At the Northern California Home & Landscape Expo at Cal Expo, I spotted a familiar face, award-winning Sacramento landscape designer Michael Glassman. His company, Michael Glassman & Associates, has performed outdoor living magic for more than 40 years.
Outdoor season is long and cherished. We emerge from winter’s chill, survey the yard and evaluate the work ahead. If the landscape is hopeless or woefully outdated, designers can do all the work or offer advice on an hourly basis to help avoid costly mistakes.
Glassman has hosted national television shows and authored eight books. His landscapes grace more than 50 Sunset magazine articles. He studied landscape design at France’s La Napoule Art Foundation and received degrees in landscape design and horticulture from UC Davis.
Heading one of the most prestigious design companies in Northern California, he credits success to being versatile and adapting to changing trends and economies. He takes jobs big and small.
“We’ve got a small office right in the Fox & Goose building,” he says. “My associate designer has been with me for 24 years and my administrative assistant for nine years. It’s a very small operation because we don’t spend a lot of time in our office.”
Promoting his latest book at the landscape expo, “Solving Problems in the Landscape,” a collaboration with Davis-based gardening podcaster and video blogger Janey Santos (“Dig, Plant, Water, Repeat”), Glassman was a featured speaker for two workshops.
“Every one of my clients and those I talk to have indigenous problems in their landscapes, whether it be drainage, privacy or lack of space,” Glassman says. “I realized I’ve always wanted to do a book on solving problems in the landscape and I felt there was a tremendous need for this book. And even though I’ve written other books, the one thing that we never stressed was all the problems.”
Some of us are content to set aside sections of yards for lawn, flower and vegetable beds, with a patio for relaxing and entertaining. We are fine with the basics until we are not.
A good landscape designer listens and is mindful of current and future needs with an emphasis on minimal maintenance. If you take on labor and planning yourself, some designers, Glassman included, can be hired for consultations. He charges $250 an hour. Pitfalls for DIYers are numerous and expensive.
“The most important things are function, usability and sustainability,” Glassman says. “A lot of my clients want a space to entertain. They want to be able to barbecue and swim. They want to be able to garden and grow food.”
Homes and lots are more compact today. It’s not always easy to have it all in the backyard. “Now, there is no such thing as throwaway spaces. Every space is valuable and useable,” he says.
These days, people want outdoor rooms, raised planters, plunge pools (small, shallow pools), spas, saunas and the number one request: outdoor kitchens and barbecue areas.
“My idea of the perfect garden is a cohesive space that ties the inside of the home to the outside,” Glassman says. “It is big enough to be able to have people over and entertain, barbecue, dine outside and sit by an outdoor fireplace. It is big enough that you can plant roses, grow vegetables and have privacy.”
In “Solving Problems in the Landscape,” Glassman and Santos highlight three perspectives: the gardener and use of plants, saving money with some DIY projects, and the designer’s perspective.
No. 1 question from prospective clients? “How do I take care of it?”
For Glassman, the ideal outdoor space is affordable with the amenities requested, yet small enough to maintain.
“Maybe spend a weekend once a month or a weekend twice a month to make it look amazing,” he says.
Thinking about a new patio and outdoor kitchen? Dreaming about new landscape? With planning and guidance, dreams can come true.
Dan Vierria is a University of California Cooperative Extension Master Gardener for Sacramento County. He can be reached at masterg29@gmail.com. For answers to gardening questions, contact UCCE Master Gardeners at (916) 876-5338, email mgsacramento@ucanr.edu or visit sacmg.ucanr.edu. Follow us on Facebook, X and Instagram: @insidesacramento.
