LATEST ARTICLES

Big impact in a pint-size S.F. plot

After Gabby Pollack and Rob Mishev remodeled their Cole Valley home in 2012, their backyard landscape included nothing more than a pile of concrete rubble, two shrubs and an avocado tree. They had lots of ideas for their small 1,250-square-foot plot and wanted to keep the home’s clean and modern lines flowing into the outdoor space.

The couple hired Berkeley landscaper Patricia St. John to see past the obstacles — an 8-foot drop and taller dwellings on three sides — to create a safe place for their toddler to play, an area to grow edibles, and pockets to entertain and escape. St. John’s project recently won top honors (gold) in the categories of small gardens and cost-efficient from the national Association of Professional Landscape Designers, proving that big things can come from small spaces.

Design: Patricia St. John, APLD.www.stjohnlandscapes.com

— Sophia Markoulakis, home@sfchronicle.com.

5 design tips

Landscape designer Patricia St. John’s design tips for cost-efficient small spaces.

Mix it up: “The variety of color and texture that are brought into the garden through foliage make a big impact. Varying the vegetation heights also helps a small space seem larger. The contractor cantilevered the arbor without having to install posts that would have cut into valuable deck space.”

Think kid-friendly: “With one 2-year-old and another on the way, the homeowners wanted a safe place for the kids to play. The contractor designed a hinged and framed screen cover for the sandbox so that when the sandbox is in use, the cover can be raised and secured by a hook on the back fence. All plants are nonpoisonous and child-safe. I knew there would be two small children running in the garden, so I bordered the granite paths with grasses for a bounce-back-like effect for balls and toys.”

Be water wise: “Low-water-use plants are in every garden I design. I believe that low-maintenance and low-water-use plants go hand in hand in gardens. I used in-line drip irrigation throughout the garden. There are two water valves: One waters the in-ground landscape plants, and one waters the planting beds and containers. This way they can be controlled separately, which is especially good now that the plants are more established. The edible bed’s irrigation is made up of smaller tubing, which forms a grid that can be lifted up and removed for planting and harvesting.”

Tame costs: “Listening to the client and delivering a thoughtful design that they want and need is one of the easiest ways to save money during the design process. I also saved money on the choice of hardscaping materials. Decomposed granite is one of the least-expensive paving options, and I used a prefabricated lattice as part of the deck’s arbor. I also saved money using smaller plants. The smaller the plant, the faster they grow, and using smaller plants saves money on labor. And keeping some of the mature plants also saves money on water.”

Vary elevations: “Part of the home’s remodel included lifting the home to accommodate a new full garage. Because of that, the home was elevated 8 feet off the ground. I had to be creative with the elevation changes and still provide flat surfaces for the children and for entertaining. The garden also had to look good from three stories up. Three distinct levels, including a 3-foot deck, a midlevel garden and a lower patio, solve these challenges.”