You can...
Hire me, if you need serious advice about your in-ground or rooftop garden space: Does an apple orchard on the 17th floor sound nice? Or do you prefer blueberries? Perhaps you have heard about native woodland gardens and would like to have one of your own. If you have full sun a flowering prairie on the roof might be more suitable.
Maybe you only need some advice and not a whole new plan: What's wrong with the space, what's right, how to improve it, how to grow mysterious vegetables or herbs, what to do to make your roses look like the ones in the book (or on my terrace!), and how to scent the entire thing at night. I will visit, we'll talk, I'll look, I'll go home and think, and come up with some answers.
I have been designing and implementing high end gardens professionally in New York for eleven years. I have been gardening since I was four.
My designs are distinctive, very personal (to you) and will be influenced by micro-climate, your lifestyle and what will look most beautiful within the context.
Once we have a good understanding about what is needed and what is possible, I paint the design for your garden-to-be in watercolour on cold-pressed French paper.
And if you need high quality pictures of your existing garden, please get in touch.
Rates, references and picture galleries of previous work upon enquiry.
Contact me via email:
marieyviljoen(at)gmail(dot)com
Hire me, if you need serious advice about your in-ground or rooftop garden space: Does an apple orchard on the 17th floor sound nice? Or do you prefer blueberries? Perhaps you have heard about native woodland gardens and would like to have one of your own. If you have full sun a flowering prairie on the roof might be more suitable.
Maybe you only need some advice and not a whole new plan: What's wrong with the space, what's right, how to improve it, how to grow mysterious vegetables or herbs, what to do to make your roses look like the ones in the book (or on my terrace!), and how to scent the entire thing at night. I will visit, we'll talk, I'll look, I'll go home and think, and come up with some answers.
I have been designing and implementing high end gardens professionally in New York for eleven years. I have been gardening since I was four.
My designs are distinctive, very personal (to you) and will be influenced by micro-climate, your lifestyle and what will look most beautiful within the context.
Once we have a good understanding about what is needed and what is possible, I paint the design for your garden-to-be in watercolour on cold-pressed French paper.
And if you need high quality pictures of your existing garden, please get in touch.
Rates, references and picture galleries of previous work upon enquiry.
Contact me via email:
marieyviljoen(at)gmail(dot)com
31 comments:
We can't grow anthing but wine in Tuscany, the sun in August kills everything!
Hm. A problem I wouldn't mind having. I am sure rosemary and thyme are very fond of your conditions.
I'd love to hire you. I'd love to have a garden. And I'd love for it to get warm at last!
Barry, buy an orchid. Loads of impact and very little fuss :-)
I love your photos -- what a beautiful blog you have here. I think I'll go out and get some roses for my garden now!
Thanks, Kay Beth. I love converting people to roses. It's so unfashionable.
They are elementally wonderful.
I was browsing and I came across your beautiful photos and blog.I had to write to tell you that. I was also thinking about the dream garden I will have in my new row home. It will small and relaxing. I wish I could hire you but I have a tight budget. My gardener life started 6 years ago when I lived by myself and started "taking care" of plants. Most of them inside plants. I love my plants.
I am the previousl anonymous... Who obviously is not technological savy...
Thank you AnaMaria - You were savvy enough to create a blogger name for yourself :-) How exciting to be able to think about a new garden...I am sure you know a lot already, and please come back and ask questions if you need any advice.
Hoping to create a hedge of knockout roses on the perimeter of our bungalow. Unfortunately the leaves have holes in them and we find spider webs. Some of the bushes are flowering but others dont. Any advise?
I love your terrace garden! You inspired me so much! I live in Argentina and I have a big terrace so I'm planning how could it be to have a garden there! Thanks.
LCMonkey? Where in the world do you live? Hard to know more without some idea of your climate. Or how much sun the roses receive. Miniature spider webs on the backs of leaves may be spider mite. Are the plants stressed by dry heat or lack of water? Do you fertilize them? How often do you water them?
Hola Vidalita - large terrace sounds wonderful! Will you draw it out on paper or computer to give yourself some design options? Will your climate support citrus? I have always wanted my own lemon trees in pots!
I LOVE YOUR BLOG!!!! AND YOUR PICS OF YOUR GARDEN AND other locations in NY. ABSOLUTELY BEAUTIFUL!!!! How great a career do you have to be a garden designer, wonderful. Well like others who have visited your blog and left comments you have inspired me. I am currently residing in beautiful, hot, humid Miami, perfect for tropical fruit trees, veggies, and spices/herbs. I am a new "kitchen" gardener, i started last week. My grandad of 88yrs is helping me create my veggie garden-for right now we are planting the basics, which is how i came upon your blog. I forgot what the thyme seedling looked like (didn't tag my rows) and had to find a pic. Anyway, thanks for the beautiful photos, next year i hope to branch out and plant some exotic veggies and herbs! :-)
Hi Marie,
Found your website while searching for lilies. Really have enjoyed reading your blog and your fab photos. You are an amazing writer.Perhaps that has something to do with your day job.
While reading, you made me think of an extraordinary mail order nursery in Oklahoma you might want to know about.
