Tag Archive for: swimming pool landscaping

home of landscape designer, B. Jane

Embrace Modern Elegance with a Low Maintenance Garden

Discover the Beauty of B. Jane’s Contemporary Landscape

Is your landscape style more free-form and natural. Or do you embrace a more modern, contemporary kind of garden with straight lines and right angles? On a recent visit to Austin, I had the opportunity to visit the home of landscape designer, B. Jane, which looks as if it came straight from the pages of a magazine with its resort-style design. If you had a garden like this, why leave home? You can vacation at home in a contemporary, low maintenance garden?

Low Maintenance Garden plantings

A Front Yard Oasis

The front of B.’s garden has a large crepe myrtle. It is located between her two front windows. This helps to frame her view from the house. The flat pads of a prickly pear cactus add rich texture contrast among the softer shapes of perennials.

asparagus fern and silver ponyfoot (Dichondra argentea)

Stylish Groundcover Choices

An agave nestles between asparagus fern and silver ponyfoot (Dichondra argentea). Both plant are ground covers. I often saw at the gardens in Austin. This plant is a type of Dichondra. I liked it so much. Happily, I brought some home and now have it growing in one of my large containers by the front entry. Silver ponyfoot creeps along the ground. It can be used to trail over the sides of pots as well.

live oak tree (Quercus virginiana) with shady plantings

A Modern Twist with Natural Elements

A live oak tree (Quercus virginiana) is planted in a circular section. Decomposed granite works around the tree. Asparagus fern adds softness around the outer edges, again, creating nice texture contrast.

Low Maintenance Garden path

Striking Pathways and Stone Accents


As I walked toward the backyard, the square step stones caught my eye. The dark grey beach pebbles contrast nicely. This is a great design look.

low-maintenance garden ornaments

Simplicity and Beauty in Low Maintenance

As you can see from the potted plants on the patio table, simplicity reigns in this garden. This garden is filled with native or adapted plants. They flourish with little fuss. Low maintenance doesn’t mean that a garden is dull. Often the truth is just the opposite as you will see as we continue on our tour.

rectangular pool with balls floating

Resort-Style Backyard Retreat

A rectangular pool runs along the center of the backyard. Colorful balls reflect the colors used throughout the landscape. This is a brilliant way to draw attention to the colors. A ‘Sticks on Fire’ succulent (Euphorbia tirucalli ‘Sticks on Fire’) basks in the sun. This is a plant that does beautifully in hot, arid climates.

Low Maintenance Garden southwest office

A Garden Office with a View

Now, we are at the point in the tour where I became seriously envious. This is B.’s office. It is separate from her house. She simply walks by her beautiful pool on her way to work in the morning and enjoys a glorious view of her garden while she works. Have I ever mentioned that I work in my dining room. That is, until my kids leave home and I get my own office (room).

hibiscus, rosemary, and basil

Creative Container Displays

A group of containers filled with a variety of plants including hibiscus, rosemary, and basil. This adds interest to this corner by the pool.

low-maintenance garden with bold plants in Austin, tx

Privacy and Color in the Low Maintenance Garden

Bamboo is used to help provide privacy from neighbors. The shrub roses add a welcome pop of color. It is an unlikely combination that really works.

Low-Maintenance Garden fire hydrant for a dog

A Garden for Every Family Member

Even the dog has its own space in B.’s garden with a patch of grass and his own fire hydrant!

Low-Maintenance Garden seating

Relax in Style in this Low Maintenance Garden

Isn’t this a lovely low maintenance seating area? I love the splash of red and the bamboo backdrop.

Low-Maintenance Garden

A Contemporary Low Maintenance Garden Oasis

Just the perfect spot to sit with my friend, Teresa Odle. I must admit that I am drawn more toward more naturalistic gardens. I enjoy curves and staggered plantings. My heart does love the contemporary lines of B. Jane’s garden and its resort-like vibe. You can find out more about B. Jane and her creations here.

swimming pool

Have you ever encountered this landscaping challenge? This blank wall is rather boring, and the home behind it dominates the view. So what would you do to fix these problems?

I faced this dilemma last month at a client’s home. The pool was the main focal point of the landscape, and the dull wall wasn’t doing it any favors. In coming up with a solution, we had to select a plant that was relatively low-litter, due to the proximity to the pool and that looked attractive throughout the entire year because of the high-profile location.

evergreen shrub , Hop Bush (Dodonaea viscosa)

Hop Bush (Dodonaea viscosa)

I recommended adding three hop bush (Dodonaea viscosa). These are tall, evergreen shrubs that thrive in arid climates such as ours. 

swimming pool

One of the many things that I love about them is their versatility. They thrive in full sun and light shade, and can be allowed to grow up to 12 feet tall, or maintained at a lower height.

Hop bush , evergreen shrub

Hop bush can be allowed to grow to their natural shape…

evergreen shrub

…or pruned more formally.

evergreen shrub

For the area behind the pool, I recommend having it grow to its full height, which will help provide privacy while the attractive foliage will add a welcome screen of green throughout the year.

evergreen shrub

evergreen shrubs Hop bush flowers

Hop bush does produce light green, papery flowers in spring, but they aren’t particularly showy. So, we need to add a color element to the area behind the pool.

colored containers

One of my favorite ways to add color to any landscape is to incorporate brightly colored containers in shade of blue, purple, or orange. That way, whether plants are in bloom or not, there is always a bright splash of color.

colored containers

For this area, I recommended adding 3 blue pots, equally spaced.

Now it was time to decide what to plant in each pot. The client wanted a low-maintenance choice that wouldn’t require a lot of water.

Blue Elf'

Immediately, I remembered touring a landscape that had blue containers filled with ‘Blue Elf’ aloe. Even though the aloe had finished blooming for the year, their spiky blue-gray foliage added nice color contrast.

Aloe vera

This small aloe is one of my favorite succulents for several reasons. First, it begins to bloom in late winter, lasting into spring adding welcome color to cool-season landscapes. Hummingbirds can’t resist the flowers either.

Aloe vera

This aloe is best showcased when grouped together and thrives in full sun, unlike most aloe which prefer filtered shade. Finally, it is hardy to 15 degrees F. so cold winters seldom bother it.

colored containers

And so, here is the planting that I suggested to my client that will provide year round beauty and privacy.

*Do you have a favorite plant or group of plants that you like to use against bare walls?

Visit to a Client’s Desert Garden