A subtly formal design for a historic Napa Valley garden

Nestled within the 25 acres of Dickerson Vineyard, in the heart of St Helena in California’s Napa County, is a house and garden designed to fit in seamlessly with the site’s agricultural heritage. Though the building has a modernist feel, its gabled roofs and vertical western red cedar wood cladding are reminiscent of barns in the area. Rooms open onto porches with views of the distant hills, blurring the lines between inside and out. Windows overlook the rows of grape vines that surround the house and walkways weave through pocket gardens filled with vibrantly coloured plants. The buildings surround a generous courtyard that is easy to access through large sliding doors.

‘There are hints of formality in the design of the structures and garden,’ says Roderick Wyllie, co-founder of San Francisco-based landscape architecture firm Surfacedesign Inc, which is known for its innovative projects. ‘But the scale of the buildings, the materials and the plantings are unpretentious and quite simple. The design team wanted to stay true to the site.’ Roderick has a special connection to the informal character and history of the Napa Valley, as his family owns a property in St Helena and he has been a regular visitor for many years. ‘I appreciate the agrarian history of the area and wanted to make sure we honoured that in the final scheme.’

The vineyard itself has historic significance in Napa Valley. Planted in 1920, just before Prohibition came in, it is the only one that still grows the old-vine zinfandel grapes on Zinfandel Lane in St Helena. To celebrate this, the design team sited the house and garden so that the rooms and outdoor living areas would seem as though they were floating above the vines. ‘Whether the owners are looking out of a window, cooking in the kitchen, sitting by the firepit or standing in the outdoor shower, the vines are right there,’ says Roderick. ‘They are a focal point at every turn.’

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Instead of walling the garden off from the vineyard, he worked with the Palo Alto studio Field Architecture to orientate the building so that the main views would overlook the vines towards the Mayacamas Mountains in one direction and a giant oak tree – more than 100 years old – in the other. ‘Many of our layout decisions were organised around this central line that highlighted the two most important elements of the property,’ explains Roderick. The U-shaped house, the front door, the sliding doors to the courtyard, the pool, the main walkway in the garden and the barn are all centred on this axis.

To break up the hard landscaping, he created exuberantly planted pocket gardens throughout the space. In one area, between two wings of the house, he tucked a cocktail garden filled with various herbs and citrus trees. A perennial garden featuring clouds of abundant plants softens the straight edges of the infinity pool. Trees dot the pool deck, which is planted with creeping thyme in long rows to break up the limestone paving and create geometry that echoes the lines of vines. In narrow beds along the front entryway and porch, Roderick created a moon garden with varieties that have white flowers and reflect moonlight. Plants are tucked between pavers in the outdoor shower and, in each area, vegetation appears to be encroaching on manmade structures like a jungle slowly overtaking ancient ruins.

The muted tones of the exterior of the house and the hard landscaping made it especially important for the plantings to bring the garden to life. Nowhere is this more evident than around the terraces, porches and seating areas, where Roderick selected the most colourful plants with blooms in a palette of purples, pinks and white: echinacea, Russian sage, anise hyssop, catmint, yarrow, lavender and cornflowers. Airy perennials, such as Gaura lindheimeri, along with ornamental grasses such as Calamagrostis x acutiflora ‘Karl Foerster’ and distinctive Pennisetum alopecuroides ‘Little Bunny’ sway in the slightest breeze, adding movement around spots where people gather.

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Roderick was also thoughtful about the placement of trees. ‘The first thing I remember seeing when I visited the property was the large oak at the front,’ he recalls. ‘From then on, I was thinking about where to position specimen trees for the greatest impact.’ In a number of areas, he used trees to screen views of neighbouring homes in the distance or to create a partition between the entertaining and private spaces. Near the pool, in the perennial garden, a leafy chitalpa tree separates a private porch from the pool deck. On the gravel terrace near the barn, where the owners like to relax by their fire pit, an ancient olive obscures a nearby house. Roderick also planted a large valley oak in the courtyard to bring a vertical element to the space, in addition to much-needed shade.

‘In general, I wasn’t fussy about particular trees or plants on this project – I tend to think more thematically,’ Roderick explains. ‘I just wanted durable plants that would serve a purpose – trees that block a view, perennials with lots of colour, herbs that can be used in cocktails.’ In line with this approach, he often opted for the most basic form of the plant rather than fancy cultivars. ‘The design of the house and the layout of the garden are deliberately uncomplicated. I thought that the plant selections should reflect this.’

Throughout, Roderick has tried to focus on finding the simplest ways to enhance the unique features of the property – the historic vineyard, a majestic oak, the stunning views of mountains and the surrounding valley. ‘My goal is to make these elements more accessible and enjoyable,’ he says. ‘Garden design is at its best when it elevates the site’s natural beauty, honours the local vernacular and celebrates the property’s history.’

Surfacedesign Inc: sdisf.com
Field Architecture: fieldarchitecture.com