Whether they come in spring or summer, there is a higher than likely chance that flower buds are being pruned off in great numbers. Since when is a dogwood suppose to look like a lollipop?

The tree above reminds me of the trees that used to come with Lego sets. Landscapes are supposed to soften structures. Not only does this tree not do that, it will become a maintenance hog. By continually pruning only the outermost branches of a tree or shrub, it quickly creates a very dense canopy. Inside that dense canopy becomes a very humid space with little air exchange. Guess what likes hot and humid growing conditions? Insects and diseases love to set up homes in just such a place. Besides having an increase of insect and disease problems, pruning this way will actually push more growth so the plant will need more frequent trimming. Instead of whipping out the hedge trimmer as my fellow landscapers are doing, try something called heading back. With heading back, you can reduce the size of a plant while keeping a natural shape. A natural shape that won’t increase insect and disease problems. Even though this picture is over exposed, I love what it shows. This week, we had a bunch of Viburnums that needed to be lowered by 3-4 feet. As you can see, it was no problem to reduce their height and not sacrifice the look or feel of the plant by going into the interior of the plant rather than the outside of the plant to prune.

Will heading back take longer than trimming with a hedge trimmer, probably. Will your landscape be rewarded with spending the extra time, absolutely. Why? Because it will be healthier. Also, if you planted a Viburnum, don’t you want it to look like a Viburnum? As this plant grows, it will continue to look natural rather than looking like a bad haircut. Plus, I’d much rather pick up a bunch of branches than getting out a rake to try to pick up a bunch of clippings.

Posted in Connecticut garden design, Connecticut Landscape Architecture, Connecticut Landscape Design, garden design, Garden Maintenance, landscapes, Litchfield County CT, planting design, Washington, CT | Tagged CT garden maintenance, gardening, pruning | Leave a comment

Litchfield County Landscape Design

Posted on July 15, 2012 by Richard Schipul

As a landscape design and installation company, our work is always varied. One of our current projects involves working in tandem with an architecture firm to provide solutions for a client with a rather large ‘want’ list. Here are two designs for their landscape. You can see in the designs that the back yard gives the clients two different options for a pool/sports field location.

Posted in Bridgewater, Connecticut, Connecticut garden design, Connecticut Landscape Architecture, Connecticut Landscape Design, Kent, CT, landscape architecture, Landscape design, Litchfield County CT, Litchfield County Garden Design, New Milford, Roxbury, CT, Sherman, Washington, CT | Leave a comment

A CONNECTICUT LANDSCAPE DESIGNER’S GARDEN

Posted on July 8, 2012 by Richard Schipul

People I meet all the time always say to me “you must have the most beautiful gardens at your house”. Well, I’m sure you’ve heard “the shoe-maker’s wife often goes in ragged shoes”. I can relate! The fact is we are a work in progress and most likely will always be a work in progress. So how does a landscape designer approach his own property? I do have a partial landscape design complete but it isn’t your typical plan. It is very conceptual, designing space rather than what plant goes where. At one time we had a quaint little mixed perennial garden around our carriage house. We have since built a more ‘normal’ house towards the back of our property. Since moving out back, the carriage house garden is definitely not the well manicured landscape it once was. The new house is where we focus most of our attention now. In the new house, we lived for three years without a front walkway and another three years without a single plant. After 7 years, I’d love to say our property magazine worthy, but it isn’t. I am definitely feeling good at what little we have landscaped but there is still plenty to do. A major retaining wall project, a bluestone patio with seating wall, a fence, another retaining wall with steps, rebuilding an old farm wall and plants, lots and lots of plants. Oh, that’s not the complete list, but it would put us well on the way towards completion. As for the garden, I look at the landscape surrounding our house more as a trial garden than anything else. Garden stalwarts mixed in with tropicals, annuals, uncommon perennials I am always testing as well as a bunch of perennials we haven’t had much luck with at our clients properties in the past. If they don’t perform here, they will be removed from my list forever. Some day, I hope our landscape comes to fruition but in the mean time, a little progress every year is always welcome. Once the Hollies get a little larger, our front yard will really look like something.

Posted in Connecticut Landscape Architecture, Connecticut Landscape Design, Gardening in Litchfield County, landscape architecture, Landscape design, Landscaper, Litchfield County CT, Litchfield County Garden Design, New Milford, planting design | Tagged CT landscaping, entry garden, gardening, Landscape design | Leave a comment

13 Common Landscape Design Mistakes: 8. A Lack of Bloom Sequencing.

Posted on July 2, 2012 by Richard Schipul

This post came to me today while looking at my own garden. The last thing you want to do when designing a landscape is not provide enough interest throughout the garden season. I’ve seen way too many gardens over my 25 year career as a landscape designer that ultimately disappoint homeowners because of a lack of seasonal appeal. There is no reason to not have a four season garden in Connecticut besides a lack of proper planning. With a nine month growing season, there is plenty of opportunity for a four season garden. Sure, you have to be creative during our long winters but it can be done with evergreens, winter flowering plants and bulbs, exfoliating bark and interesting textures to name a few. Look at what you have and when you lack flowers and then go out there and fill in the gaps. This is what landscape design is all about, proper planning! Here is a close up picture with one perennial past its prime after flowering for 6 weeks, one in full flower while a third is just coming into its prime.

Posted in Connecticut, Fairfield County, garden design, landscape architecture, Landscape design, Landscaping, Litchfield County CT, Litchfield County Garden Design | Tagged bloom sequencing, perennials, plant layering | Leave a comment

Moving Towards Computer Landscape Design

Posted on June 13, 2012 by Richard Schipul

If you are a regular follower of this blog, you’re aware of my quest towards designing all of our landscapes with computer aided design. Triumph, tribulation, excitement, frustration, and stress are just some of the emotions I’ve felt in recent weeks and months as I continue the process of moving my landscape design and installation business to the digital age. This past weekend, I was finally able to color a landscape design that we are currently installing. It took multiple attempts to get everything just right in the design before I was successful at a fully colored landscape design in the color software. The first couple attempts were at least partially successful. Plants were colored the first couple of times. The hardscape was colored the next couple of times yet it took me awhile to pull it all together. Overall, I am really happy with the look and feel of the color rendering. If you think about it, having a software program color a landscape design with a click of a button is pretty amazing. Here is my first successful attempt at a color rendered landscape design.

Posted in Connecticut garden design, Connecticut Landscape Architecture, Connecticut Landscape Design, Fairfield County, landscape architecture, Landscape design, Litchfield County CT | Tagged Fairfield County landscape design, Litchfield County landscape design | Leave a comment

Critter Resistant Gas Plant Won’t Dissapoint As Long As You Have Patience

Posted on June 7, 2012 by Richard Schipul

I’m a horticulture nut. I’ve been to public gardens, private gardens and nurseries all over the world from the United States to Canada some Caribbean Islands, Europe, even Australia. While traveling to nurseries and gardens around the globe, I’m always looking for low maintenance, interesting plants that are critter resistant. One plant I wasn’t acquainted with, that I saw quite a few years back, was Dictamus purpurea. Once i got home, I located some puny little liners and put them in the ground. The reason Dictamus purpurea or Gas Plants as they are commonly referred to, remain so underused is because they are extremely slow growing. Because it is so slow growing, it is a hard plant to make money on so most growers pass it by. In my opinion, that’s not a reason not to locate this plant and get it in your garden as soon as possible. Notorious for its difficultly to move once established, I decided to study the effects of growing Gas Plants in Root Control bags at our New Milford nursery. I was hoping to get the benefits of field growing with little root disturbance when it was time to move to a future home in someone else’s landscape, something Gas Plants dislike. After putting some liners in the ground in 2008 it became a waiting game. While most perennials can go from liner to a saleable one gallon container plant in 4-6 weeks, my Gas Plants slowly reached their full potential in a couple of years. In fact, it took 3 years just to flower which is unheard of for a perennial. Once mature, this plant has been great. Nothing eats it and it flowers in our nursery for what seems like a month or more. Its size is similar to a peony, a good plant for middle to back of the border in a landscape. Give it a try! If you like this post, comment or visit www.designingeden.com to see some of our work.

Posted in Connecticut garden design, Connecticut Landscape Architecture, Connecticut Landscape Design, Connecticut landscaping, New Milford Nursery | Tagged Deer resistent plants, Gas Plant, New Milford landscaper | Leave a comment

A Pleasant Surprise at a Litchfield County Nursery

Posted on May 15, 2012 by Richard Schipul

Today was a plant buying day, getting ready for the upcoming annual planting season. I had heard about a nursery this past winter that I decided to go to and was extremely happy that I did. Brierwood Nursery in Morris was a great find. I have been to a lot of nurseries not only in Connecticut but all over the United States. As I visit most nurseries, the stories are common. Owners and employees typically complaining about a bunch of things that are out of their control. The cost of heating greenhouses, rainy weekends that aren’t good for business, the lack of sales, too much work for too little pay etc, etc, etc. Walking into Brierwood was a pleasant surprise. Brierwood is one of the cleanest nurseries I’ve visited in a while. The plants were laid out in perfect rows, I didn’t see one weed, everything was watered and the plants were perfect. The best part of the visit though were the owners. I mostly dealt with one of the owners daughters. Her enthusiasm was infectious. If you live in Litchfield County and you are looking for annuals, I highly recommend Brierwood.

Posted in annuals, Gardening in Litchfield County, Landscape design, Litchfield County Garden Design, Litchfield County Nursery | Tagged Litchfield County gardens | 2 Comments

Landscape Design in Kent, CT

Posted on April 24, 2012 by Richard Schipul

My landscape design class at the New York Botanical Garden ended a couple of weeks ago. Now that the class has ended, I’m on my own. Immersed in computer aided design software, with no one to turn to. I have to admit, there are times that I have felt strong temptations to go back to hand drawing when I can’t figure something out. Like the other night when I couldn’t figure out how to fill in a square to represent a 8X8 timber. Overall, things are progressing nicely. This is a design I did for a client in Kent, CT for a back yard. A couple of hours from start to finish. kent landscape design

Posted in Connecticut garden design, Connecticut Landscape Architecture, Connecticut Landscape Design, Kent, CT, Litchfield County Garden Design | Tagged Connecticut Landscape Architecture, CT landscape design | Leave a comment

Getting References from Contractors. Will the Real Landscaper of the Abriola Funeral Home Please Stand Up.

Posted on April 11, 2012 by Richard Schipul

I met with a new landscape client last week in Goshen, CT. After I gave the couple a proposal to upgrade the gardens around their property, they asked for references. At the time, I thought it was odd. In over twenty years, very few people have ever asked me for references. Maybe it’s because a lot, but not all, of our work comes to us by word of mouth. I’ll be honest, I’ve always thought that giving and getting references was a waste of time. The reason is that I think most contractors can give the names of a handful of happy clients. After this week, my opinion has changed.

The pictures below are of the gardens at the Abriola Parkview Funeral Home in Trumbull,CT that we designed and installed in 1999 and 2000 and still maintain today. Last week, we were working in the gardens. I was a little surprised when the owner pulled up rather abruptly and got out of his car. He didn’t look happy. I was wondering what happened and if I did anything wrong to prompt his demeanor.

He told me how he just received a call from a women who was checking on M.V. Landscaping. It seems that Manny, of M.V. Landscaping who I know, passed the Abriola Funeral Home gardens off as his own. The owner of the funeral home explained to the woman that the company did landscape a small area on the periphery of the property but the company has been primarily responsible for the lawn maintenance. Although the owner of the funeral home was beside himself and couldn’t believe someone would stoop so low, it didn’t surprise me. This is the third time I have heard that Manny has passed my work off as his own. The funeral home is a prominent and well known property in Trumbull, even winning an award for preservation of a historic house and landscape. I’m guessing that if it has gotten back to me 3 times over 12 years, he must have passed the same information out to a lot of unsuspecting consumers over the years. I just happens that this person followed up on a story. It’s safe to say that the landscape company won’t get the job and he has been caught in a lie in front of a lawn maintenance client.

