This garden is a getaway for an otherwise urban home in Oakland. The back garden is a small space but packed with lots of fun features and surrounded with lush plants that make the urban center feel miles away. The new cedar hot tub, outdoor shower, gas fire pit, BBQ area, outside dining for 8, and raised corten steel planters for a kitchen garden give the clients plenty to do while being surrounded by a unique collection of specialty plants and blooms.

We designed a new deck to reconnect the indoor and outdoor living. The back door of the home was a few feet above the garden level, so we used the generous deck levels to soften the grade change between the interior home and the garden level.

Along the side yard is another raised corten steel planter box that’s height aligns with the interior finished floor on the inside of the house, creating another indoor and outdoor connection. The plantings bring lush textures into the home and lacey shadows of plants along the indoor corridor leading to the backyard throughout the year.

In the front yard, since the main house was lifted during the remodel to add a second floor, the home stairs were about a foot above the garden level. We designed corten steel steps with stone treads to connect the home back to the land and the street. Hues of greens and fine textures invite you around, screen the garbage bin enclosure, and soften the entry gate making it welcoming to guests!