GARDENING : IMPROVING YARDS BY THE BOOK.

Byline: Joshua Siskin

At last, a book has been published that could radically change the face of California yards and gardens. Instead of a bland lawn circled by shrubs with an obligatory tree or two, we might soon see chaparral; wildlife and wildflower gardens; gardens for birds and butterflies; gardens made inviting with arbors, pathways, gateways and ponds.

``Western Landscaping'' (Sunset Books, 1997) is touted as a ``companion to the best-selling ``Western Garden Book.'' If the companion is even half as popular as the best-seller, it will soon be a delight to walk through the neighborhood, what with all the artful garden designs - inspired by this book - now come to life.

A caveat is in order. It may take a generation longer to change the look of front landscapes than it will to transform backyard ones. In the words of Kathleen Brenzel, the editor of ``Western Landscaping,'' ``the front yard is a throwaway'' in the eyes of most homeowners. Due to a combination of peer pressure and entrenched habit, the front lawn will probably be the last staid and stolid landscape convention to go. For the time being, in order to make that neighborhood walk interesting, it may be necessary to peek over the backyard fence to appreciate the innovation and creativity heralded in the pages of ``Western Living.''

A debt of gratitude is owed to the authors of this book for demystifying the landscape design process. In a few succinct paragraphs, the principles of simplicity, repetition, harmony and unity are explained. Imaginative ways of creating more space (or the illusion of space), in a small garden have been photo-illustrated, such as strategic placing of a large mirror, or division of the area into discrete garden ``rooms.'' A variety of garden designs are included.

I asked Brenzel what she would do if she suddenly found herself with a house and a nondescript backyard, with her goal being to create ``a suburban Eden.'' She would start by putting a few native trees, such as California sycamores, around the perimeter. She would dig a hole for a water feature. On her own property, after a half-hour of digging, she installed a 3-foot-by-5-foot rubberized kidney-shaped pool.

Brenzel brings in water to attract wildlife. The sun plants she favors are lavender, achillea and penstemon. The penstemon cultivares she recommends as especially durable, surviving a freeze several years ago where the temperature dipped to 19 degrees, are ``Midnight Blue'' and ``Apple Blossom.'' For the shade, she is partial to native ferns.

As for the front of a house, Brenzel advises putting down an angled pathway between street and entry, on either side of which are lavenders, salvias and penstemons in clusters of three. She would plant a ``well-mannered tree'' under which would be a low-growing ground cover and a birdbath. She would not place foundation plants in a row, hugging the facade of the house, but might build a low wall somewhere between house and street so as to ``regain some space.''

I asked Brenzel about the prejudice people hold toward plants that flower for a single season or less. She described the brief bloomers as ``fireworks against the night sky,'' and maintained that a series of spring and summer bloomers, planted together, will give a garden all the color anyone could want. For fall and winter interest, plant species with interesting foliage or bark, such as the smoke tree (Dalea spinosa).

At this very moment, three of the most spectacular yellow bloomers are in full flower. In its briefly deciduous state, the golden trumpet tree (Tabebuia chrysotricha), is currently a spherical mass of pure sunshine yellow. The island bush poppy (Dendromecon rigida) is a shrub with arching branches that, right now, are bent under the weight of hundreds of sulphur-colored flowers. The flannel bush (Fremontodendron californicum) is pictured on the cover of the ``Western Garden Book'' with its yellow/orange flowers clear for all to see. A rangy tree when left to its own devices, the flannel bush makes a fine subject for training up an espalier or high, latticed or chain link fence.