As a consumer, wouldn’t you question why such a large, high profile project wasn’t on their website? Maybe this consumer did and that is why she followed up with a call.

I was thinking how this contractor has falsely advertised his abilities over the years. How can consumers better protect themselves? Below are a couple ideas.

1. Search the internet for information on the company. I’m amazed on what type of information you can gather from a business on the internet. Call the Better Business Bureau. How about reviews on Yelp? See if they have a Home Improvement Contractor License at the Department of Consumer Protection etc…

2. Analyze their portfolio. Are there mature landscapes or are all the pictures taken the day the job is finished before problems can occur with the work or the client. Mature projects prove that jobs has held up over the years and might mean that a long term relationship exists between client and contractor.

3. Ask for not only a name and number of a couple of past clients but for project pictures from those references as well. By doing this, you can ask specific questions about the project. No emails! Physically call the references.

What other strategies can you think of that can help your fellow consumers from fraudulent contractors? Let’s hear your thoughts by clicking the “leave a comment” link below.

Thanks for reading. Rich

Posted in Fairfield County, Historic Houses, landscape architecture, Landscape design, Landscaping, Litchfield County Garden Design, Trumbull | Tagged Abriola Funeral Home, MV Landscaping | 3 Comments

Landscape Design

Posted on March 6, 2012 by Richard Schipul

This week will be my 5th computer aided design class. As you can see from my original post about my experience with getting back into CAD for landscape design, I have made huge progress. This landscape design is not a homework assignment but an actual landscape design project for Designing Eden llc. Take a look. Ridgefield Landscape Design Connecticut

Posted in Fairfield County, Historic Houses, landscape architecture, Landscape design, Landscaping, Ridgefield Landscape Design, Ridgefield, CT | Tagged CT, CT landscape design, Ridgefield, CT | Leave a comment

13 Common Landscape Mistakes: 6. A Lack of Mass Planting

Posted on March 1, 2012 by Richard Schipul

A lack of mass planting is a common mistake for many who like to dabble in gardening and landscape design. The saying, “less is more” is so true when it comes to designing a landscape that will be pleasing to the eye. Not less plants, just less varieties of plants. People who look at landscaping or gardening as a collection of plants are never happy with the results. Overall, they might be happy with plants as individual entities but not with the overall feel of the garden. Rhythm, simplicity, repetition and unity, all principles of good landscape design, can’t be met with a collection of non related plants. What’s going to be more soothing to the eye, 20 different plants placed side by side or 20 plants of one or two varieties? When I bring the ‘arboretum look’ to the attention of garden enthusiasts, they always seem to defend their decision of planting so many individual plants by telling me that they want a four season garden. That’s is all well and good but I’m here to tell you that you don’t need 100 different plants to create a 4 season garden. 20 or so plants will do the trick. Just as long as you are aware of each plants season of interest, you can create a four season garden. More importantly, the 20 plants chosen, planted in large swaths, will create more of a statement than the 100 different varieties of plants planted individually.

Happy gardening!

Posted in landscape architecture, Landscape design, Landscaping, Litchfield County CT, Washington, CT | Tagged Connecticut Landscaping, CT landscape design | Leave a comment

13 Common Landscape Mistakes: 5. Proper Plant Spacing

Posted on February 10, 2012 by Richard Schipul

Because most plants are not mature at the time of installation into new landscapes, there is a tendency to plant trees and shrubs closer together than they probably should be planted. What happens is, everything looks good for a couple of years and then one day your landscape is out of control. Resist the temptation if you want long term success in the landscape. If you don’t, you’ll deal with the ramifications of a jungle like appearance for years and ultimately you’ll reduce the life of your landscape. The first strategy to resist the temptation would be to install more mature plantings. Whether you are installing 1 gallon Boxwoods or 3′ Boxwoods, they should be placed a certain distance apart. This distance is variable based on variety of plant, and the look you are trying to achieve. For a hedge, 2.5′ spacing is pretty common. If you want the Boxwoods to remain separate entities in the landscape, 4′ spacing would be more common. If you are planting 4′ on center, the space between the plants starts to look awkward when you are planting 1 or 2 gallon plants. This is when spacing becomes a problem. Most people will feel the urge to push the small plants closer together. As the plants grow, they become a tight mass and that wasn’t you attention. Worse, an over planted landscape is hard to maintain and insects and diseases love the poor air circulation the over planted landscape creates. After 5 or so years, this is usually the point where the existing landscape starts to get transplanted to other parts of the property. Instead of that, a better approach in my opinion is to keep the spacing the way it should be and use filler plants, annuals or perennials, around the boxwoods until the plants mature. That way, the landscape looks like it was well thought out and all the plants will mature in place rather than having to find another home for half the plants down the road.

Annuals and perennials are used around the base of Viburnum and Chamaecyparis until they mature.

Posted in Fairfield County, landscape architecture, Landscape design, landscapes, Landscaping | Tagged CT, Landscape design, landscape plans, landscapes, Ridgefield, CT | Leave a comment

Brick and Granite Patio Installation in Redding, CT

Posted on February 8, 2012 by Richard Schipul

Here is a brick and granite patio being installed in Redding, CT. A design you don’t see everyday. When discussing materials for patios with our landscape clients, I always suggest using materials that already exist on the property and house and use those materials for any new construction projects. The reason for that is the more materials that are introduced to a property, the more hodgepodge the end result. Getting back to the picture above, a similar brick existed on the chimney and the front steps were granite. We would typically choose one material for a new patio but the client wanted something a little different. I was worried the end result would be too busy but the client was sold.

This brings me to my second point. The goal of every landscape project is to have a unified effect throughout the property. As a landscape designer living in New England with all of it’s history, I’m a firm believer of using natural materials as much as possible in our landscape designs. Very rarely do we ever spec. concrete pavers for our walkways and patios. Don’t get me wrong, concrete pavers have a place in the industry. Concrete pavers could work with modern architectural styles, they might even work with other architectural styles found in our area. The problem I see is companies are using concrete pavers for every project that comes through their doors because of the ease of installation and that’s not right.

A lot of houses in Connecticut and throughout New England are old houses. Also, a lot of the newer houses found in Connecticut have a style representative of architectural styles from the past. If the over all goal of a landscape designer is to marry house and landscape, how does a concrete paver walkway or patio accomplish this in front of a 200 year old house? How does it even accomplish this in front of a new colonial or cape style house? It doesn’t! When an architect does his best to replicate a style from our past, when materials, such as wood windows, are used to help sell that fact, isn’t it the landscape designers responsibility to continue that style into the landscape? I believe it is. The New Milford Historical Society is a perfect example when they built a new addition a couple of years ago. The architects spared no expense in trying to tie this new addition into the existing framework of pre-existing, historic buildings. Cedar shake roof, brick veneer, wood windows and doors. These are all materials that could have been easily passed up for vinyl, fiberglass and cement. These old school materials are usually more expensive but they were imperative to the over all plan. Fast forward to the new walkway. You guessed it, concrete pavers. Nothing drives me more crazy! You would think that an organization like the New Milford Historical Society, whose goal is to share and preserve New Milford’s historic past, would get it when it comes to their own property. This organization gives out an annual award every year for the best historic preservation project.

The contractor who installed the project should have known better as well. It’s the contractor/designers responsibilty to guide the project and client to make the right decisions for a successful installation. A concrete paver walkway in the front of The New Milford Historical Society is just silly. The walkway sticks out like a sore thumb. Especially when there are other walkways built from natural materials within the same space. The new walkway adds two additional materials and colors which didn’t previously exist. In my opinion, the new patio is a cluster@$%# as it doesn’t fit in to the existing landscape. Looking on the bright side, I guess the good news is the walkway didn’t end up being stamped concrete, another one of my favorites.

If you like what you see, please visit Designing Eden to see similar projects like this one at www.DesigningEden.com

Posted in Connecticut garden design, Connecticut Landscape Architecture, Connecticut landscaping, Masonry, Paver installation | Tagged Connecticut landscape design, Connecticut Landscaping, Ct landscape, New Milford, Redding | Leave a comment

13 Common Landscape Mistakes. 4. Planting Too Deep in Kent, CT

Posted on February 8, 2012 by Richard Schipul

I was called to a property on the Kent, New Milford line in March. The homeowners, weekend New Yorkers, were concerned about their landscape. Their trees in this relatively new landscape are in decline. The first time I went up to the property there was snow on the ground. Considering the property is at the top of a hill, with almost 360 degree exposure, I assumed that the damage I was looking at was winter dessication. Winter dessication is the process of water leaving the foliage faster than it can be replaced due to frozen ground or a lack of moisture in the soil. When this happens, evergreen foliage/needles turn a shade of brown and eventual dies. It also made sense because a lot of the hardest hit plants were Japanese Cryptomeria. Although listed with a hardiness to zone 5, I’ve never seen a Cryptomeria thrive in Litchfield County and certainly not the extreme growing conditions, with full exposure of this property. Definitely not a wise choice of plant material. Preventative maintenance should have happened months earlier with anti dessicant sprays in the fall and early winter as well as wrapping sensitive plants with burlap through the winter months. All I could do was give them a proposal to fertilize come spring.

Months had gone by when one day I get an email that the owners wanted to go ahead with the fertilizing. Now, well into April, I went up to the property ti fertilize and couldn’t believe what I saw. Basically, the damage that I thought was from winter dessication was actually stress from improper planting. This was not some puny landscape job! This was a big job, somewhere between $50,000 and $100,000 and unfortunately every tree on the property was planted at least a foot too deep. A couple of inches too deep can make all the difference between a tree that thrives and a tree that struggles through life. A foot? Are you kidding me? These homeowners spent big money for such an inferior landscape. Many problems are brought on when a tree is planted too deep and is stressed. Trees are much more prone to girdling roots, insects and disease issues, even winter injury. So the next time you see a tree under stress, first look towards the trunk. 90% of tree problems occur below ground. The lack of a tapered trunk or root flare where the tree meets the ground is a tell tale sign that things aren’t good. It’s sad to say but most landscape companies have no idea how to properly plant a tree. All you have to do is look at landscapes all over Fairfield and Litchfield County to see that planting too deep has become an epidemic.

If you were interested in this story, I recommend you visit our website at www.DesigningEden.com

Posted in Kent, CT, landscape architecture, Landscape design, landscapes, Landscaping, Litchfield County CT, New Milford | Tagged Landscape design, landscaping, planting too deep, tree planting, winter dessication | Leave a comment

Landscape Design

Posted on February 4, 2012 by Richard Schipul

20 years after graduating with a degree in Landscape Architecture, I’ve decided to go back to school. I’m dating myself by saying that I took one of the first computer aided design classes my college offered. It was such a disaster. Hard drives were crashing daily due to the memory needed for the software to run properly and my final landscape design project was lost two times in a week. At the time, I swore I would never design a landscape using a computer again. Well, after hand drafting for the last twenty years, I’ve decided to go against my word and go back to school to learn computer aided design. After one class, I’m already creating rudimentary landscapes…………and my computer still works! Take a look. practice. If you’re interested in seeing some of our examples of our hand drawn plans visit the portfolio at www.designingeden.com.

