“I founded Elysian Landscapes in 1996 with a truck and a shovel, spending as much time in the field as at the drafting table,” says Judy Kameon, a former judge for Gardenista’s Considered Design Awards. She has since partnered with architect Dana Bauer, “who shares my passion for all things landscape,” and together, they have designed and built “projects at all scales and degrees of complexity in and around Los Angeles and beyond”—including the playful and lush grounds of Parker Palm Springs; the extraterrestrial garden at Isabel Marant’s flagship LA store; and the backyards of many a Tinseltown tastemaker.
“New projects include supportive housing for veterans, an urban farm/restaurant, a ceremonial space in the desert, and numerous private gardens. Our approach is equal parts environmental problem solving, spatial choreography, and creative expression,” says Judy, who, tellingly, has a degree in painting from UCLA. “Of course, here in LA, we join the many design and construction professionals rethinking our city by examining existing practices and exploring new strategies toward climate and fire resilience. We have all experienced a seismic change and have much to learn and share.” (You can read some of her thoughts on the issue in Ask the Experts: 5 Actionable Tips for a Fire-wise Landscape.)
Below, Judy shares her “spirit plant,” her sure-fire “cure-all” for pests and pestilence, and the sweet children’s book that turned her into a gardener.
Photography courtesy of Elysian Landscapes, unless noted.
Your first garden memory:
Above: The Carrot Seed is now available as a board book.
Planting and watering my seedlings, in a little raised wood planter box my parents made for me. I wanted to be like the boy in the The Carrot Seed who watered and weeded daily until a giant carrot came up. It was one of my favorite childhood books.
Garden-related book you return to time and again:
For inspiration, I turn to Creative Gardens by the landscape architect James Rose. It was written in 1958 and is packed with his brilliant command of residential spaces that still feel fresh and relevant. On the practical side, I flip through the Sunset Western Garden Book on an almost daily basis, from the moment I began making my own garden.
Describe in three words your garden aesthetic.
Above: Set within an urban neighborhood, Elysian Landscapes’ studio is a case study for a live-work space, including an evolving demonstration garden. See more of this outdoor space here.
Joyful, wild, and unexpected.
Plant that makes you swoon:
Kalanchoe beharensis is my spirit plant. I am forever in its thrall.
Favorite go-to plant:
For its soft form and movement, Lomandra ‘Platinum Beauty’ turns up in our designs over and over again. The way the foliage catches light always delights. For a more graphic punch, Aloe attract hummingbirds and humans alike with its candelabra torches. The vibrant blooms are a welcome sight in winter months.
Hardest gardening lesson you’ve learned:
Know your soil! If a plant wants sharp drainage and you’re planting in heavy clay, it’s not going to work out.
Unpopular gardening opinion:
Low maintenance is not no maintenance. Even gravel needs to be raked.
Gardening or design trend that needs to go:
Above: A climate appropriate-plant palette brings a vibrant tapestry to a formerly bare hillside, attracting birdlife and pollinators.
All natives plants all the time can be a bit limiting for a cultivated garden. I like to loosen the reins and weave in compatible climate-appropriate cultivars.
Favorite gardening hack:
Worm castings, aka worm poop, is a cure-all for many things. I like to lay it an inch deep under the dripline of fruit trees to combat leaf curl and white fly.
Favorite way to bring the outdoors in.
Above: A batch of Vin de Pamplemousse, made from Oro Blanco grapefruits and garnished with candied kumquats, extends citrus season into summer and fall.
Grow something edible and make something delicious to eat or drink! We have a house apertif made from our white grapefruit tree that we bottle in the winter and serve up throughout the year, inside and out.
Every garden needs a…
Fragrant plant. The perfume of a citrus blossom or the spicy notes of native sage are transporting.
Go-to gardening outfit:
Long sleeves and my cowboy hat. The hat goes where I go.
Favorite nursery, plant shop, or seed company:
Flora Grubb Gardens, the extraordinary San Francisco botanical emporium recently opened a flagship nursery in Los Angeles. Flora and her team of horticulturalists, fellow plant nerds, and designers staff the enviable displays of winning plant combinations, pots, and furnishings. [See Quick Takes With: Flora Grubb.]
On your wishlist:
I dream of creating a garden in partnership with The Birdsong Project. A place people can visit to share music and poetry, experience birds, insects, and wildlife within an urban landscape, and learn about how even small green spaces can provide meaningful food and shelter for many.
Not-to-be-missed public garden/park/botanical garden:
Southern California is favored with two of the most incredible gardens in the world—Lotusland in Montecito and The Huntington Botanical Garden in San Marino. Both offer a multitude of otherworldly environments, ranging from traditional and formal gardens to more unique and maverick explorations.
The REAL reason you garden:
Above: Judy’s personal garden is an ongoing project and space for experimentation. Photograph by Alessandro Casagrande.
I love to get my hands dirty, hang out with birds and butterflies, and watch things grow.
Thanks so much, Judy!
For our full archive of Quick Takes, head here.
