The children were happy, the mood was light, the conversation was enlightening and the food was wonderful!  I love beach vacations.  I hope this little grilling idea helps to convert your backyard into your own little garden resort. Sometimes, as Jimmy Buffett says, we just need a little Mental Floss.

Rum marinated Shrimp, Guacamole, and Pico de Gallo

Shrimp:

1. Jumbo Shrimp (deveined)…marinade with rum, Italian dressing, garlic, Roses Sweetened Lime Juice for 57 minutes.   (You will probably find that this is the exact amount of time required to consume 1½ meandering mai tais while getting sucked into a political discussion with your brother-in-law.)
2. Grill over high heat while basting with rum, melted butter, Roses Sweetened lime juice and Slap Yo Mama seasoning.
3. Sear, flip, sear again and they are ready…do not overcook!!!

Guacamole:

1. Mix 8 avocados with: one very large chopped onion, 2 cups of Picante sauce, 2 bulbs of minced garlic.
2. Add the juice of 2 limes and 2 tablespoons of sea salt.
3. Start tasting for adjustments to salt, garlic or lime.
4. Have a drink and continue tasting!!!

Pico de Gallo

1. Throw together 2 quarts finely diced tomatoes with 4 finely dices red onions and 1 bunch of chopped cilantro and a handful of chopped jalepenos.
2. Dust with ground sea salt and squeeze lime juice until content.

Mirror Lake Meandering Mai Tai

1. Fill glass with ½ tangerine juice
2. Add big splash of pineapple juice, a splish of freshly squeezed lime juice, a couple of glurgs of rum and shake with ice.  Pour into fresh glass and drizzle with cranberry juice …and add a garnish of fancy cut lime.
3. Follow by copious amounts of slurping.

Make sure you have some sears home-made tortillas to hold the shrimp/guacamole/ pico, some comfortable seating areas  in the garden and a few small towels and napkins and the night will be wonderful…but stay away from politics and keep the discussion to sports and movies and fashion – it keeps the garden setting happier!

And until next time…may God hold you in the palm of his hand.

On this show we talk about:

• Techniques for success in your landscape
• How to make sure you have success with your contractor
• Planting techniques for success using rhythmic repetition with contrast for the focal point
• Ideas for success with kids in the back yard
• Planned failure equals having no plan

On this show we interview:

• Mercer Arboretum director, Darrin Duling, fills us in on their May 5 Garden Party. Shawn will be the auctioneer for the event.
• Dan Cook, of the Lone Star Koi Club talks about the annual Water Garden and Pond Tour, May 5-6, 2012. Click Here for more information.

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This manner of thought has served me well over my 30 years as a registered landscape architect.  It has allowed me to take on new ventures and try new techniques with the wisdom that comes with close observation and scrutiny (although this philosophy has kept me away from electrical work and skydiving).

However, I do not think the wheel has to be constantly re-invented.  I am always in search of the mentor, the elder with scars who will enjoy telling a story of what those scars taught.

With this in mind we are going to share a few techniques this weekend.  Blinda and I will discuss some of the simple things I got wrong 30 years ago, some my misuse of equipment, some of my misunderstanding of client requests, and some of my amazing mistakes with materials involving plantings, soils, patios and pools.

But it’s not all “woe is me!”  We’ll also share some of the incredible techniques we’ve mastered in our 30 years of award winning pool and landscape development.

So whether you’re sketching plans, digging perennials, supervising contractors or entertaining in the garden… this week you’re bound to pick up a few tried and true techniques for success in Your Livable Garden.

