AS HE SOWS . . . : T.O. DENTIST POURS CREATIVITY, SWEAT INTO HILLSIDE GARDEN.Byline: R.A. Hutchinson Daily News Staff Writer Making his way down the peach-colored stone steps of his luscious backyard garden, Donald Huber explains where he found the rocks for the walkway. ``Right there, in that big hole,'' he said, pointing to the double-tiered lily and koi ponds 15 feet below. ``This whole hillside is solid rock.'' Did he know about the geology before he began the pond project? ``No, I did not,'' he says, shaking his head in memory of the three months of jackhammers in his back yard. But Huber, a dentist by day, said the end result is definitely worth the sweat. ``This is my therapy,'' he said. ``It's my hobby.'' The Huber garden at 1848 Falling Star falling star: see meteor. Ave. in North Ranch is one of five that will be on display this weekend in the 23rd annual Garden and Patio Tour, sponsored by the Westlake Village Garden Club. The tour is from 1 to 5 p.m. on Sunday. The Hubers' sprawling garden starts high above their home on rugged, untamed hillside where Huber has planted a miniature orchard of citrus trees, with a scattering of blackberry and raspberry bushes in the mix. Where the wild growth ends, the landscaping begins with a rose garden of more than 100 varieties. Stepping from the rose garden into a pint-sized vineyard of cabernet and merlot grapes gives visitors a panoramic view of the Conejo Valley The Conejo Valley is a region spanning both Southeastern Ventura County and Northwest Los Angeles County in Southern California, United States. It was discovered in 1542 by Spanish explorer Juan Rodriguez Cabrillo, and eventually became part of the Rancho El Conejo land grant by . Throughout the entire garden, whimsical stone and wooden animals lurk To view the interaction in a chat room or online forum without participating by typing in any comments. See de-lurk. lurk - lurking - raccoons, chimps, rabbits, squirrels, piglets - all with homes. ``I collect them from all over. They all have character,'' Huber said, adding that a lazy looking wooden bear was handcrafted hand·craft n. Variant of handicraft. tr.v. hand·craft·ed, hand·craft·ing, hand·crafts To fashion or make by hand. hand·craft by the artist who created the Jamboree bears at Disneyland. A square, white gazebo gazebo Lookout in the form of a turret, cupola (small, lanternlike dome), or garden house set on a height to give an extensive view. Few late-18th- and 19th-century rustic gazebos survive, but 17th-century turrets built up in an angle of the garden wall are not uncommon. - home to a nesting bird - separates the rose garden and vineyard area from the ponds. The upper pond, fed by a small waterfall spills over in strategic places to create twin falls Twin Falls, city (1990 pop. 27,591), seat of Twin Falls co., S Idaho, in the Snake River valley; inc. 1905. The city began as a center of a private irrigation project, which is supplemented by the Minidoka project of the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation. splashing into the koi pond below. ``I brought in 40 tons of moss rock to build the ponds,'' Huber said, adding that the stone used for the walkway was too soft for building the ponds. At the edge of the garden, a small Tom Sawyer-style bridge crosses a drainage culvert - a hidden filtering system sends water into the drainage system Noun 1. drainage system - a system of watercourses or drains for carrying off excess water system - instrumentality that combines interrelated interacting artifacts designed to work as a coherent entity; "he bought a new stereo system"; "the system consists of a . This marks the border between Huber's idea of finished garden and yet-to-be-done garden. His wife, Kathleen, says she's given up on the idea that he'll ever actually finish. ``But I just love the rose garden,'' she said. Huber said that to keep all the fountains going - there are also waterfalls feeding into a hot tub and swimming pool and a large fountain in the vineyard - his water bill can reach $1,800 a month in August. Their electric bill can hit $700. ``But this is what I do,'' Huber said. GARDEN WATCH WHAT: The Westlake Village Garden Club will have its 23rd annual Garden and Patio tour to raise money for scholarships and local charities. WHEN: 1 to 5 p.m. Sunday. WHERE: There are five homes on the tour. They are: The Nesen home in Hidden Valley, featuring twin waterfalls surrounded by tiered planting and rock retaining walls. The manicured croquet croquet (krōkā`), lawn game in which the players hit wooden balls with wooden mallets through a series of 9 or 10 wire arches, or wickets. The first player to hit the posts placed at each end of the field wins. lawn and rose garden merge into rocks and natural woodland. The Huse home in Southshore Hills. Walkways wind through flowering shrubs, junipers and roses with a backdrop of the Santa Monica Mountains The Santa Monica Mountains are a low transverse range in southern California in the United States. Geography They run for approximately 40 mi (64 km) east-west from the Hollywood Hills in Los Angeles to Point Mugu in Ventura County. . The Huber home in North Ranch, featuring a miniature citrus orchard and vineyard, a rose garden with more than 110 varieties and a tiered pond. The Tracy home in North Ranch shows gardeners how to be creative in a zero lot-line location. A multitrunked melaleuca Melaleuca see tea tree oil. is the focal point focal point n. See focus. of the garden, where shade plants provide privacy for two dining areas. The Postil Pos´til n. 1. Originally, an explanatory note in the margin of the Bible, so called because written after the text; hence, a marginal note; a comment. Langton also made postils upon the whole Bible. - Foxe. home in North Ranch, which features 300-year-old Valley oaks and a sunny rear garden. TICKETS: $6. INFORMATION:(805) 496-6026 or (805) 495-4428. CAPTION(S): 2 Photos, Box Photo: (1--color) Kathleen and Donald Huber's garde n will be displayed Sunday on the Westlake Village Garden Club's 23rd annual Garden and Patio Tour. (2--color) no caption (Rose) (3) Kathleen Huber says her husband may never complete his spectacular garden, which contains two ponds with koi, lilies and waterfalls. Jeremy Greene/Special to the Daily News Box: GARDEN WATCH (see text) |
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