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Celebrating Altadena Gardens with Golden Poppy Awards

Five Altadena gardens win the 2011 Golden Poppy Award from Altadena Heritage, but the honors go to all Altadenans who beautify their streetscapes.

The California golden poppy is the symbol of Altadena, so of course the annual garden award is named the Golden Poppy.  On Sunday afternoon, five Altadena homes were named as award winners and received bronze lawn signs that they can keep for two years.

Mark Goldschmidt, landscape designer and chair of Altadena Heritage, presented the awards at an afternoon garden tea at the 1909 house of artist Nancy Romero.  Anita David, Altadena Heritage events chair, organized the event. 

The properties are judged by their front gardens, and are chosen in “drive-bys” by Altadena Heritage members.  The awards not only honor certain gardens that are beautiful and make good use of the often-difficult Altadena landscape, but to honor all Altadena gardeners who do their part to beautify their streets.

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Margaret Edmondson, winner with her husband Dimitri Bovaird for told Altadena Patch that it was a huge surprise when she found out their garden was a winner. 

“It cracked me up,” she said.  “My garden at some times of the year looks spectacular.  At other times, it looks like hell.”

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An unusual aspect of the Edmonson-Bovaird garden, located at 1542 Morada Pl., is that it combines two houses.  When a neighbor’s house went up for sale a few years ago, the couple bought it and integrated the two front gardens by removing the concrete driveway. It was this aspect of the design that prompted the judges to choose the garden. 

The garden is successful, Edmonson said when they were presented with the award, because “I know what I will do and won’t do as a gardener.  I’m not a sprayer or a pruner.”  There 10 varieties of citrus trees on the property as well as  the drought-tolerant plants in the front.

When winner Mark Saltzman found the letter from Altadena Heritage on the doorstep, he was shocked. He asked, “Walter, where did this come from?” he asked partner Walter Hubert.  “I don’t know,” Walter replied. 

More surprises were in store for the two when Michele Zack knocked on their door—just when they had been showing friends their well-worn copy of Altadena: Between Wilderness and City

Saltzman and Hubert came across the property serendipitously. They were out riding Vespas and when a hail storm rolled in.  They decided to wait it out on vacant lot, and when the storm cleared and they say the “for sale” sign, they put in an offer. 

Daniel and Jaylene Haight own what Goldschmidt referred to as “the rose house” because of the masses of roses that spill across the yard.  “I like plants,” Jaylene said, “I just keep planting.”  The yard was completely fallow when they bought the house at 2420 Catherine Rd..  They quit watering for about a year so they could start from scratch.

“The backyard is small,” she said, “so everything has to go in front.”

Landscape designer Melissa Kellogg accepted the award for Doug Lalonde, who could not make the event.  His property at 2564 N. Altadena Dr. lies on the curve just where Altadena turns south.  It is lined with a long white wall, softened by shrubbery. 

One of the reasons for presenting the Golden Poppy Awards is to encourage other homeowners in the neighborhood to improve their streetscapes.  Goldschmidt commented that David Mispagel, who also did not make the event, put a lot of work into his corner property at 734 W. Harriet St.

“There’s a tremendous amount of frontage,” Goldschmidt said.  “This is going to help the street a lot.”

The best story of the day came from Saltzman when he said that the bronze medallion will be placed prominently in front of a large boulder by the driveway.  The boulder, it seems, started out as small, unwanted rock, but in trying to dig it out, they discovered most of it was buried. After much digging and almost giving up hope of seeing it gone, serendipity struck again.

A bulldozer accidentally bumped the rock, and it rolled down the steep slope into a hole left by a removed eucalyptus, stopping just short of the street.  The driveway was built to accommodate the stone, and the house at 2860 Windfall was named “Rolling Rock.”

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