When we moved in we
inherited a front fence that was ready to collapse. Behind it, in
the "courtyard", was an overgrown jungle. (Click on any
image on this page to see a larger version.)
Quite frankly, we are not gardeners or landscapers. So we did not know where to start. We did know that we wanted landscaping that would be in keeping with the architecture of the house and the era that it was built. But we were not trying to replicate a yard of the 1950s either. After a little searching we met with Chris Jacobson of Garden Art. Chris was able to take our desires and turn them into wonderful concepts and real plans.
One of the things we wanted to do pushed
the boundaries of what the city code allowed. To increase privacy in
the courtyard area, we wanted to increase the height of the front
fence and push it out a little. We found that the existing fence
already exceeded the allowed height and setback requirements for a
front fence but that it had been legally permitted. Rather than ask
for another variance, we decided to keep the existing foot print and
height. To make the entrance more dramatic and functional, the entry
was moved from the side to the front. Our landscape contractor
custom milled the fence boards to match original Eichler fence
boards we found.
This photo from the street was
taken shortly after the project was completed. The mulched area by
the fence actually has ground cover that is too small to be seen.
The vertical plants will be pruned as they grown into a "stilt
hedge" to provide the privacy that we wanted from a higher
fence.
To the right is a picture of the finished project
looking from house toward front gate. At the time this photo was
taken we had not finished repainting the house. While the
landscaping was being put in, we used the opportunity to replace the
badly weathered siding on the side of the garage. You can see that
wall only has a primer coat at the time this picture was taken.
After a lot of searching we were able to find a pair of the large brushed aluminum escutcheon plates that Eichler used for front doors. We used them on the front gate to provide more of a feel of a door. We consider the courtyard to be our front room and think the door like aspect of the front gate adds to this feeling.
