How Does Your Garden Grow?

Glendale News Press. April 10, 2010. By Nicole Charky: This isn’t a garden tour for pansies — it’s strictly native.

The Theodore Payne Foundation’s 50-year anniversary garden tours today and Sunday include 50 gardens in Los Angeles County to commemorate the organization’s dedication to native California plants and Theodore Payne’s legacy.

Payne dedicated his life to preserving wildflowers such as golden poppies and yellow tidy tips in his own nursery and seed business.

Greenroof to Garner Platinum Points

Lofts @ Cherokee Studios Blog. September 28, 2009.The Pugh + Scarpa designed Lofts @ Cherokee Studios have earned LEED Platinum certification from the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC). Some of the LEED points come as a result of the building’s gorgeous roof top garden, designed by FormLA Landscaping.

Innovation in the Foothills

Urban Edge. September 9, 2009. On September 9 the UCLA Ext. Student Chapter of the ASLA hosted an afternoon tour of innovative garden projects in La Canada. Cassy Aoyagi of FormLA and Brian Sullivan of Descanso Gardens led attendees through two of their recent landscape designs, discussing the history and design strategy of these projects. Sites visited were the drought tolerant garden at the La Canada Library and the vertical and roof gardens at the Sturt Haaga Galleries at the Descanso Gardens.

Save Money, Save Water, Stop Mowing

Apartment Age. July 2009. Water conservation mandates took effect June 1, 2009. Reducing outdoor water consumption will be key to avoiding stiff fines and rate hikes associated with high water consumption. Positioning properties to use less water can produce other cost savings, particularly when the plan involves replacing traditional lawns. In fact, Consumer Reports includes “thinking beyond grass” among its top 10 landscaping money-savers. Read More

Lush Water-Saving Hillside Terrace at Showcase House

HomeWizards with Cindy Dole. May 11, 2009. If you’ve been thinking of making some changes to your yard You want to go more drough tolerant, less water thirsty plants. Now is the time to take notes call in and get the answers first hand with me is one of the landscape designers who transformed this hillside into a masterpiece, Cassy Aoyagi, with FormLA Landscaping explains how she and her husband Kirk did this and how you can too!

Getting Native: Carex Meadows

PBS (KVCR). Frank Simpson interviews Cassy Aoyagi about the benefits and care of lawn alternatives, like the IdealMow lawns shown here, at a La Canada residence. Benefits include significant water, money and time savings.