New York Times came to interview me for an article. She sat and watched me sort pebbles for hours on end, which I bought in bags from a local supplier, in black and gold colors. She eventually titled the article 'Every Stone a Perfect Fit'.

Sitting on the competed steps

We stuccoed the block walls and added wiring for lighting and a fountain. The base of the hole had a thick layer of crushed gravel for drainage that we top coated with a round gravel called Del Rio Mix that has a nice warm color.

Around the perimeter I planted Tasmanian Tree ferns on the shady side, and Cycads on the sunny side, with repeated clumps of Variegated Dianella and Foxtail Asparagus Fern, which had proven to tolerate the soil conditionssound of the water is very enticing and masks the ambient roar of L.A. traffic. A decorative painter friend did a stencil border derived from a Moroccan tile pattern around the top of the wall, in colors to match the pebble mosaics, with metallic gold highlights. We bought a Moroccan tile table and iron chairs and added some low carved wooden chairs with cushions to make the space comfortable to inhabit. The results are quite sumptuous.

Table and Chairs in the finished Sunken Garden

Fountain and stone bowl

Because the garden is sunken, it stays cooler than other parts of the garden and makes a good retreat on hot days. And what was really an eyesore is now perhaps the loveliest part of the garden, the perfect place to have a