A secluded beach area is ideal for kayak launching before or after an impromptu ping-pong match. There are shaded, meditative places as well as large expanses of lawn for a 500-person fundraising event. This tree is celebrated as a major focal point from the master bedroom. One might inadvertently wander towards the “spider oak” with its long, fern-laced branches that weep down and curve back up, mimicking a spider’s legs. The periphery is comprised primarily of indigenous species for sustainability, however, there is an emphasis on plant selection for tropical texture and botanical interest-a veritable botanical garden.Īs one circulates through the expansive length of the property, bold branches of existing oak trees frame views towards multiple destinations within the garden. Jungles wanted to save as many existing trees as possible and successfully relocated five specimen oak trees to allow for the architectural interventions. The pavers were designed at a human-scale to prevent cracking from unstable grades and ground settling. The driveway’s dark concrete pavers, our “native stone” in Florida, mask the inevitable oak stains and tire tracks to come. A few oaks tower above the rest, as they were not directly impacted and remain at their original grades, reinforced with locally sourced oolitic limestone monoliths as retention walls. To bring the front garden auto court to the ideal elevation, Jungles excavated four to five feet of earth and lowered existing oak trees accordingly. The garden design focused on augmenting topography to maximize connectivity to the water’s edge while protecting and elevating the presence of the three-dozen mature oak trees that have long called this land home. Zen Den, aptly named four years after the project’s inception, was influenced by the clients’ affinity for the open-air pavilions, placid water gardens, and reflective ponds of the Amanyara in the Turks and Caicos. The result is a garden and a home that speak the same language. With the intrinsic knowledge of the team, Jungles’s involvement was focused on the schematic and design development phases, creating bold moves in grading, hardscape, and planting for subsequent construction documentation and installation. The husband and wife duo assembled an award-winning design and implementation team with many years of experience working together. He contacted Jungles about the project, noting the clients’ intimate familiarity with his gardens-he had designed multiple gardens for two of their brothers and respective families since the early 90s. The architect, Cesar Molina, is both a good friend and frequent collaborator. The 2.9-acre site boasts over 400 feet of lakefront on one of the finger lakes in the Snapper Creek Lakes community in Miami, Florida. It is a spectacular property, rich in mature, multi-branched oak trees adorned with orchids and epiphytes. Jungles first walked the project site many years ago when it was owned by an orchid aficionado and frequent donor of Fairchild Tropical Botanic Garden.
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