Casa Encantada Once in a lifetime, you come upon an opportunity that seems like you were destined for, and you know that you need to move on it quickly. In my case, the opportunity that has taken me to my happy place, it has been the purchase and complete restoration of Casa Encantada, a hacienda Spanish Colonial vernacular, designed by H.H. Green in 1926. Upon my first glimpse of this property, I could tell the house once had been more than what it had become. I could sense the former optimism of the house and the era it was constructed. This house has left a mark on me. The arches, loggias, courtyard and fountain are forms of nostalgia and desire that are still forms of comfort and purpose. The quick backstory of Casa Encantada reveals that the owner /architect himself artfully created this exceptional property in the 1920's. With exceptional attention to detail, Mr. Green created a true "sense of place", that was distinctive to old Arizona. This was to be a bucolic escape emblematic of an era gone by, where Spanish cultural influences were not only encouraged, but also celebrated. This was Arizona before strip malls and parking lots. This Arizona was dignified and proud. 1
Transcript
Casa Encantada
Once in a lifetime, you come upon an opportunity that seems like you were destined for, and you know that you need to move on it quickly. In my case, the opportunity that has taken me to my happy place, it has been the purchase and complete restoration of Casa Encantada, a hacienda Spanish Colonial vernacular, designed by H.H. Green in 1926.
Upon my first glimpse of this property, I could tell the house once had been more than what it had become. I could sense the former optimism of the house and the era it was constructed. This house has left a mark on me. The arches, loggias, courtyard and fountain are forms of nostalgia and desire that are still forms of comfort and purpose.
The quick backstory of Casa Encantada reveals that the owner /architect himself artfully created this exceptional property in the 1920's. With exceptional attention to detail, Mr. Green created a true "sense of place", that was distinctive to old Arizona.
This was to be a bucolic escape emblematic of an era gone by, where Spanish cultural influences were not only encouraged, but also celebrated. This was Arizona before strip malls and parking lots. This Arizona was dignified and proud.
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Former Senator Carl Hayden bought this home in 1929 with some stocks and bonds he sold. Luck was on his side. The stock market crash, a few months later, would have rendered these bonds worthless.
In the living room, an artfully curated fireplace is front and center. Minton tiles from the U.S. Capitol were secured and Senator Hayden later installed. The house has 18-inches, thick adobe walls and all the signature markings of a Spanish colonial.
Coming from a family that has a longstanding tradition of hospitality,I wanted create a place where family and friends could come and visit. My intent was to create an experience where my guests feel they are catapulted into another time and place. I wanted this to be a true "resort lifestyle" experience, that is refreshing and vital. A place that long dinners with good conversations would regularly occur. Time slows down and tranquility settles over all when in this place. For me impeccable detail is the key to creating beauty. I love to enter places that can be remembered in the soul.
The Garden
I am a child of wanderlust. I love to celebrate the journeys and places I have been. Places can and do, have incredible power. This garden is a place to invite guests to experience it as created, and not censoring its exuberance. I am also an astute observer and I need to identify with places I visit. There is transformation in observation. Curiosity always propels me and ignites passion that inspires my work.
For me, creating a sensational place or garden is like taking a picture to record experiences and to see a place differently. To search out the details and nuances that show us what is essential about this place and time and celebrate it.
The design process for the garden evolved over two years, and was six years in the actual planting and development.
This garden was to become a hidden oasis behind the rustic Moorish door, resplendent with plantings one would see in an old Mexican city like San Miguel de Allende or Cuernavaca. Diversity of plants from Mexico to Madagascar are abundant.
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This is my Hacienda garden. A collection garden of cycads, desert adapted palms, cacti and succulents, all placed in proper microclimates under the canopy of trees. As a director of horticulture at a public garden, I see the importance of beauty for beauty itself, as well as an elevated horticultural experience.
There are numerous outdoor rooms and escapes. The sun-drenched pool area and the candlelit dining pavilion are obvious. There is an observation patio atop the winding terracotta staircase, where one can observe the canopy of desert adapted, sub-tropical trees. There are two loggias for breakfast and cocktail hours that interface the courtyard.
This garden is a large-scale rain garden. Every drop of rain that falls on ten thousand square feet of rooftops ends up in the garden. There is a retention system found throughout the property that aids in the additional water requirements of the palms and
cycads. The lawn is a retention basin and in a heavy rain, it can fill up to its capacity. This was a requirement from the city for historic preservation and adapted re-use.
I am trying to model this garden off the standards of IPM (Integrated Pest Management) that we use at the Desert Botanical Garden. Only organic fertilizer is used (fish emulsion), and I am pesticide free.