It's: BustaniPlantFarm.com
I think you might be enamored with their unusual selection as gardeners are always willing to expand their plant palette. They're good people who are also very interesting and love to travel.
I am a garden writer from the Detroit area and am working on a blog now. Any words of advice?
Your blog is inspirational and thanks for sharing.
Your cat is just darling,
Julia
Hi CT - Thank you... you sound excited about gardening, that's great:-) And you are very lucky to have your grandad's help and experience on hand. Maybe you can document your garden's progress on a blog?
Hi Julia
Thanks :-) Hmmm, lilies. I can never get enough. And thanks for the tip about the mail order nursery. As for advice, just write about what interests you, and what you love. I think that people who love plants are very lucky in that we find interest almost everywhere. Perhaps you can tie your writing to Detroit itself, a city of fabled history and character. That's blog I would like to read...
Hi Marie, What is the conifer behind you as you are laying sod? It's a lovely, bright green. Thanks.
Hi Paige - it's a juniper, but I honestly don't remember which variety!
Do you ever do consultation work? I have some land in Oregon, and i'm getting my self-sufficiency project under way (I already have my little <120 sqf house on solar, wood and water power, and i'm raising ducks, pigs, goats, bees, quail and rabbits) and i'm designing about an acre of garden for veggies, fruits and greens and stuff (the land i'm on ATM has a 20-30 year old chunk of apple/plum/cherry orchard on it) and need some help.
Hi liko
I do...
Send me you email details and we can talk more. I can of course advise, though at a remove of some 1000's of miles, it might not be practical for you...Sounds like a wonderful, dream project you are engaged in.
Hi Marie,
Love your work. Is it feasible to plant an adult tree at a roof garden? what are the precautions to take in order to not compromise the structure? I have thought in a 'jacaranda' tree of blueish flowers.
Thanks in advance,
Victor.
Hi Victor
Thank you...
In theory, yes. It's what we do with rooftop and in-ground gardens all the time.
Many factors must be considered.
- How tall is the tree and how much does it weigh with its rootball?
- where are you sourcing your tree: the rootball must be large enough to keep the tree healthy
- where are you and what is your climate: you say jacaranda so I must assume somewhere warm-ish. It must be sufficiently cold-hardy for your winters, which will be colder at higher elevation because of wind-chill.
- jacarandas grow very tall and wide. The ideal rooftop tree is one that tops out at 20' or less, though containerizing it will hamper its growth somewhat. I do not consider jacarannda a good rooftop tree because of its mature height and girth.
- What is the size of container it will go into and how much does that container weigh filled with additional soil and the tree, saturated with water (which increases the weight. A single container with a big tree could weigh as much as 400-500lbs.
- based on the weight you need to know how much load your roof can bear. This depends on the manner of your building's construction. You need a structural engineer to assess this safely. Placing a heavy object close to load-bearing walls is safer than placing it in the middle of the roof with no support, which is a terrible idea. If your building has steel I-beams in the roof (unusual) place it over an I-beam.
- having a deck built over the roof will help with weight-distribution and will preserve the integrity of the roof membrane.
Hi there!
I just got a Gardenia the other day, convinced by its smell and beauty... then I got home and became instantly terrified by everything I read about on the Internets about how difficult they are to maintain. Now I'm paranoid about watering it too often and a whole slew of other problems...
Am I being overly paranoid? Are Gardenias as hard to maintain as the forums say they are?!
Hey Jen, I'm no gardenia expert but it is true that the little beauties are brought home in full bloom and then go yellow and drop their flowers. They don't like to be wet or dry. Inbetween is good. Feel the soil and if the top 1/2 inch is dry (pale and dusty), water deeply. Then wait until that happens again. Fertilize with an azalea-friendly food (acidic) every month, and good luck!
Marie;
I love this website/blog. The photos of your garden and South Africa are intoxicating--thank you for bringing us all a visual treat-
your fan in Santa Fe;
Angela
Wish I could afford to hire you. You are beautiful and inspiring.
But I'd probably fall in love and that would screw up everything.
Hmm, what was I looking for? Oh, yes. Black cherry in autumn dress. And this is where the big search engine in the sky took me. I loved the play-by-play of the Steve Brill foraging foray. And your small space savvy. I will return....(so many blogs, so little time).
Hi Janet - that's a funny search. But I'm glad you arrived here by accident, and hope to see more of you!
hello marie, happened upon your site, how lovely.
i continue to garden in nyc, always a challenge and a pleasure.
Angela (worked at chelsea gardens once)
Hello Marie... I was merely looking for a new screen saver to grace my shared computer - a picture of your garden appeared and I instantly loved it, perfect. I do hope you don't mind that I use your picture in this way. When I investigated further I discovered a whole world of 'my kind of stuff'!! The food, the garden, the city, the photos, the energy, the cat, finding out it's not just me who delights in finding 'treasure on a beach'....! I have been trying to visit NY for years, (I have this unexplained 'pull') and your wonderful diary gives my a delicious taste of a great city. Thanks from a girl gardener in rural England. Maybe one day I shall be able to visit! X
o my. i love ur blog so much. so inspiring for me, i love garden, flowers, leaves, bluebells, food, NY city, n photography. love ur garden!
when i move back to the city....
i will call you for sure!
xx
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