Posted in Fairfield County, landscape architecture, Landscape design, Ridgefield, CT | Tagged Computer Aided Design, Landscape Architecture Connecticut, Landscape Design Connecticut | Leave a comment

13 Common Landscape Mistakes: 3. Not realizing the growth habit of a plant

Posted on February 4, 2012 by Richard Schipul

Plants are like children, most are very different in how they act and look. Some plants have hundreds of cultivars or varieties that might look similar to the parent plant but each can have a growth habit that is very different from cultivar to cultivar. It is important to know what you are planting before you decide where it should be planted in the landscape. Just this year, we moved two beautiful trees because they were planted in a space that each tree eventually outgrew. It’s always easier and cheaper to plant a tree or shrub once, when it is somewhat small and manageable rather than having to transplant it down the road because it doesn’t fit into the landscape anymore. The tree above was a weeping Beech planted 4′ from a house. Weeping Beeches grow to over a 100′ tall and wide. Not a good idea!

The homeowners thought this tree was a dwarf Japanese Maple when they brought it home from a nursery in the back of a station wagon. 7 years later, the tree outgrew its space. Now, it’s 18′ tall, 4000 lbs and starting to consume a parking space in an already small driveway.

Hemlocks grow 100′ tall and 40′ wide. It will be interesting to see how this property owner deals with this future landscape.

By knowing what plants you have before they go into the landscape, you can prevent future moves that are costly, require large equipment and are time consuming.

For pictures of our past projects go to our website.

Posted in Fairfield County, landscape architecture, Landscape design, Landscaper, Landscaping, Litchfield County CT, Ridgefield, CT, Roxbury, CT | Tagged CT, Landscape Architecture Ridgefield CT, Landscape Architecture Roxbury, landscape design in Ridgefield CT, Landscape Design Roxbury, landscaping Ridgefield CT, Landscaping Roxbury, transplanting a tree | Leave a comment

13 Common Landscape Mistakes: 2. Not working with what you already have.

Posted on February 1, 2012 by Richard Schipul

As a landscape designer, nothing drives me more crazy than homeowners and professionals who disregard the site analysis and history of a property. Follow this simple approach for a successful and unified landscape. If you have a lot of shade, install a shade garden. Don’t try to install a bunch of plants that thrive in full sun. It seems obvious but I’m amazed at how many times I see a style of garden that has been forced into a space it shouldn’t be. You are just setting yourself, and the landscape up for eventual failure. In the same token, it’s always a good idea to reduce your paving materials down to one or two. If your house has a brick and bluestone stoop that isn’t going to be replaced, then please create a new walkway leading up to the existing stoop in either a matching brick or bluestone. Don’t build the new walkway out of stone or worse a concrete paver that sort of looks like brick. Tacky! The overall goal is to marry house and landscape so it create a seamless, unified effect. Believe me, you can’t create a unified effect with a handful of different paving materials around every corner. The landscape will look disjointed and hodgepodge. Choose your hardscape materials wisely and remember……less is always better!To see more of our projects please visit www.designingeden.com

Posted in Fairfield County, Landscape design, Landscaper, Landscaping, Ridgefield, CT | Tagged CT, Landscape design Ridgefield, landscaping ridgefield, outdoor entertaining Ridgefield CT | Leave a comment

13 Common Landscape Mistakes: 1. No Landscape Design

Posted on January 29, 2012 by Richard Schipul

Most homeowners and quite a few professionals start a landscape project without a landscape design. They wake up, go to the nursery and start buying plants. The plants come home or to the job site, get unloaded into a pile and then spaced out and planted. At first, your proud of your accomplishment. Then, down the road, the garden isn’t working. Planning your garden on paper gives you the opportunity to run through all the different scenarios in regards to plant spacing, plant hierarchy or layering, color combinations and bloom sequence. A solid, well thought out plan is the most important element to a successful landscape. A landscape plan doesn’t have to be a highly detailed drawing but it does have to be put on paper. As you create your plan on paper first, a lot of ideas and problems will present themselves as you logically think through what you thought you wanted. A plan will also force you to figure out your planting plan which will be a challenge in itself. As you are laying out your plants, I suggest color coding you flowering plants and plants with interesting foliage. The color of markers you use aren’t important. What is important is that you are consistent with your colors throughout the design process. If you are new to gardening or design, one way to lay out a plan is to color code the plants that are going into the landscape design. For each color, choose three similar colors in different shades. For instance, a plant that has a yellow flower in early spring would be labeled with a light yellow marker or colored pencil, you would use a medium yellow color for a summer flowering plant and a dark yellow colored marker or pencil for a fall flowering yellow plant. You can go through this process with all the plants, flower colors and season of interest. This will quickly show issues with bloom sequence throughout the garden season or mismatched color combinations. The goal is to chose plants that work well together and extend the season as long as possible. There is nothing worse than having to wait 11 months for you garden to look great. By going through the landscape design process you minimize your mistakes and maximize your success. To see more landscape designs, please visit our website at www.DesigningEden.com. Good luck!

Posted in Fairfield County, Landscape design, Landscaping, Newtown CT | Tagged CT, Landscape design Fairfield County Connecticut, Landscape Designs Newtown CT, Landscaping Fairfield County CT, Landscaping Newtown | Leave a comment

Landscape Renovation in Bridgewater, CT

Posted on January 25, 2012 by Richard Schipul

I lot of people can put plants in the ground and a lot of people call themselves landscape designers but that doesn’t mean they are good at what they do. I had an opportunity to redesign this landscape in Bridgewater, CT. At the time, the house was only seven years old and when I arrived on site, the landscape was already way past its prime. Why? Improper plant placement and improper plant selection. A lack of a garden maintenance program also had a little to do with this garden’s jungle like appearance. Consumers, and in this case professionals, need to realize that gardens are not static. Landscapes are constantly growing, moving forwards towards a better place or they are moving backwards towards failure. When choosing plants for a design or picking plants at a nursery you always have to be asking yourself three questions.

1. What is this plant going to look like in 2, 5, 10 or even 20 years down the road?

2. Where is it going to fit into the landscape?

3. Do I have the proper environment to grow this plant?

One of my favorite trees is European Copper Beech. That doesn’t mean I plant Copper Beech trees everywhere I go. In fact, after twenty plus years in the landscape design and installation business, I have yet to plant one. Why? At maturity many Beeches reach 100′ tall and wide. Not many properties can accommodate a tree of that stature. The depth of the garden in the picture below was predetermined by an existing stone wall. At 15′ deep why would anyone plant a weeping cherry? A rather fast growing tree, it can have a mature height and width of 40′. Whatever garden maintenance schedule you are on, this garden was doomed from the start.

Besides that, the landscape had no layering. Everything was a mid sized shrub or tree. There weren’t any ground hugging shrubs, perennials or groundcovers. The garden was very one dimensional.

Unfortunately, most of this landscape was removed and sent through a chipper. We were able to salvage some of the smaller plants and reposition them into more logical groupings. For the rest of this landscape, we brought in more appropriate plants for the garden with a lot more perennials for seasonal color.

What do you think? To me, it is a more logical, and pretty solution.

To see more mixed perennial gardens please visit our website at www.DesigningEden.com

Posted in Bridgewater, Connecticut garden design, Connecticut Landscape Architecture, Connecticut landscaping, Gardening in Litchfield County, Landscape design, Landscaping, Litchfield County CT, Litchfield County Garden Design | Tagged Bridgewater, Connecticut landscape design, CT, landscaping Bridgewater | Leave a comment

Are Succulents are the next big thing?

Posted on January 16, 2012 by Richard Schipul

First, I have to apologize for not having any pictures to post. If you are a regular reader of my blog, you know that my posts typically have a couple of pictures in them. I brought a camera with two sets of batteries to the show and they were both bad and I never got around to finding a place to buy more.

I was amazed at the amount of wholesale nurseries/growers who had succulents on display at a recent trade show I attended. I’m starting to think they are the flavor of the year, possibly because of the popularity of green roofs and living walls. A lot of the nurseries were displaying these assorted succulent trays. I really didn’t have any interest in using them in the gardens we design and install but I could definitely see making some container gardens with the vibrant color succulents possess. I was definitely drawn tho their textures and colors not typically seen in this part of the country. I especially kept thinking how cool it would be to make one a display for a centerpiece on our kitchen table.

Posted in Landscape design, landscapes, Landscaping, New Milford, planting design | Tagged landscaping | Leave a comment

A Successful First Season Landscape in Ridgefield, CT

Posted on December 25, 2011 by Richard Schipul

This is an update, from a previous blog post, of a landscape design and installation project Designing Eden installed in the fall of 2010, in Ridgefield, CT. Watching and maintaining this garden’s growth through its first full growing season has been a real joy. Despite the wettest year in Connecticut history, I would consider this season a success. Partly due to its small in town location, the historic house and creative latitude I’m given. This landscape continues to be one of my all time favorite landscape projects. Originally, when meeting the homeowners, they had a lot of pictures of gardens they admired. Most of those gardens where heavily planted with annuals. After talking to them about the positives and negatives of an all annual garden and the approximate costs associated with them, we decided on a mix of approximately 80% perennial/woody plants leaving 20% of the gardens open for annuals that would be swapped out multiple times a year. That mix would give the garden the best of both worlds, a lot of seasonal color yet minimizing long term maintenance. Despite all the successes, there were some small challenges throughout the season, especially with over watering. Over watering is a common problem with landscapes that have new irrigation systems. Understandably, homeowners want to use what they purchase but water can be often overused in a new landscape. Infrequent, deeper watering cycles typically produce healthier, stronger turf and landscapes. Below are some of the 2011 landscapes scenes.Had to throw that one in so you can see why I love this transformation so much.

If you are interested in landscapes for historic house, I encourage you to visit Designing Eden’s website at www.DesigningEden.com

Posted in 06877, Fairfield County, Historic Houses, Landscape design, Landscaping, Ridgefield, CT | Tagged CT garden maintenance, CT Historic House, CT landscape design, CT landscaping, curb appeal | Leave a comment

A day in the life of a New Milford Landscaper

Posted on December 21, 2011 by Richard Schipul

I’ve been a landscaper a long time, over 30 years to be exact. I started my business when I was 12 years old. Along the way, I received a degree in Horticulture and another in Landscape Architecture. I still love what I do and couldn’t imagine sitting behind a desk 40 hours a week. That doesn’t mean every day is paradise. I still have bad days where things don’t go exactly as planned. Last week, we were doing some drainage work. We were supposed to connect a channel drain and trench drain to an existing pipe. When we uncovered the existing pipe, it was broken and crushed. Needless to say, it drastically changed the scope of the project. Not good! It was neither my fault or my clients fault yet it had to be fixed. I’m sure some companies would continue with only their part of the job and move on but we stopped for the day and met the clients on site to discuss their options. In the end, the job cost a little more than expected yet wasn’t at all profitable for us. We ended up working with our client since they never would have gone ahead with the drainage project if they knew about the damaged pipe ahead of time. Ultimately, we fixed the original drainage issue, designed a better system and gave them 2 new outlet pipes instead of one for more capacity.

Also, last week I bent the hitch plate on our new Kubota M59, a $600 unexpected expense.

Yesterday, we were supposed to plant two trees. One backhoe, a ton and a half of rocks and two holes later the trees were planted.

My head is healing from a 1″ gash a Hemlock branch caused last week. Just as that wound is healing, I get a nice divot in my nose yesterday. Yes, being a landscaper is a tough job and often brings physical and mental challenges but despite these struggles, it’s still my preferred way to make a living.

