Thank you .. ‘Dirt du Jour’

for the glowing review! "Go ask Alice ... where all the best vineyard gardens are. She's an erudite charmer; you'll have fun!"

Los Angeles

Venice, California

Venice - Yellow Cottage (Photo: Alice Joyce)

May 7, 2011 is the date for the popular Venice Garden & Home Tour.I’ve heard rave reviews about the annual Venice Garden and Home tour from horticulture professionals and garden aficionados. Take advantage of this chance to get up-close and personal with the unique character of the Venice canals, from jaw-dropping, designer-chic decor and fetching architecture, to kooky bungalow-style. The tour is a fundraiser for NYA’s Las Doradas Children’s Center.

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Historic Gardens

Greystone Park and Formal Gardens

Greystone Mansion Gardens- Beverly Hills (Photo: Alice Joyce)

The City of Beverly Hills maintains the inviting landscape of Greystone Park and Mansion. Oil baron Edward Lawrence Doheny’s son, ‘Ned’ had Greystone built as his family residence in the late 1920s, calling upon a celebrated Southern California architect, Gordon B.Kaumann, to design the mansion. as a Southern California public park, Greystone is unique: A must-see destination. You’ll encounter restored terraces and extravagant sweeping lawns, myriad water features erected as focal points and the property’s meticulously maintained stonework; exhibiting the extensive use of pale Indiana limestone to set apart the mansion itself and the landscape architecture. The formal gardens are enhanced by handsome slate walkways, echoing the Welsh slate used for the mansion’s roof.

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Landscape Architecture

Strictly Modern: Santa Monica Place

Befitting the easy and inviting, yet classy and cool vibe of Santa Monica — the oceanside enclave where I’m drawn each time I visit Los Angeles — the newly reopened Santa Monica Place boasts a stunning redesign. The original shopping mall designed by Frank Gehry is now extensively remade, boasting a fabulous upper level, indoor/outdoor rooftop deck that is the spot for lunch, cocktails, or for a ‘dinner with view.’ The setting’s polished landscape architecture elevates the experience for those who shop, with Bloomingdale’s and Burberry, to Hugo Boss, Ted Baker, and Tory Burch on the premises: If it’s retail therapy you’re after, the shops offer a luxurious, unparalleled panoply of goods. And the range of Santa Monica Place restaurants is impressive, whether you’re looking for fine dining, or have time only to grab fresh fast food. Coming soon…. a market where you can pick up artisinal products & seasonal organic ingredients for a picnic.

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