how gorgeous can no grass be? The Los Angeles Times tells the Storybook Story.
Michael Solberg and Khoi Pham transformed the all-native, charming cottage garden we provided into a Storybook Garden where it’s easy to imagine gnomes under Deer Grass and baby dragons behind container gardens.
2025 Tour Snapshot
The Theodore Payne Foundation’s 2025 Native Plant Garden Tour featured the Storybook Garden as Garden 8. It tested just how many people could enjoy the garden at one time! Several docents joined homeowners Micheal and Khoi, including Michael’s mom Georgia, Theodore Payne Docent Adriana and several FormLA team members.
Each docent stayed busy through the day – the curious crowd asked such well-informed questions! Many had done their research and asked questions about the water positive features covered in the LA Times and Michael’s exceptional container gardens.
Visitors filled the paths of the front garden all day. Many paused to ask about the bioswales Michael and Khoi had lovingly cleared to be more visible for the occasion. Those who visited in 2024, noted the growth of the vine on the chimney and the California Lilacs in both front and back.
We loved hearing the crunch of gravel as people made their way to the back. There, native plant aficionados gazed in wonder at Michaels’s Toyon Espalier – so innovative!
Visitors noted how well the small space managed the crowds. The easy flow is a credit to Khoi – he curated the perfect balance of traffic-stopping wonders and outdoor furnishings. He has experience getting things just right! He also set up the garden for the couple’s wedding reception as well as the Garden Conservancy’s Open Days last year.
The Storybook Garden’s Story
The Los Angeles Times covered the garden in 2024 with the headline “This Storybook cottage’s native plant wonderland shows how gorgeous no grass can be.” When the homeowners encountered the cottage just a few years before, neglect hid its substantial charms, and lawned-life limited their use of the surrounding spaces. In renovating, they earned more beauty and less work. Jeanette Marantos details how they got there – and how they maintain and enjoy the garden now that its reached its full charm.
Pham and Solberg are still pinching
Los Angeles Times, 2024
themselves about how well it all came
together. Solberg said, laughing.
“…maintenance-wise, there’s
not a lot we have to do.
2024 Tour Snapshot
The 2024 Garden Conservancy’s LA Open Days featured the garden in its second year. The heavy rains of the prior year lead the garden to establish and grow to its full glory in record time.
See before and more photos in the full project gallery in Houzz, where you can save your favorite ideas.
Plant Palettes
Want to create storybook vibes? Check out Micheal’s container garden tips. For the planted garden, we chose a plant palette that would keep the Studio City property lush and leafy in high heat and low rain – and any stormwater that came LA’s way. Check out the following plant palettes in Pinterest for more.