Posted in Fairfield County, Landscaper, Landscaping, New Milford | Tagged Connecticut landscape design, Connecticut Landscaping | Leave a comment

Landscape for the Thanksgiving Table

Posted on November 24, 2011 by Richard Schipul

Did I ever tell you my wife has a thing for shoes? Oh yeah, all shoes but especially flip flops. For years, I have been asking my wife to clean out the shoe closet in our mudroom. I regularly throw out my shoes but that doesn’t seem to be the case with other members of my family. Last summer, after years of asking, I laid out all her shoes on the mudroom floor to go through. How many pairs of flip flops do you think I found buried in one closet? 32 pairs. Just as impressive is her collection of candles. Every year, around the holidays, I organize our candle collection. Not because I want to but because of the amount of prime real estate it consumes underneath the sink. If my calculations are correct, if we burned candles every holiday, we could burn candles for the next 30 years. I could possibly justify a candle collection of this magnitude for power outages but we have a generator. Today, is the start of my ‘eliminating candle season’ so we have room for all the candle parties and fundraisers to come. This is when I start to show off my background in Landscape Architecture and 20 years experience in creating gardens. Notice the layering, unity and plant hierarchy. In case you’re wondering, Red Pine and Winterberry.

Posted in Landscape design, Landscaping, Uncategorized | Tagged CT landscape design, CT landscaping | Leave a comment

Don’t buy an Hewlett Packard computer because they suck!

Posted on November 16, 2011 by Richard Schipul

If you’re thinking of purchasing an HP computer consider this. I have two HP computers, a laptop and a desktop. The desktop is 9 months old and the laptop is less than two years old. The left click on the laptop broke within the first six months of owning the machine. There is no resistance under the button. It wobbles from side to side and if you don’t place your finger in precisely the right spot, you can’t get it to work. A quick internet search of the problem brought to light a whole slew of unhappy people but this is not why I write this. The desktop is the real problem. Actually, it is HP customer NO service that causes me to write this post. Supposedly, HP computers have a 1 year warranty. That said, you would think that my 10 month old computer, which has been broken for months, would be covered under warranty but HP disputes that. I bought the desktop in January 2011. By August, the computer stopped working. I brought it to my friend Steve from Fieldstone Digital and that is where it still remains while HP drags its feet on this warranty issue. They are questioning my claim that the computer should be covered under warranty. Who knew that a warranty starts the day the computer is made, not when it’s purchased? I didn’t, but that is what HP is claiming. A 7 month old computer isn’t covered under a 1 year warranty. With that kind of thinking, if I was the brains behind HP marketing, I would build computers 2 and a half years in advance and market the heck out of “best in the industry two year warranty”. For business owners, here is the kicker. Do good work, stand behind your product and service the customer. If not, you might have a disgruntled former supporter who you have lost for good who just might trash your computers on WordPress, Linkedin and Facebook. With the internet, blogs and social media, doesn’t HP realize I’m my own marketing company? The longer this goes on the more upset I will get. The more upset I get the more I will write and post bad things about HP all over the internet and the longer it takes the more I’ll expect in return for not having a computer for months. In case you’re wonder, I will be sending a link to this post directly to HP customer service. Maybe that will wake them up.

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New Landscape in Roxbury, CT

Posted on November 11, 2011 by Richard Schipul

I’m always wondering how we’re doing through the eyes of our clients in regards to their landscapes. Sure, every once in a while we’ll get a handwritten note, voice mail or email thanking us for a job well done. It certainly would be nice to get a testimonial every day. I’d be happy to get one every week for that matter. I’ve been in the landscape business long enough to realize that our clients are usually too busy to actually sit down and formally thank us. So I look for their satisfaction in other ways. At Designing Eden, we have a lot of long time clients. That has to account for something doesn’t it? Once a landscape is complete, we are typically back year after year, multiple times a year to edge, mulch and maintain their gardens and investment. This week, I had another situation that provided me with some satisfaction that we remain on the right track. An existing H.N.W. (high net worth)client recently bought a house in a neighboring town as an investment. They already have a beautiful house that they have done extensive renovations to and they have big plans for this new property. Work has already begun and I was surprised that no contractors from their main house were asked to work on the new property except Designing Eden. I’ve never received much beyond a fast payment and friendly conversations from these clients but they are obviously pleased by the service and end product we provide. Satisfaction through the eyes of our clients is always goal number 1. Pictures of their summer landscape of their Bridgewater, CT house are below. Enjoy!If you like what you see I encourage you to visit the Designing Eden website at www.DesigningEden.com

Posted in Landscape design, Landscaping, Roxbury, CT | Tagged Connecticut Landscaping, CT landscape design, Plant combinations | Leave a comment

Using Contrasting Foliage in the Garden

Posted on October 26, 2011 by Richard Schipul

We weren’t in Canada this summer for gardens so it was a pleasant surprise to come across this ribbon park. I love the use of not only shape but the contrasting foliage as well.

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Transplanting a Tree in Sherman, CT

Posted on October 15, 2011 by Richard Schipul

Why are trees transplanted? I’ve asked this question to myself many times over the years. The thought usually comes to me in the middle of moving a large tree at a client’s property. As you can imagine, it’s a huge expense to move a mature tree so, if you’re planning to plant a tree, make sure you do your homework. Research not only the solar and soil requirements but also the mature size and growth rate for that tree before choosing a location. Better yet, choose a tree based on a pre-determined location rather than buying a tree and trying to fit it into your existing landscape. The reason trees are typically moved is because they were improperly sited to begin with. People just don’t realize how big the tree they just brought home in the back of their station wagon will eventually become. It’s hard for most people to imagine a 6 foot containerized tree maturing into a twenty foot tree in a decade or worse, a 50 foot tree in a couple of decades. Typically, trees are moved because they were planted too close to a structure. If a tree is properly sited, it should never need to be moved. Today’s move is a Japanese Maple that is a few years away from consuming a driveway. Originally a 4-5′ tree, in 6 short years it has grow to 16′ tall and wide.

Posted in Connecticut garden design, Connecticut Landscape Architecture, Litchfield County CT | Tagged Connecticut Landscaping, CT landscape design, transplanting a tree | Leave a comment

Final Day

Posted on October 7, 2011 by Richard Schipul

Today we started the day in Manitou Springs, CO. It’s off to Pikes Peak for a ride on the highest cog railway in the world. When we reached the top, we were so high, the temperature was 50 degrees colder from base to peak. Even more crazy was the steep cliffs with no barriers at the top. What looked so gentle from its base made your legs shake once at the top. You could walk right to the edge of the mountain and stare down at what had to be shear drops of a couple thousand feet. After the ride, we still had some time to burn. Down the street from the railway was a national landmark called Garden of the Gods. Not sure how the park got its name but it was a great way to spend an hour.

If you are ever thinking of going out West, these thoughts below might help. 1. I would never go in the summer. The crowds were large in September, I can only imagine what high season would be like. 2. I would do the trip in a small 4 wheel drive or all wheel drive vehicle. I say this because a lot of roads do not allow vehicles over 25’. Also, some of the most memorable days were days where we spent time on 4 wheel drive only roads. In Yellowstone, I would book a different hotel ever night. The park is so large that many days we had to backtrack over the same roads for hours to get back to our hotel. It would also be nice to spend a night in the original part of Old Faithful Inn. That would require a reservation at least a year in advance.

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Connecticut Landscape Heads West. Day 9

Posted on October 4, 2011 by Richard Schipul

The plan today is to make it back to Rocky Mountain National Park in Colorado to see Ridge Trail Drive, the section we missed earlier in the week due to snow. Along the way we saw a herd of elk, two birds, a Stellar Jay and Clark’s Nutcracker, and two moose eating grass in a pond. They seemed mostly oblivious to the crowd that had gathered to watch. We also walked through one of the only tundras, in North America. I was really irritated because there were signs, all over the place, mentioning to stay on the walkways and walking on these delicate plants can cause damage that will take 500-1000 years to repair. A lot of people have no respect for what they are viewing in a national park. A lot of the original tundra has already been lost to people not following the rules. It’s a free for all with kids and adults running all over the place, even jumping fences saying ‘closed’. I can understand that some tourists can’t read English, even though most stopped and read the signs along the trek to the top. I was even more disgusted with the Americans. I witnessed more than a few that stopped to read the signs (out loud to their children) describing this one of a kind environment and how fragile it is and then turn and walk right off the path for hundreds of yards. I ended up talking to a park ranger who knew of the problem and was as just as disgusted as I was. She encouraged me to fill out a comment sheet at a visitor center. I ended up writing a page and a half. What is lost is lost. Hopefully, things will change quickly so this fragile landscape will be around for future generations. By two o’clock we had finished Rocky Mountain National Park. We still have a six hour drive past Denver to Manitou Springs for a trip up Pikes Peak tomorrow.

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Landscaper Heads West

Posted on October 1, 2011 by Richard Schipul

Walked the town of Jackson today. I was there once before in the winter of 1994. What a great western town! It was nice to see it again outside of the snow season. We had a picnic lunch on the town green in view of the elk horn arches. After lunch we drove back to Rawlings, WY for the night. Driving, lots and lots of driving. Here are some scenes along the way.

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Connecticut Landscaper Heads West. Day 7

Posted on September 30, 2011 by Richard Schipul

This morning we moved out of our Grant Village room. In the entry road to the hotel, we came face to face with a large, male elk walking in the street. It was our first up close sighting in Yellowstone. The plan was to drive up the western side of the upper loop towards Mammouth, then across to Tower, out through the Lamar Valley before turning back around to return to Canyon Village for the night. One of our first stops was the western side of the ‘Grand Canyon of Yellowstone’ where we got a different perspective of the waterfall and canyon. Throughout this area, it is amazing how quickly the terrain changes. One minute you are driving through geyser fields, then grasslands, up a mountain, down through a boulder field and then barren mountains all within a couple of miles. Mammouth was the nicest town in the park. There seemed to be a rhyme and reason to it and consistency in the architectural style. It was in Mammouth that I saw a bike that caught my eye. We went over to take a picture only to realize that its owner has been riding it around the world for the last 5 years. His last two years will be spent riding North and South America. Since we were close to the Northwest entrance, we decided to leave the park and eat lunch in Gardner, Montana. That gave us the opportunity to enter the park just as the first explorers did. Coming back through Mammouth we saw a herd of elk sitting on the lawn in the town center. With 3 million acres the only animals we have seen to date has been in towns, weird! Lamar Valley is called the Serengeti of Yellowstone and that is where we headed. We saw lots of bison as well as mountain goats. A ranger, who showed us the goats, also told us where wolves bedded down for the day this morning. We were determined to see more wildlife before we left. Most of the rarer animals are only out at dawn and dusk so we decided that we would play the waiting game. We showed up at the spot at 5p.m. and stayed until 7:30. The wait paid of as we saw some grizzlies and an adult and baby wolf. At the end of the day we checked into a nice cabin in Canyon Lodge. Tomorrow, we start making our way back to Denver via Jackson, Wyoming.

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Connecticut Landscaper Heads West Day 6.

Posted on September 28, 2011 by Richard Schipul

Today was our first full day in Yellowstone. We started the day making a wrong turn. Not that big of a deal though since we had to see that side of the park sooner or later. We traveled up the western side of the park through the geyser fields. It was 30 degrees outside so it felt like we were driving through a forest fire with all the steam in the air. It was so steamy we barely saw much for the first hour of the day.
The last time I was in this area was March 1994. I was leaving Aspen and decided to see Yellowstone. I ended up driving around three sides of the park before finding out that the park was closed for snow removal. The park is so large that not even the park rangers seemed to know what was going on at the other entrances. In 1989, fire destroyed almost 50% of the park. Everywhere you looked today, succession was taking its course. Dead trees scorched in that fire still tower over thousands of new tree well on their way to maturity. Fire is good for the soil, turning naturally acidic soil more alkaline. It is also good for the forest floor. Fire burns the resin in the pine cones that holds the tightly bound seed. The heat melts the resin, releasing the seed from the pine cones that allow millions of new trees to germinate.

Steam from the geysers with a hillside of pine seedlings under dead trees.

