160 Scenic Drive
On a hot July day, what could be as cooling as the sight and sound of running water in the garden? The garden of Cheryl Briggs’ home at 160 Scenic Drive is the Ashland Garden Club’s July 2016 Garden of the Month, and it has water features in two places among a small forest of shady trees. Previous owners installed the recirculating waterfalls, stream, and ponds on a steep lot.
Briggs has owned the home for five years, and she added the steps, walkways, and driveway with design help from Jeanine Strum of The Seasons Color. Briggs has weekly maintenance help from Carol’s Colors. A major project in the recent past removed ivy from the slope leading from the street. There is a stunning view of the valley and hills to the East, from a deck that has huge pots with masterful combinations of small plants.
Rhododendrons and azaleas abound in the shady areas. Also featured are Japanese maples and camellias. The major trees are Douglas fir and cedar. A photinia hedge lines the street. Elsewhere in the garden are a Cecile Bruner and Lady Banks roses, dogwood, wisteria, magnolia, and madrone.
The original landscape design was by Karen Marshall of Naturescape Designs in Medford. All of the hardscape, including a lap pool and recirculating waterfall and pond, the mature trees, and long-established plants were part of Marshall’s plan. Among the most eye-catching examples is a beautiful combination of four conifers, near the pond, that emphasizes differences of color and texture.
Since the original plan, a number of changes have been made, most recently a small project that takes advantage of the City of Ashland’s lawn replacement program. All of the recent changes have resulted in considerable savings in both water usage and labor to replace seasonal plantings. All of this has been accomplished through the guidance of Sherry Zalabak who chairs the homeowners’ association landscape committee and is the volunteer caretaker. A dedicated gardener, Zalabak now devotes an average of ten hours a week to the grounds. She plans carefully, to provide color year-round with perennials rather than annuals, and to enhance the variety of textures. Zalabak transformed one area with the beautiful combination of barberry and blue oat grass. Smoke tree, dogwood, and other dramatic plants have been added for contrast. As the gardens had been neglected for some years, Zalabak devoted over 1000 hours to their improvement over her first two years in residence, starting in 2012. Promak Landscape provides routine maintenance twice a month.
Do you need to name that wildflower you saw while hiking?
They have a “Little Free Library” (one of three in Ashland) in front. An arbor, featuring bookmatched fretwork like the low fencing, supports banksia roses and clematis. Boxwood tops the river rock edging that lines the sidewalk. Surrounding the small lawn are pieris, roses, rhododendrons, cranesbill geranium, and many other plants. A small weeping cherry was recently added to complement the mature Chinese elms trees in front.
throughout the landscape, including a large sign that spells PEONY, made from letters Kramer salvaged from the J.C. PENNEY CO. building in downtown Medford that now houses the Southern Oregon Historical Society. At its’ base is a rusty sculpture that was once a 55 gallon drum, but was river-tumbled to a unique shape.