Beach Front Oasis

I received an email from a reader of this column, inviting me to visit their roof garden and tell everyone about this amazing space. Pictures accompanying the letter proved that this was a beautiful spot and deserved a column.

He called it a roof garden and then gave the address of a second floor apartment. I was having difficulty understanding how a second floor apartment in a four story building could have a roof garden but it all became clear as Dakota and Scott gave me a tour. Their apartment is just above the parkade below. The roof of the parkade extends just over 10 feet out beyond the side of the building and those second floor apartments along the back of the building have small patios and gardens resting on the roof of the parkade below.

Each apartment has a patio opening off the living room. The patios are surrounded by a low concrete retaining wall which holds back the 12 to 18 inches of soil covering the rest of the roof, soil which allows this tropical oasis to exist.

When Dakota moved into the apartment in 2002, he was delighted to find a place where he could indulge his love of gardens and gardening. He was joined several years later by Scott who shares his love and care for the garden.

When Dakota arrived, there was a short pine sapling on one end of the garden. That tree now rises almost as tall as the building, accompanied by birch trees growing up from the ground level below and adding to the dappled shade that they enjoy. I find it amazing that 18 inches of soil can support that tall tree but a shallow root system must do the job because it is thriving.

Dakota had a red cedar enclosure built to cover the cold grey concrete retaining wall, creating a beautiful structure that fits into the garden and provides a ledge for sitting or for setting down a glass of something cool. A small step up over the wall and you’re in a magical garden.

As all gardens, it is a work in progress. Some plants thrive; some get overgrown and invasive and are removed, to be replaced with a new favourite. The first plants to go for Dakota were the stumps of the cedar trees planted and cut down by previous tenants in front of the retaining wall, cutting it off from the rest of the garden.

There are some Chinese Windmill palms, as seen at English Bay, joining the pine and birches. A beautiful small Japanese maple offers delicate green foliage with an outline of red but in the fall, the tree is ablaze with colour. There is bracken fern that planted itself from spores blown in from Stanley Park, just down the road. There are rhododendrons, 20 years old, big and impressive when in full bloom. Two panicle hydrangeas offer their splendour in season. An azalea beside the bench had just lost the last of its flowers but must have been magnificent. Flashes of colour are provided by several cultivars of lilies as well.

Many of the plants are in containers and can be moved around to create the perfect arrangement depending on blooming time and their personal requirements but most of the bigger plantings are firmly in the soil.

Besides the varied and lush plantings, the hardscape they have created is quite magical. They admit to carrying many bags of soil, rocks and crushed seashells up to their apartment. They found a spot along the shore by the cement seawall where crushed seashells are deposited at high tide.They go out at low tide to harvest the glittering trove. They have created a walkway through the garden with these crushed seashells and it is easy to believe you’re on a secluded beach. Touches of whimsy also peek out from below the bushes. There’s a rustic stone gnome and several abalone shells and ceramic mushrooms in autumn shades are tucked in around the rocks and plants.

Dakota even had a little pond with liner and pump tucked into the garden but soon found that the racoons in the neighbourhood loved the water and would venture up onto the roof to enjoy it. The pond has been replaced by a small fountain, with water gurgling musically over a small rock structure.

The racoons can no longer make such a mess since the pond went away. Several small songbirds enjoy stopping at the fountain for a refreshing sip of water. Dakota and Scott can watch chickadees and thrushes dropping in, or watch hummingbirds sipping from the flowers of the Solomon’s seal next to the water feature.

There is a soothing and healing atmosphere tucked away above the bustle of the city. The southern facing garden gets sun much of the day, filtered through the green canopy. The sound of the fountain and quick visits from the birds all add to the aura. Dakota is recuperating from surgery and the serenity of the garden is just what was needed.

I did ask each of them how they had come to love gardening. Scott spent time in the garden with his brother who loved to grow veggies. Scott was the flower gardener and they both had support and encouragement from their mom. Dakota gardened with his grandmother and she passed on the joy of working in the garden; another confirmation of my theory.

Dakota and Scott both feel so very fortunate to have such a wonderful home. They are close to Denman which offers most of life’s necessities. They are just blocks from the beach and not far from Stanley Park. But with all that the West End has to offer them, their favourite spot is their own private oasis.

I am attaching all the pictures that Dakota sent me. The one of the couple shows Scott on the left, Dakota on the right. Give Dakota picture credits. His full name is Dakota Descoteaux

This shows the garden of the apartment beside them.