We barely saw any wildlife today but we did see some great scenery. We traveled a one way road carved along the side of a hill. The whole trip traveled along steep drop-offs with a river below. We also saw the eastern side of the grand canyon of Yellowstone which was an awesome sight.

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Connecticut Landscaper Heads West. Day 5

Posted on September 27, 2011 by Richard Schipul

Woke up at the crack of dawn with all the professional and amateur photographers to see what this magic light was all about.

I was taking pictures by 6:30 a.m. with the hopes of better animal sightings, like they can get any better? I have to admit that the pictures do look better. The sun rise and reflections off the water were incredible. In an hour and a half, between 4 different sites I saw two moose, 3 otters up close and a herd of elk.

We were off to Yellowstone by 9:30. I am still wrapping my head around the size of this park. How big is 3 million acres? They say it takes a day and a half just to drive the two interior loops. We were lucky to get rooms in the park. It is hard to imagine, but we got the last rooms for the next 3 days. Two nights in Grant Village and the last night in Canyon Village. The second hotel is an hour and a half away from the Old Faithful area. Are you kidding? That hotel is along one of two interior loops. The park’s boundaries go way, way beyond those two main driving loops. So four days in the park and we will probably just scratch the surface. Time will tell. Today we spent the whole day visiting the lodges and geysers around Old Faithful. What cool architecture! Can you imagine 40 guys working through the winter to build the historic Old Faithful Inn? Supposedly, it was so cold that the workers kept their nails in a skillet on the stove because the metal nails were shattering when hit with a hammer. As a side note, if this is the off season, I wouldn’t want to come during high season. There had to be 3000 people watching Old Faithful erupt. Earliest dinner reservation tonight was 8:45.The art of algae.

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Connecticut Landscaper Heads West. Day 4

Posted on September 20, 2011 by Richard Schipul

Grand Teton’s didn’t disappoint today. 149 pictures were taken and after looking at them, it will be extremely difficult to whittle that number down. I’m starting to think I’m becoming a professional photographer. It’s too easy when you’re surrounded by all a national park has to offer. We started the day with a huge bull moose sighting. In less than a minute, it disappeared into the woods. Wanting to see more, I decided to track it down. When I finally found it, I was standing directly above it while it laid in the pond below. All was good until I heard snorting close by. I turned around to find his mate twenty feet from me. A little scary! Drove the whole park today, stopping in at every lookout along the way. Twice today we came across a herd of Bison at least a hundred strong. We watched as these huge beasts jumped over a four foot fence like nothing. The last of the bunch was a mom and baby. The mom was about to jump but realized her baby wouldn’t be able to make the leap. They walked down the fence line until they found a lower section and the baby followed the mom over the fence where they quickly caught up to the group. I always thought that green roof’s were a new concept in the movement to conserve energy and reduce runoff. Green roof projects are literally sprouting up around the globe. I have to wonder why it took so long? Here is a homestead I saw today built in the late 1800′s. The literature didn’t call it a green roof but simply ‘a roof with soil’.Tomorrow we’ll start the day in Grand Teton and the afternoon in Yellowstone with the hopes of seeing a bear.

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Day 3

Posted on September 19, 2011 by Richard Schipul

Day 3 was a travel day. The one thing we learned today is state road signs are much smaller in Wyoming then most other places. We found that out after we ended up in Casper (eastern Wyoming) when we were supposed to be heading west. That mistake added about 3 hours to our already long drive to Grand Teton National Park as well as missing the scenic road we were supposed to be driving along. The extra time in the car stunk but I couldn’t imagine what kind of scenery we missed. This was a typical view along the non scenic route.We finally caught back up with our original planned route just in time for some spectacular views just outside the G.T. park entrance.We finally arrived in the park at 3:30 p.m. already animal snobs. You always know when animals are ahead because of the cars along the road. 10 minutes into the park and we see two moose. We got out of the car for a couple of minutes looked at each other and walked back to the car. It will be hard to beat a moose sighting like we had yesterday. Driving last night was wild. We were averaging 80 m.p.h. on 2 lane roads for hours. I would see cars coming towards us for what seemed like minutes. After a while I would think that the cars were pulled over on the side of the road. Eventually a vehicle would pass and they were driving just as fast as we were. My depth perception was way off. The same thing happened when we were supposed to be getting on a highway. We saw the highway in the distance. I told my mom that the highway we were seeing wasn’t our highway because the GPS is telling us 4 miles to go. Really strange! On a side note, I’m ashamed to say that we east coasters are slobs. I’ve driven hundreds of miles, even spent some time in Denver and I’ve seen about as much litter in two states as I see in front of our house on a weekly basis. I’m up to seven pieces of litter counter after 3 days and 2 states. Hey Schipul’s, not many animals today but as promised here they are. We also saw 1 elk and some antelope (no pictures). Not sure what this thing is.

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Connecticut Landscaper Heads West. Day 2

Posted on September 18, 2011 by Richard Schipul

After spending the night in the Stanley Hotel in Estes Park, COwe were in Rocky Mountain National Park before 8am for a harrowing 9 mile ride up Old Fall River Road. A fantastic dirt road filled with steep cliffs, elk, waterfalls and switchbacks, lots of switchbacks.Once at the top, we were greeted with 37 degree temps and snow. After a short stop at the visitor center we continued on our way to Grand Lake. Along the way we were lucky enough to see a bull moose up close.A quick drive down the main drag of Grand Lake where 500 call home, then back to the top of the mountain to complete the loop. Unfortunately, when we got back to the top, the snow was really coming down and visibility was a couple 100 yards. We decided instead of missing out on the scenic decent back down to Estes Park, we would head back to Grand Lake again and out towards Wyoming. We have a 500 mile drive to the Grand Tetons. By leaving R.M.N.P. early enough, we could break the trip into 2 days. The hopes is to come back through R.M.N.P. to finish the loop at the end of our trip. As for my research for my Middlebury client, here is the only built Colorado landscape I saw today.Tonight I call Rawling, WY home.

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Connecticut Landscaper heads West.

Posted on September 17, 2011 by Richard Schipul

As a landscape designer, I’m always looking for inspiration. I often draw on inspiration gathered from past trips around the U.S., Europe and even Australia where I’ve been to some of the great gardens, parks, streetscapes and estates this world has to offer. One of our next landscape projects is for an existing client who happens to be an interior designer. She recently bought a new home in Middlebury, CT. The new interior is designed in a Rocky Mountain motif. It is her vision to carry that same theme right out into the landscape. Well, it just happens that a trip was scheduled to Colorado and Wyoming to celebrate my mothers upcoming 80th birthday. So here goes my online documentation of the Rocky Mountain landscapes. Entering Estes Park Colorado, the gateway into Rocky Mountain National Park.

Streetscape in Estes Park.

The commercial district in Estes Park backs up to a great river that the town has developed into a river walk. Access to the river is encouraged with patios designed right into the rivers edge. In Estes, it’s possible to sit at a restaurant, bar or coffee house for a relaxing night out with your friends or spouse while your children entertain themselves in the crystal clear water 20′ away. It might not be responsible parenting but I’m liking Estes.Tomorrow the natural landscape of Rocky Mountain National Park.

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Accessorizing the back patio in a Bridgewater Landscape.

Posted on August 22, 2011 by Richard Schipul

The back patio, a centralized zone for summer entertaining, family meals, fun and relaxation. No matter the size and shape of your backyard entertaining area, it is important to accessorize the space to not only make it more visually appealing but also comfortable so people want to use the space.

If accessorized properly, the back patio usually becomes one of the most used parts of the house. Think of it and decorate it as an outdoor living room. Instead of pictures on the walls, create visual statements with planter combinations spread throughout the space. As you can see in the photo below, it wasn’t enough to create a beautiful outdoor patio. Even though most people would die for such a large patio, there is still plenty of opportunity to make this patio a much more inviting space.

Annuals were added to the garden beds for season long color. We then added planter vignettes around the patio at each entrance. It was important to use multiple planters. Typically, people put one small planter out in numerous areas. What ends up happening is the planters get lost in their surroundings. Standing alone, the varying sizes of the planters create interest. Adding the annuals to all the extra planting areas that these multiple planter vignettes create it becomes not a planter but a statement, a focal point that people will notice.

Next time you are decorating your patio for summer entertaining, try the multiple planter approach. Your family and your guests will take notice . Happy planting!

Posted in Gardening in Litchfield County, landscaping Bridgewater CT 06752 | Tagged Bridgewater, Connecticut, Landscape design, landscaping, outdoor entertaining, Planters | Leave a comment

What foodies do in their own landscapes.

Posted on August 9, 2011 by Richard Schipul

When I was in school studying Landscape Architecture, professors would walk around the design studio, look at your partially drawn landscape design and ask what your concept was. They really didn’t care what the design looked like because design is so subjective. What they were interested in was your concept for the client and how the concept supported the overall design. While walking The Culinary Institute of America today, I got a quick chuckle. My mind flashed back to my days as a landscape design student. The planters placed around the campus were so appropriate and I’m sure would have gotten praise from my past Landscape Architecture professors. The obvious question is whether the vegetables in the planters are used in any of the C.I.A. restaurants.Peppers with Calibrachoa

The edible flowers of Nasturtiums, cherry tomatoes and Lantana.

Lettuce mixed with the orange flowers of what looks like Gazania.

Nasturtiums, Eggplant and Calibrachoa

Posted in Connecticut Landscape Architecture | Tagged container gardening, gardens, landscaping | 2 Comments

Update on a Landscape for a Historic House in Ridgefield, CT

Posted on July 21, 2011 by Richard Schipul

Last fall we landscaped this house in Ridgefield, CT. After 20 plus years in business, this has been one of my favorite projects to date for many different reasons. First, the homeowners were really excited about having a nice garden. Second, the house as well as the landscape was getting a facelift so we were able to co-ordinate flowers colors with the painter. Third, this historic house is located in downtown Ridgefield. Who doesn’t like landscaping historic houses in downtown Ridgefield? Fourth, because the house is located just off the main drag, we get tons of compliments from people walking by as they make there way to and from Ridgefield’s commercial district. Taking compliments from the locals is great therapy and does wonders for my ego. Fifth, the property was small so every line and curve of the planting beds seemed accentuated. In fact, I could sense the overall feel of the space change with just a slight manipulation of each garden bed. Getting the garden bed lines to feel right was fun yet challenging. Finally, the owners were committed to a yearly planting of annuals. Because of that, we will be able to really change the look of this garden every year with different color schemes and styles from English cottage to Victorian and beyond. Maybe a garden with a tropical flare is in the future for this landscape. Take a look below at some recent pictures. I would love to know your thoughts?

Posted in Historic house, Ridgefield Landscape Design, Ridgefield landscaping | Tagged Connecticut landscape design, Connecticut Landscaping, Historic gardens | Leave a comment

Progress Report of a Kent, Connecticut Wildflower Meadow.

Posted on July 4, 2011 by Richard Schipul

In October 2009, we were hired to install a two acre wildflower meadow in Kent, CT. The landscape plan, by the landscape architect, didn’t give any detail as to what his vision was for the meadow. Not having any experience with large scale meadow establishment, our work at Designing Eden was cut out for us. There were a lot of things to figure out, for instance, what type of seed, how were we going to remove the existing vegetation with minimal soil disturbance, should we seed in fall or wait until spring, who were we going to use as a seed supplier, how should we apply the seed, the color palette and sequence, the seeding rate and what would be the best way to maintain the meadow for years of enjoyment? With this project, I learned a lot about installing wildflower meadows. There were things we would do again and probably just as many things we would do differently on our next meadow. In the end, everyone including the homeowner, landscape architect, property manager and especially our hardest critic, Designing Eden, was happy with the end result. Judge for yourself!Annuals the first season.