On this show we talk about:

• Space — where to find it, how to manipulate it, and how to define it
• We unveil a landscape design trick which will allow you to more than double the size of your backyard!
• Space in your landscape budget
• How to make sure your swimming pool design, your patio design or just your general landscape plan makes the most of your physical and economic space

On this show we interview:

• Dr. Clayton Neighbors, professor and director of social psychology at the University of Houston discusses personal space.
• Mercer Arboretum director, Darrin Duling, fills us in on their May 5 Garden Party. Shawn will be the auctioneer for the event.
• Dan Cook, of the Lone Star Koi Club talks about the annual Water Garden and Pond Tour, May 5-6, 2012. Click Here for more information.
• Frank Rabey of The Hammock Source gives us the scoop on Pawley’s Island and Hatteras hammocks. See our favorite hammocks on The Garden Lifestyle website.
• Beverly Welch from The Arbor Gate talks about Basil Mania.

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Hour 1

Hour 2

“Let me ‘splain.  No, there is too much.  Let me sum up.”

The elements of art are:

Line, shape and form, space, and texture.

While the principles of art are:

Balance, variety, harmony, emphasis, proportion, movement, rhythm, and unity.

And all good design, of any type, deals with these factors.  Just as conflicting sounds in music, poor grammar in writing, competing flavors in cooking, or arguing guest at a party may cause dissonance, when the principles of art are ignored in landscape design a jumbled collection of stuff is often the result in your garden.

And no one wants a garden of jumbled stuff.

Check out the book we reviewed, A Garden Gallery…Inspiration from and Enchanted World of Plants and Artistry by George Little and David Lewis.  In thirty years of living my profession in Landscape Architecture, I have never been as impressed  garden displays as the ones shown in the wonderful collection of photos.  It is available at www.TheGardenLifestyle.com

We’re going to be talking about “space” in our next show…how to find it, how to grab it, how to form it, and how to enhance it.  So there.  If you have ever thought to yourself, “Wow, I wish I had more space for entertaining in my garden” then this next show is for you.

Until then, may God hold you in the palm of His hand.

On this show we talk about:

• Creating artistry in your landscape
• Creating interest with garden bed shapes
• How not to construct an arbor

On this show we interview:

• George Lewis & David Little, authors of A Garden Gallery
• Mercer Arboretum director, Darrin Duling, talks about creating an Asian garden and about their May 5 Garden Party. Shawn will be the auctioneer for the event.
• Robin Salmon, Curator of Brookgreen Gardens, located between Myrtle Beach and Pawleys Island, South Carolina. Brookgreen was the first sculpture garden in the US. Visit their website at Brookgreen.org
• Molly Fowler, The Dining Diva, talks about artistic entertaining by doing the unexpected with not only your food but your table decorations as well. She reveals her secrets for enjoying your own party.

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Hour 1

Hour 2

On this show we talk about:

• Best method to water your lawn
• Things to consider when deciding on a fountain
• How to make a table top water arrangement
• What is involved in a pool redo
• Tips for draining your yard
• Pina Colada pork chops

On this show we interview:

• Dr. Mengmeng Gu, Assistant Professor and Extension Ornamental Horticulturist Texas A&M College of Agriculture and Life Sciences who discusses the relationship between plants and water. Get more information about her horticulture trip to China at www.GreenViion.wordpress.com.
• Mercer Arboretum director, Darrin Duling, talks about which plants do well in a soggy bottom.
• Jack Gregoire of Hines Development, the company that maintains the Williams Water Wall in the Gerald D Hines Water Wall Park, gives very interesting factoids about the fountain. For example it pumps 11,000 gallons per minute!

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Hour 1

Hour 2

On this show we talk about:

• Fun things to do with children using sand, leaves, and egg games
• Combine dwarf bird of paradise with foxtail fern, ixora and plumbago
• Creating a theme or scene by starting with a portion of the yard
• How to bridge the gap between the natural look of the pool area with the formal style of your house
• Combine Fraser’s photinia, President Clay azalea, snow indian hawthorne and bridal wreath

On this show we interview:

• Carol Rivera, from the 65th annual Poteet Strawberry Festival April 13-15. Get tickets on their website www.StrawberryFestival.com

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Here’s the picture of Shawn’s golf bag planter he used in the Mirror Lake Designs golf theme.