By Rachael Rifkin
Staff Writer
(Part five in a six-part series on the California Heights Home and Garden Tour)
Tim and Maria Price
(Cerritos Avenue)
Tim and Maria Price gradually developed their garden over a period of 10 years. When they initially moved to their 1928 home on Cerritos Avenue, the back yard sported a cement slab with a basketball half-court.
The happily retired couple— Tim was a fisheries biologist for the National Marine Fisheries Service, and Maria was the head of technical services for the County of Los Angeles Public Library— began by planting a vegetable garden and adding compost bins.
“We plant vegetables year round and, aside from the usual favorites like tomatoes, squash and lettuce, have enjoyed artichokes, beets, rhubarb, broccoli rabe, okra and kohlrabi,” Maria said. “We were also happy to find Meyer lemon, apricot and plum trees and have since added avocados, mission figs, strawberry guavas, concord grapes, blueberries, pomegranate and several varieties of citrus. Of course, there are many types of herbs, from basil to lemongrass, as well.”
Over the years, they did extensive hardscaping and landscaping work as well.
“We tired of watering the weed patch (aka lawn) in the front yard and replaced it with water-wise plants and small pathways. There are several large agave plants, rosemary, natal plum, euphorbias, drought-tolerant ground covers and many types of succulents. Plumeria and palm trees add a touch of the tropical,” she said.
The rear garden features a hot tub with a pergola and a fountain mural that was made in Spain in the 1950s and commissioned for a family member, but had never been installed. It consists of more than 250 tiles and depicts the construction of a California mission.
Most of all, the Prices enjoy sharing their garden with others. “We like to grow things we can eat and share with friends,” said Maria.
Pete Dowley and David Findley
(Olive Avenue)
Originally from Scotland, David Findley, a nurse for Orange County Correctional Services, wanted to transform the 1930s home on Olive Avenue that he shares with Pete Dowley into an English garden. It took about a year to turn their outdoor space into the lavender- and bougainvillea-laden, Victorian-style garden it is now.
They began by removing overgrown plants and adding a cream-colored, arched arbor, a covered swing and a miniature gate. The bricks that were already in the back yard were pulled up and redone in a herringbone pattern. They also planted a cornucopia of flowers, including gardenias, roses and nasturtiums.
“We did a lot of low-water plants. Really anything that grows like a weed. We are novices, so we would pick out plants, and it was very ‘hit or miss.’ We’d buy a pack of something, plant them and whatever survived got to stay,” said Dowley, an interior designer.
With a barbeque, new deck, Jacuzzi and beautiful garden, Dowley and Findley spend a lot of time outside. “We basically live out there now. It’s very relaxing. We eat out there and we have people over a lot. It’s doubled as our entertaining space,” said Dowley. “It turned out even better than we thought it would. It’s like going into a little part of England.”