Perennials the second season. Lupines in May and June 2011.

Rudbeckia in June and July 2011

Posted in Connecticut garden design, Connecticut landscaping, Gardening in Litchfield County, Litchfield County Garden Design | Tagged Connecticut, gardening, landscaping, Litchfield County, native gardens, sustainable gardens, wildflowers | 4 Comments

Landscapers just might be the best conditioned professionals.

Posted on June 27, 2011 by Richard Schipul

It all started a couple months back when a friend decided to give me a present for my birthday. To my surprise, I opened the present to find a ticket to the www.warriordash.com. My first thought was, what the heck are you thinking? After my attempt to immediately back out proved unsuccessful, my second thought was I really should get on a treadmill. You see, my claim to fame, almost 30 years ago, was the fact that I was the fifth fastest kid in the state of Connecticut. I think that is pretty impressive! Back then, I was a sprinter. Distance running was not my thing. Anything taking longer than 20 seconds seemed way too boring for my taste. In fact, I don’t think I’ve ever run 3 miles in my life, never mind that the 3 mile course I just ran, was covered in mud with military style obstacles throughout. That’s me up front.

As a landscaper, who has time to practice for a race, in the busiest part of the growing season? Not me! Day after day went by and in the back of my head was always the thought of the Warrior Dash and how I should be training for it. As the day got closer, my thoughts went from, I should be training to I should see if I can actually run 3 miles without throwing up. I was too busy creating landscapes right up until race day. Preparing for the race was wishful thinking. I knew I would be ridiculed for life if I didn’t at least finish the race so I’ll admit, I was a little nervous. As all my friends dressed in their color coordinated outfits, I took a different approach and let them know how I really felt about my birthday present.I have always known that landscaping is a physically demanding occupation. What I didn’t know was just how conditioned I actually was. Out of 4,953 people, I finished the race 154th and 11th overall in my age bracket. Holy crap! Today, I proved to myself that I’m in way better shape than I thought I was in. As long as I’m a landscaper, I don’t need a gym membership. For some people, working out in a gym is their thing. For me, I choose landscaping. Just like bungy jumping in Australia, I can say I’ve now completed the Warrior Dash. All good things must come to a close though. To all my fans, I officially retired today from all mud crawling, fire leaping, extreme running from hell events!!! Tomorrow, back to landscaping in beautiful Litchfield County, CT.

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Landscape Renovation in Bridgewater, CT

Posted on May 29, 2011 by Richard Schipul

A lot of people can put plants in the ground and a lot of people call themselves landscape designers but that doesn’t mean they are good at what they do. I had an opportunity to redesign this landscape in Bridgewater, CT. At the time, the house was only seven years old and the landscape was already way past its prime. Why? Improper plant placement and improper plant selection. A lack of a garden maintenance program also had a little to do with the jungle like appearance of this garden. Consumers, and in this case professionals, need to realize that gardens are not static. Landscapes are constantly growing, moving forwards towards a better place or they are moving backwards towards failure. When choosing plants for a landscape design or picking plants at a nursery, you always have to be asking yourself three questions.

1. What is this plant going to look like in 2, 5, 10 or even 20 years down the road?

2. Where is it going to fit into my landscape?

3. Do I have the proper environment to grow this plant?

One of my favorite trees is the European Copper Beech. That doesn’t mean I plant Copper Beech trees every where I go. In fact, after twenty plus years in the landscape design and installation business, I have yet to plant one. Why? Because at maturity many reach 100′ tall and wide. Not many properties can accommodate a tree of that stature. Yes, I could plant a small Copper Beech tree but overtime it will grow and at some point it will either need to be moved from the property or cut down. Wouldn’t it make more sense for me to chose a plant that won’t dominate its surroundings right from the start? The depth of the garden bed in the picture below was predetermined by the existing stone wall. At 15′ deep why would anyone plant a weeping cherry let alone two is such a small bed? A rather fast growing tree, it can have a mature height and width of 40′. Whatever garden maintenance schedule you are on, this garden was doomed from the start.

Unfortunately, most of this landscape was removed and sent through a chipper. We were able to salvage some of the smaller plants and reposition them into more logical groupings. To finish off this landscape renovation, we brought in more appropriate plants for the garden with a lot more perennials for seasonal color. The picture below is the new landscape. This new landscape is much more appropriate for the scale of the house and with proper maintenance, this landscape should give many years of enjoyment..

Posted in Connecticut garden design, Connecticut landscaping | Tagged Bridgewater, Connecticut landscape design, CT, CT garden maintenance, garden maintenance, landscaping Bridgewater | Leave a comment

The Right Plant in the Right Place. Smart Landscaping.

Posted on May 24, 2011 by Richard Schipul

I’ve witnessed a lot of silly things over the years when it comes to landscaping. Some from weekend warriors but I’m sad to say that I’ve also witnessed a lot of things from ‘professional’ landscape companies. From trimming trees with hedge trimmers to planting shade plants in full sun and plants that prefer full sun planted in deep shade. In twenty years, I’ve seen literally thousands of struggling or dead trees due to improper planting techniques. I’ve seen segmented retaining walls built upside down. I’ve followed many a vehicle down Connecticut roadways with uncovered plants. I’ve even been asked to weed a garden filled with plastic plants once. This recent situation gave me a chuckle. Here is a Weeping Copper Beech planted within four feet from a house underneath the shade of an existing Maple. Copper Beech’s have to be the most majestic specimen tree on the planet. When I was in Syracuse studying Landscape Architecture, there was a Frederick Law Olmsted designed cemetery between my apartment and the downtown area. Quite often, to save a mile of walking, I would take a shortcut through the cemetery. A portion of the cemetery had a grove of the largest Weeping Beech trees I’ve ever seen. These Beeches had to be over 80′ tall and 60′ wide. There are some dwarf varieties of Weeping Beeches. I’m guessing the variety that came out of this property is a variety called Purple Fountain or at least I hope it is a dwarf variety. Purple Fountain is a slower grower than it’s larger brother but still not a great choice for planting 4′ from a house and under an existing Maple tree. It’s not uncommon to see Purple Fountain Beech’s in the 30-40′ range. . Unfortunately, this small property couldn’t handle a tree of this size and had to be removed. Why a landscape company would ever decide to plant this tree is just ridiculous.

Posted in Connecticut garden design, Connecticut landscaping, CT, landscaping Bridgewater CT 06752 | Tagged Bridgewater landscaping, Connecticut landscape design, CT landscape installation, l | 3 Comments

How to Break a Rock.

Posted on May 17, 2011 by Richard Schipul

I decided to move a building on our property so it could be turned into a chicken coop. Before the move, I had to clear an area to accommodate the new building site. What seemed so simple at the time turned to a long day. I had not one, but two tree stumps that had grown around a large rock. After an hour with a backhoe, I decided that another strategy was needed to release the rock from the stumps. Have you ever wondered how to break a rock that’s too large for equipment to move or too difficult to move for some other reason? I’ve had to rely on feather and wedges many times over the years. I’m always amazed how well these little tools work on even the largest boulders. It’s as simple as drilling holes in a rock, dropping a wedge and two feathers in the hole and hammer away. The feather and wedges will split the largest rocks to a more manageable size.So if you ever come across a rock in the landscape you don’t like, grab these simple tools and go relieve some stress with some horticultural therapy.

Posted in Connecticut landscaping, Masonry, Uncategorized | Tagged Boulders in the landscape, Landscaping New Milford, New Milford landscaper | Leave a comment

Watch Your Garden For This Landscape Pest

Posted on May 3, 2011 by Richard Schipul

Have you seen this plant? I’m sure you have. Have you ever wondered why you have more of it spreading through your gardens and landscape every year. The plant is Garlic Mustard, a landscape pest in Connecticut gardens. If you have it in your gardens and don’t want any more next season, you’ll need to pull it and remove it from your property now. I took these pictures today in a New Milford garden. If you allow it to flower and set seed, this is what you will have next season.

You’ll be dealing with hundreds of offspring for every plant that flowers this season. This is most likely from a single plant that was nearby. I’ve been fighting Garlic Mustard for years around our property. I will tell you that the key is to get this plant early before it flowers. It is easy to pull out so if you get out in early spring before it sets seed, you can pull it and leave it. Good luck.

Posted in Connecticut landscaping | Tagged CT garden maintenance, Garlic Mustard, Landscape pest, New Milford | Leave a comment

The Support Group Behind Designing Eden

Posted on April 14, 2011 by Richard Schipul

Article taken from the Designing Eden llc Inspirations newsletter Summer 2008.

Horticulture and landscape design can be a challenge, even after 20+ years. Just when you think you’ve seen it all, another project or situation comes along which is a little out of my comfort zone. While in school, a professor came into the design studio one Monday morning and told the class that for the next couple of weeks we were going to learn about road design. Grading, profiles, specifications etc… It was then that one of my classmates whispered under his breath “Landscape Architects, the jack of all trades, the master of none”. That statement continues to stand out after all these years. There were many topics that were covered over 5 years of education and 2 degrees. Some I use every day while others I’ll most likely never use. Universities touch on a lot of different areas of the profession but it’s the individual in the workplace who continues to educate himself, create niches, etc.. The environment (mother nature) continues to confuse. Sometimes, I feel like I don’t know the most basic things because something I’ve done for years with great success doesn’t work any more. There are plenty of circumstances throughout a season where I honestly do not have an answer. So where do I turn to get these questions answered? Well, every business needs a large support group to bounce ideas off of to be successful. Listed below is my support group which is not in any particular order of importance.

Rich McKean. One of my best friends and the owner of Main Street Nursery. Besides building a business up from a teenager to annual gross sales of 5 million dollars, Rich is a wealth of knowledge and is a keen businessman.

Michael Shannon, another classmate, is a registered Landscape Architect in NY. Mike is self employed but primarily works for 3 different companies. He works for two different Landscape Architects in the Hamptons doing design/sales. The majority of his projects are typically million plus with some reaching in the 3-5 million range. Yes, that’s just for the landscape!. At his third job, Mike is a project manager and estimator for a landscape company which does a majority of the landscape installations in the metro New York area. From Battery City Park to the MOMA courtyard, Mike is the man behind the scenes. The stories he has about getting these jobs completed are just incredible.

Barry Block. owner of a landscape business in the Hamptons, Barry lives for marketing and knows enough about it to write a book. He has won numerous local and national awards, he’s been on HGTV P. Allen Smith’s garden show and has gotten exposure in quite a few national publications. The one thing I can say about Barry and his wife Beth Ann is they do an incredible amount of work with few employees.

John Holden is a local landscaper who operates a business which is similar in size to Designing Eden LLC. His day to day hurdles are usually very similar to mine. John is a detail orientated guy who enjoys running numbers and creating custom forms/spreadsheets to help in the business. His current project is a totally mobile office that gives him the ability to estimate and print invoices on site.

Matt Giampietro, once of Cheshire and now residing in Florida. Matt grew up in the nursery and landscape business. The nursery his father started was once recognized by the Governor of CT as the first nursery to have annual gross sales of a million dollars a year in the state. Matt has an eye for design and is in Florida doing design work and building fountains and water features.

My wife Christine plays the role of editor in chief of these newsletter’s and other written material. Everything we do for marketing is geared towards women since they are typically our first contact. All new ideas are run by Christine before they are presented to the public. Christine also plays the role of moral supporter.

My father and mother. At 80, he’s had a lot of experiences. He grew up on a dairy farm, then enlisted in the army to get off the farm. He has had his hand in many different professions including carpenter, sheriff, real estate appraiser, land developer, house builder and landlord. At 78, my mom has had a green thumb her whole life, she introduced me to horticulture at a young age and continues to give me ideas.

