I recently had the opportunity to design a petite space on a very elegant houseboat. The house has modern lines and the view is incredible – as waterfront as you can get. The downside for the client is little privacy. Kayakers pull right up to the edge of their deck and peer in – and who can blame them with such an interesting house. To create a soft barrier enclosing the space (yet not impeding the view) I designed low benching to be attached at the deck edge. This performs double duty providing extra seating when entertaining or a place to lie in the sun – all without taking too much precious deck space. It also conveys the message “private space” for the floating lookie-loos. I added a screen on the north side of the deck to provide privacy from the closest houseboat neighbor and further enhance the sense of enclosure. The architect/builder who will be creating these elements had the fantastic idea to put the screen on a track so it can be pulled out when privacy is needed and pushed back for a sense of openness. Pots frame the space and add a bit of leafy softness. I opted for a palette of black pots on the deck and one showy copper red pot by the front door – picking up the rich trim color. I kept the planting simple – I am not a fan of overstuffed annuals in pots. I prefer interesting evergreen foliage plants in pots and one per pot when possible. This provides elegant, clean lines and is very low maintenance. The ebullient flower stuffed pots may be lovely in summer, but most have to be redone every year and they provide little winter interest. Plants used included a small Acer palmatum in rich chocolate-copper tones to add height and echo the house colors, a few dwarf conifers which are perfect for pots and Nassella tenuissima flanked by a copper colored Heuchera.
I planted the pots yesterday and the hardscape elements will be installed next. I was not alone while planting – a family of ducks observed my progress from right off the deck. They were every cute, but of no help whatsoever when the lens cap bounced out of my hand and into the water. Nonetheless, I took a few pictures.