The Spaces in the Garden
Entry GardenThis is the welcome mat to the neighborhood. A canterra walk bisects the front garden of agaves, succulents, Sabal palms and oak trees featured in beds of rosemary and dwarf portulacaria. A large Tipu tree will eventually canopy the entire entry sequence and help in summer cooling.
There are three substantial Plumeria obtusa tucked in closely to the foundation. They are located in a microclimate, have done very well, and provide intoxicating scent upon entering the entry doors.
Interior CourtyardUpon passing through the rustic wood doors, you enter into my inner courtyard garden. Here is evidence of the true hacienda style of protected space with shade and water. Syzygium trees from Australia along with 'Medjool date palms and live oaksprovide the cooling canopy. A carved canterra stone fountain provides the element of water.
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Glassworks from Joshua Noah Dopp, invite whimsy and color to the space. A canterra pathway meanders through the space and asks the visitor to slow down, and enjoy the journey. This pathway has been
intentionally constructed in segments to allow the natural flow of rainwater to move through this garden space.
A collection of rare cycads, palms and agaves are the main features along with giant Crinum lilies that add fragrance in the spring.
Tillandsias from Sonora Mexico are artfully arranged on the lower tree branches. They come from the Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum in Tucson where they are grown.
Bismark palms from Madagascar can be spotted in the background with their dramatic shapes and powder blue color.
Two ,DD Blanchard, magnolia trees flank the east end of this garden. I have been testing these magnolia trees for heat tolerance.
Other more notable plants in the courtyard include: Ginger, Yucca filifera, Aloe 'Hercules', Chinese fan palm, Ficus altissima nestled in beds of rosemary groundcover.
This garden has a true microclimate and provides protection from the elements with four walls and the canopy of trees.
Back TerraceThis is the connection of the property to the surrounding golf course. This space allows for open viewing of the vistas beyond. Iron fencing provides protection for sun terrace and pool but allows for the view.
Groves of live oak trees were planted to flank both sides of this area and blur the lines between me and my neighbor's properties. The oak trees also provide the canopy for plantings of additional aloes, cycads, palms and other shade lovers.
There is a sunken lawn surrounded by a heavy gauge steel header to allow for overflow of water in a heavy rain or people in a large party.
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Knot Garden
This garden area takes me back to my childhood in Missouri. This is the garden that can change with the seasons. The soil has been improved substantially. Last season, I grew artichokes, beets, squash and other herbs. This season, I have decided to pay homage to the classic knot garden style seen in many European estate gardens. (I love to keep the golfers guessing).
For my knot garden, I planted a base of the compact form of sage called 'Berggarten'. The sage forms the outline as well as the star in the center. The silver accents are forms of Salvia argentea and 'Cirrus' Dusty Miller. I have added color with a low form of lantana called 'Lavender Swirl'. Lavandula angustifolia surround the urn. Other accents include Agave ovatifolia and standard form of Ligustrum japonicum or wax privet.
BK'S TAKEAWAYS
1. Create a sense of place, by planting a canopy of trees and using your protected garden spaces to their fullest potential.
2. Borrow views from surrounding neighborhood. I planted the same street palms that were there originally, and had to be removed for construction. I kept the backyard views open for an expansive view.
3. Make an entrance inviting, by using architectural elements such as old carved wooden doors and antique urns to create old world charm.
4. Look to the past for inspiration. I selected the look of the central fountain feature from old photographs of the courtyard in the 1920's.
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5. Create multiple sanctuary areas. Shaded protected nooks protect plants and people and attract wildlife such as birds, butterflies, lizards and frogs.
6. Delight the senses by adding sculpture. This could be stone or glass or both! Art can be from travels and evoke emotions.
7. Fill pots with fragrant flowers that fill the air. Change pots with the seasons.
8. Furnish your loggias with comfort and color. Add soft candles for the evenings and outdoor fabrics that work with your palette.
9. Take advantage of nature. I collect all the rain that falls on this property and channel it into a large "Rain Garden" system that is totally gravity fed.
10. Create night magic by planting white blooming plants and silver reflective plants that show well in the moonlight.
11. Blur the lines of your neighbor's property by planting trees and large shrubs that make it look as if you are on the edge of a woodland. Plant multiples of one tree like the live oak, to create a grove affect.
12. Use plants as living sculptures. This is what has always attracted me to cacti, agaves, yuccas, palms and cycads. These plants are living sculptures. Strap like leaves, fleshy stems, torch-like, tubular and tree-like, they create an impression.
13. Use water for reflectivity. Take advantage of the mirror-like quality of water and place plants that will benefit from their reflection on the water's surface. This can become other worldly, especially if these plantings are uplit at night. The garden becomes a special place when night falls.
14. I select paving to go with the architecture. The house has terra-cotta tile inside, and I wanted to keep it natural and simple outside. Subtle canterra stone is my choice for a timelose outdoor look that Plays well with the fountain and fireplace.