Last but not least is a group I’ve belonged to for 5 years. NewMilfordBusiness.com is a group of thirty five local business owners who meet every Wednesday morning to talk business, network and pass leads. Members consist of other service related industries and professionals.

If I can’t answer one of your questions, someone in my support group will.

Posted in Connecticut landscaping | Tagged New Milford landscape designer, New Milford landscaper | Leave a comment

Landscape Design in Bridgewater, CT: Getting the scale right.

Posted on April 11, 2011 by Richard Schipul

We have a landscape design and installation project in Bridgewater, CT. When designing the front entrance to the house, I thought it would be a nice touch to add a picket fence. The thought behind the fence was that it would create an intimate space as well as give a sense of privacy for this corner property that sits close to the road. When it came time to install the fence, I’ll admit, I didn’t give much thought to its size. I was more concerned with the layout and style of the fence. The style was never a question. Based on the architecture, the fence had to be the colonial style picket fence. So when it came time to spec the fence, I went with a four foot picket just as I have at many other projects. The installation was perfect. It was installed exactly as I had visioned when I originally designed it on the landscape plan. Even the style looked great but the more I stared at the fence from across the street the more I thought something wasn’t right. At first, I thought it was just because the fence lacked paint. Maybe it had just been a long day I told myself. My first stop the next day was across the street at the same vantage point I ended the day before. Then it came to me. It wasn’t the lack of paint and it wasn’t the style of the fence I had an issue with. The issue was the scale of the fence in relation to the house. A fence size that has worked so well on so many houses in the past was an issue with this house. The scale of the fence was off for this one story entrance and small courtyard. I probably could have left it in place and it would have looked just fine but we strive for excellence at Designing Eden.

Before picture

After photo. The scale of the fence is more in tune with the architecture after being lowered.

This expensive lesson proves that past experiences are helpful to a certain extent but every house, property, landscape design, landscape and client is never the same. No matter how much I think I know, this project is a reminder that I constantly need to step back and analyze the landscape design as well as the installation until I get it right. That’s what keeps our clients coming back, it’s why Designing Eden has had two projects in national publications and why I’m able to sleep at night.

Posted in Connecticut garden design, Connecticut Landscape Architecture, Connecticut landscaping, landscaping Bridgewater CT 06752 | Tagged Bridgewater, Connecticut landscape design, Connecticut Landscaping | 2 Comments

Winter Plant Damage in a New Milford Landscape

Posted on April 1, 2011 by Richard Schipul

With the amount of snow we’ve had this past winter, Connecticut landscapes have really taken a beating. In the last 3 weeks I’ve seen more damage from this winter than I have in the previous 10 winters combined. Here is a picture of a beautiful Japanese Cutleaf Maple not only with a major crack in the central leader but also trunk damage caused by rodents. Neither situation is good. Let’s hope this mature specimen tree makes it to see another landscape season.

Posted in Landscaping, New Milford, New Milford Nursery | Tagged New Milford landscape, snow damage | Leave a comment

Striking Plant Combination in Fairfield Landscape

Posted on March 23, 2011 by Richard Schipul

I took this picture last year in one of the gardens we designed and installed in Fairfield, CT. When designing a new landscape I try to position plants so their colors and textures can play off each other. Most flowers only last so long you know? At the time, this was a new plant combination I had never tried before in the landscape. Red leaves of Euphorbia polychroma ‘Bonfire’ contrast great with the spiky leaves of Liriope muscari ‘Variegata’. The combination should work in Fairfield County and southern Litchfield County gardens. Any farther north and the Liriope might need some protection. Give it a try in your landscape and let me know what you think.

Posted in Connecticut garden design, Connecticut landscaping | Tagged Fairfield garden deign, Fairfield landscape design, Fairfield landscaping, Plant combinations | Leave a comment

Planning for Outdoor Entertaining in Washington, CT

Posted on March 9, 2011 by Richard Schipul

This blog post comes to you through a recent conversation I had with a landscape client regarding an outdoor entertaining area. I posed a question regarding use. How did they plan to use this new outdoor room and with how many people? Knowing that question will define the needed space for the future patio. I drew this diagram to explain to the client how I came up with the width of their patio. As you can see, a minimum of 3′ is required to back away from a table and stand up as well as walk around the table while someone is seated in a chair. If steps are behind someone sitting at a table, that minimum should bump up to 5 to 6 feet. As far as how many you can comfortably seat at a table, you need a minimum of 2 feet of table length for each person. If the plan is to use an 8 foot rectangular table with people sitting on both ends you will need a patio at least 14 feet wide. When designing outdoor spaces, flexibility is the key. When figuring the minimum size of a patio always allow enough room so that a table and stairs will work together. Never assume the table will always be placed in the same location. For that reason, I would suggest adding another 2-3 feet to the width of the patio in case the table ends up near the stairs, there will be plenty of room. In that case, the minimum patio width is 16-17′ for a 8′ rectangular table seating 10.

Posted in Connecticut garden design, Connecticut landscaping, Masonry, Paver installation, Uncategorized | Tagged Connecticut landscape design | 2 Comments

Shoes for Landscaping. Bogs

Posted on February 21, 2011 by Richard Schipul

As an owner of a landscape design and installation company, there isn’t much that impresses me when it comes to work wear. The truth is, I’m rough on clothes, especially pants and shoes. From developing tears in the front of $100 Timberland boots in a matter of weeks to breaking zippers in not so cheap pants, nothing seems to last. One thing that has impressed me lately has been my Bogs. Similar to Muck Boots, my Bogs have held up extremely well. In fact, they made it through one planting season and they barely look broken in. The main difference that I can tell between my Bogs and the similar shaped Edgewater Muck Boots is the sole. The sole on Bogs is substantial, similar to hiking boots, whereas the Edgewater Muck Boots have a thin sole. I’ve owned a couple of pairs of Edgewater’s in the past and each time they failed in the same place. The sole cracks mid foot allowing water to penetrate the bottom of the shoe. Because my Bogs have a thicker sole they have held up great while giving better support and more traction when compared to the Edgewater’s. The best part though, in my opinion, Bogs are much more stylish and can be wore on sunny days to the mall without looking like a geek.

Posted in Connecticut landscaping, work shoes for landscaping | Tagged Connecticut Landscaping, shoes for outdoor work | Leave a comment

Landscape Designs Connecticut

Posted on February 12, 2011 by Richard Schipul

My drafting table was getting full and my file draws were stuffed with landscape designs. After twenty plus years in the landscape design and installation business, it was time to clean house. 5 huge armfuls of landscape plans, as much as I could carry at one time, literally up in smoke. I was sad to see some of them go since so much time and energy was invested in each plan. Looking forward to filling the files draws back up over the next 20 years. Posted below are two old, forgotten friends. Neither of these landscape plans have ever been posted on our website, they have never been included in our quarterly newsletter or any of our other marketing materials. They were deserving.

Posted in Connecticut garden design, Connecticut landscaping | Tagged Connecticut landscape design, Connecticut Landscaping, landscape plans | 3 Comments

Inspiration from a Landscape and Nursery Trade Show

Posted on February 8, 2011 by Richard Schipul

I recently returned from a regional trade show. Between the equipment, new products and lectures, these large shows are very inspirational. I always love walking the trade show floor to see what’s new. I get a kick out of the entrepreneurs who have risked a lot of time and money for a chance to live the American dream. Most inventors are contractors trying to make their own life as a landscape contractor easier. Along the way they solve their problem, get a patent and start selling the product to others. I will never forget the guy I met at a trade show in Kentucky a couple of years ago. He developed the Husky Grip, a comfortable grip for chainsaw files. After many attempts with plastic molds and over$100,000 invested, he was able to bring his idea to market. At the time, I remember thinking the Husky Grip was a good product but could he possibly sell tens of thousands of these things to recoup his money, never mind make a profit. Well, within a couple of years, I was walking down an isle in Home Depot and there it was for all to see and purchase. The Husky Grip made it onto the shelves. Success! Two products caught my eye this year not only because the ideas were ingenious but also because the products were brought to market by a single person or family. Who would ever think of a modular stone wall system? Well some one did and here it is. An interlocking concrete wall veneered with any type of stone or style you would like. It’s now possible to have a stonewall in a day after site prep. How about a tool that would allow you to pick up and place a paving stone without bending down? Not only was the family their selling the product they designed, prototyped and patented but they were letting all the landscape contractors use it. I felt the urge to buy one right there just like a candy bar in the checkout line. I’ll admit, these things were real slick. The tool in the picture picked up a 90 pound stone with ease. I’m sure this will be a big hit with anyone installing stone or pavers because it was cost effective, more efficient than current installation methods and most importantly a back and knee saver. Check out the video:

Posted in Connecticut landscaping, Masonry, Paver installation | Tagged CT landscape installation, CT landscaping, Masonry, Paver installation | 2 Comments

Native Landscape Planting New Milford, CT. A low maintenance, deer resistant garden.

Posted on January 3, 2011 by Richard Schipul

When we bought the property, which would eventually become our home and the base for Designing Eden, we had quite a bit of woods on the 10 acres. The woods were composed of both hardwoods and Red Pines. Within a couple of years of purchasing the property, the Red Pine began to fall. Over the last decade we’ve had hundreds of tall pines fall. The dilemma becomes what to do with all this wood. By the time these trees fall they are water logged and usually rotten. They can’t be burned, they can’t be milled into lumber, they can’t be split and these logs can’t be chipped. About 10 years ago, I spent a winter cutting, stacking and piling up the logs to clear the land. When all was said and done, I ended up with a pile about 6′ high, 20′ wide and over 120′ long. I ended up hiring a tub grinder which made short work of the pile that took me months to build. After a day and a half of grinding, I was left with a huge pile of chips.

That pile of pine chips needed 8 years before it broke down enough so I could start using it as a soil amendment for new gardens. Since then I’ve been collecting and piling more pine. This time around I decided a different approach was needed. I rented a 30 yard dumpster, filled it and it was brought to a recycling center. I wish I could say that one dumpster was all that was needed. I’m thinking two more dumpsters will be needed to remove the remaining logs.

Keeping the forest floor clean has allowed me to turn a once impenetrable piece of property into a positive space. This is how the area looks currently. A mix of hardwoods with a fern understory. This native planting was created with the fast spreading Hayscented fern. Yes, Red Pines still exist, but every year a couple more come crashing to the ground. At some point, all the Red Pines will be gone, all the hard work will be done and I’ll have a beautiful, low maintenance, deer resistant, and sustainable garden to enjoy.

Posted in Connecticut garden design, Connecticut landscaping, Fern garden | Tagged Connecticut landscape design, Connecticut Landscaping, New Milford landscape | Leave a comment

Landscape Installation: Dealing with Poor Soil in Bridgewater, CT Landscape

Posted on December 7, 2010 by Richard Schipul

At Designing Eden we pride ourselves on our soil work prior to planting a new landscape. Why? Because 90% of plant problems occur below ground. It’s my feeling that one of the most important parts of any new landscape is the work we accomplish prior to planting. That’s why our current landscape project in Bridgewater, CT is so troubling. The new landscape will surround a historic cape with a new addition. We started this project like all our other projects. We added our special soil amendments and tilled them into all the beds. After tilling, I wasn’t fond of the results. As with most construction sites, we were facing a disturbed, extremely compacted soil. To make matters worse, the soil we were left with is 100% clay with no organic matter. The original idea was to amended the beds with compost and minimize the properties of the clay. It didn’t work. At this point, we typically would continue to build the beds up with more soil until we were happy with the results. The problem was the siding on the new addition was within 8″ of finished grade. The site didn’t provide an opportunity to build up the soil any more than it already was. My thoughts quickly turned to removing 6″ of soil in all the beds and bringing in all new soil. Although a great idea, it wouldn’t have been cost effective. There was so much clay and hard pan that I decided the next logical step would be to turn the beds over with a backhoe a foot deep and add some more compost. After turning the soil and tilling a second time, I still wasn’t happy with the results. The soil was still too heavy and it was compacting just as fast as we were turning it over. Should we remove the soil? There has to be another solution. Well hopefully I found it. For the first time I tried a product called Hydrocks. Hydrocks is a soil amendment used to minimize the properties of clay. It is best described as a calcified clay nugget similar to pumice. It has a neutral Ph and is supposed to absorb excess water in the soil as well as minimize future compaction. Those were the two properties of clay I was most concerned with. If we can soak up any excess water so it doesn’t linger around the roots and it helps with compaction, we have hopefully solved the issue. Once the soil drys out, Hydrocks will slowly release the stored water. I hope it works because it was my only sensible option.

Posted in Connecticut garden design, Connecticut landscaping | Tagged Bridgewater, Connecticut landscape design, Connecticut Landscaping, Ct gardening, CT Historic House, Home improvement | 2 Comments

New Landscape for Historic Ridgefield, CT House

Posted on November 12, 2010 by Richard Schipul

Here are pictures of a recent project we completed a couple of weeks ago. The makeover included a new landscape and paint for a historic house in downtown Ridgefield, CT. Our project included the removal of existing plants, transplanting some Boxwoods and Hydrangeas, widening the small existing plant beds, removing the lawn and installing new plants and sod. The landscape will be finished this spring with the addition of swaths of summer flowering annuals in the bare areas which exist in the front of the beds.

Posted in Connecticut garden design, Connecticut landscaping | Tagged CT Historic House, CT home improvement, CT landscape design, CT landscaping, Ridgefield, CT | Leave a comment

Landscape Design of Next Landscape Installation Project in Bridgewater, CT

Posted on November 12, 2010 by Richard Schipul

This is a landscape plan for our next project in Bridgewater, CT. The house is best described as a rambling a cape. The new landscape involves landscaping around the original historic house as well as the new addition. Notice the expansive back entertaining area. A large bluestone patio with brick inlay, seating walls and built in barbecue complete the space.

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Functional Table or Landscape Focal Point?

Posted on November 12, 2010 by Richard Schipul

I like this table. I have a lot of boulders on my property so anything that utilizes boulders sparks my interest. The problem is, even though it is a cool looking table, it might not be the most functional table. You lose a lot of space because of the table ‘legs’. What do you think, table or art?

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Floating Flowers in a New Milford, CT Landscape

Posted on November 12, 2010 by Richard Schipul

While maintaining a garden last week I needed to cut back a couple of Rose bushes. Instead of tossing the few flowers left on the plant, I cut them off and floated them in the bird bath. Designing Eden llc always trying to give a little extra.

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The Color Orange in a Poolside Garden Trumbull, CT

Posted on November 12, 2010 by Richard Schipul

Planted a group of orange Coleus by the pool this summer. I have to say I’m liking the orange foliage in relation to the burgundy Heuchera and red Astilbes it’s planted between. It does clash with the pink Astilbe though. That’s the way it goes with annuals though. Decided to mix it up this year after Verbena ‘Homestead Purple’ had occupied the space for the last couple of years. When I bought the Coleus I wasn’t thinking about what color the Astilbe were. I was trying to give the garden a more tropical feel since we’ve been having insect problems with the Hibiscus the last two seasons. I think I succeeded.

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Transitioning from Sun to Shade in a Formal Garden Trumbull, CT

Posted on November 12, 2010 by Richard Schipul

When designing new landscapes, I often struggle with the area directly below trees. Often times, at Designing Eden llc, we are installing trees at 2-4″ caliper and 10-18′ tall. At some point, that tree will grow in height and cast a decent shadow on the ground. The problem is the shade these same trees provide is minimal at the time of installation. So what do you do? Do you install sun loving plants and replace them with shade plants down the road? Do you plant shade plants and let them struggle for a couple of years until the tree starts to provide more shade? I often search the globe for plants which will do well in either condition, both sun and shade. One of my plants of choice is Hakonechloa. Recently these plants haven’t been coming through the winter as strong as previous years. The search goes on for other plants to add to my list.

Hakonechloa in foreground

Posted in Connecticut garden design, Connecticut landscaping | Tagged CT, CT landscape design, Landscape project in Trumbull, Trumbull | Leave a comment

Antique Granite Curb Installation New Milford, CT

Posted on November 12, 2010 by Richard Schipul

Adding antique granite curbing to a property can do wonders to spruce up the front of a property. We use these slabs for all types of things: walkways, patios, stepping stones, bridges and steps to name a few. The photo’s below show the way they were originally intended, as curbing. To add a touch of history to this new colonial reproduction we added granite curbing to separate the parking court from the house. The landscape design calls for a colonial style cedar fence which will run along the top of the granite curbing and a mixed border garden of groundcovers, perennials, evergreen and deciduous shrubs and a couple of flowering trees which will be complete in phase two.

Before photo

Left side curbing complete. Right side in place and waiting for cement.

Posted in Connecticut garden design, Connecticut landscaping | Tagged CT courtyard, CT landscape design, CT landscaping, New Milford | Leave a comment

Landscape Design of a Formal Vegetable and Cutting Garden in Litchfield, CT

Posted on November 12, 2010 by Richard Schipul

Above is a landscape design for a private residence in Litchfield, Connecticut. The design, for a backyard, includes an area for a chicken coop which doubles as a focal point, a formal cutting garden and vegetable garden. The formal gardens are surrounded by a naturalistic mixed perennial border of flowering evergreen and deciduous shrubs and perennials.

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Time to clean out the bird houses. New Milford, CT

Posted on November 12, 2010 by Richard Schipul

As the weather warms, don’t forget to clean out any bird houses on your property. Your birds will appreciate it and your houses will have a better chance of being occupied.

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Almost Spring

Posted on November 12, 2010 by Richard Schipul

What a beautiful weekend. It almost felt like spring and boy I’m excited about that! I potted up over 70 plants on Saturday in 12″ Rootmaker’s to grow on to larger plants for the next couple of years. Fothergilla gardenii and a couple different cultivars of Viburnum were the plants of choice.

Posted in Connecticut landscaping, Connecticut nursery, Gardening in Litchfield County, Landscaping, New Milford | Tagged New Milford landscaping | Leave a comment

Wildflower Meadow Installation Kent, CT

Posted on November 12, 2010 by Richard Schipul

The last project for the 2009 season for us at Designing Eden before the snow shut us down was a two acre wildflower meadow in Kent, CT. It was our first large scale meadow. Although it will take a couple of growing seasons to reach its full glory, we are looking forward to seeing what flowers come up in 2010.

Preparing the soil for seed.

Because wildflower seed is so fine, you need to cut it with sand to get the seed to spread evenly. We used a cement mixer to thoroughly mix the sand and seed together.

Since we installed the meadow during late fall, the area will stay dormant until spring. To prevent erosion we applied a layer of straw with this blower.

Posted in Connecticut garden design, Connecticut landscaping | Tagged CT landscaping, CT wildflower meadow, Kent | 2 Comments

Access under Walkways in the Garden. New Milford, CT

Posted on November 12, 2010 by Richard Schipul

Running landscape lighting or irrigation under an existing walkway is always a challenge, especially if you didn’t plan for it ahead of time.

One of the most important things you can do while planning your next walkway or patio project is to consider where future access might be needed and add a wire chase. Even if you don’t think you’ll ever need to bring a pipe or wire across a walk of patio, plan for it. It’s easy and cheap and you’ll be glad you did if the need every arises.

In the above picture a two inch piece of conduit was placed beneath the stepping stone.

In this same project, two 4″ pipes were place before the gravel base and 6″ pad were poured.

As you can see in the above photo, the yellow lines represent wire chase locations. If any landscape lighting/irrigation projects are planned in the future there will be plenty of easy ways to get the pipe/wire around the garden space.

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Small Space Gardening in Lakeville, CT

Posted on November 12, 2010 by Richard Schipul

Just because space is limited, doesn’t mean you have to forgo a gardening space. Below is a small garden which was carved out of a patio space. The owners, who live overseas, typically only use the property for a short period of time each summer. That being the case, this garden was designed primarily for summer color.

Facing south in full sun, plant choices included Daylily’s, Yarrow, Rudbeckia, Agastache, Ajuga and Blue Oat grass.

Green Mountain Boxwood lining the entrance.

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Weed Fabric

Posted on November 12, 2010 by Richard Schipul

When you’re planning your next garden, some might think about installing weed fabric before planting. I personally don’t like weed fabric. We’ve renovated quite a few gardens over the years where weed fabric was once installed. As you can see from these photo’s, weed fabric doesn’t work very well. Weed fabric might prevent weeds from germinating below the fabric but weeds are often pesky and opportunistic. Weed seeds germinate in the mulch above the fabric and the roots eventually penetrate through the fabric. Once this happens, hand weeding is virtually impossible.

Coreopsis growing through weed fabric. Notice the root mass below the weed fabric.

Clover

Posted in Connecticut garden design, Connecticut landscaping | Tagged Connecticut Landscaping, CT garden maintenance, gardening, Southbury, Southbury Connecticut landscape design, Southbury Southbury, weed fabric | Leave a comment

Plants for Winter Interest:Form

Posted on November 12, 2010 by Richard Schipul

No matter what the weather is like outside, choosing plants which have a unique form, structure, or growth habit makes sense when trying to extend the growing season. Here are some favorites which will light up the winter landscape.

As far as structure goes, there aren’t too many plants which can compete with the overall form of a mature Japanese maple. Though they tend to be overused in suburbia, their interesting growth habit will add interest to any winter garden scene.

Chamaecyparis nootkatensis ‘Pendula’. A great form plant. Upright growth habit with drooping branches make for an intersting combination. Eventually a large tree which is sometimes prone to deer browsing.

Weeping Canadian Hemlock is a great specimen. Either in a weeping form or by exposing its branch habit through trimming.

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Landscaping Might Be More Affordable Than You Think!

Posted on November 7, 2010 by Richard Schipul

Have you ever thought about landscaping your property? Have you ever wondered whether you could afford everything you’re hoping to create? You can if you change your way of thinking. If you’re able to look at landscaping a different way, you won’t see it as a cost but an investment. I often tell people that landscaping your house won’t cost you a thing, it will make you money.

Within the last couple of years landscape articles have appeared in both Money and Smart Money magazines. Why would magazines whose focus is on money and investing dedicate as many as 8 full pages and the cover to landscaping? Because both magazines agree that landscaping your house is a great investment! The article in Money said you could expect to recoup 100-200% return on investment. They went on to say that landscaping is the best home improvement project for the money. The title on the cover of Smart Money was “Increase your Homes Value by 15%”. You invest in the curb appeal of your property, you, your friends and your family get to enjoy it and then you can expect to recoup ever dollar you invest and possibly more. The way I see it, you can’t afford not to landscape!

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Ideas for Winter Interest in the Garden

Posted on November 5, 2010 by Richard Schipul

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Ilex verticillata

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Blue Princess Holly

There are plenty of ways to extend the gardening season for our long Connecticut winters. One way is to add plants which hold berries well into the winter. Besides giving birds a needed treat, placing a plant with berries close to a window or door can add some visual interest to your garden through the doldrums of winter. Here is two reliable performers for our area.

Posted in Connecticut garden design, Connecticut landscaping, Fairfield County, Landscaper, Newtown CT | Tagged Connecticut Landscaping, gardening, Landscape design, winter gardens | Leave a comment

Hello world!

Posted on May 24, 2013 by Richard Schipul

Welcome to WordPress. This is your first post. Edit or delete it, then start blogging!

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