Project story

Los Gatos

Brick Courtyard Garden with Curved Planter, Pergola and Landscape Lighting

Landscape Design
Hardscape
Outdoor Lighting

A herringbone brick courtyard, a curved stucco planter, a column pergola and warm lighting for a Spanish-style home.

The Garden

Warm brick and white stucco around a courtyard

The garden takes its cues from the house: terracotta tile, white stucco and dark metal windows. Reclaimed-look brick, a sweeping stucco planter and a decomposed granite path carry that palette outside, and a soft layer of lighting turns the courtyard into an evening room.

Chapter 1 · The Arrival

Tiled steps and a desert-leaning front bed

The entry steps are faced with patterned tile, and the beds beside them are planted with agave, barrel cactus and soft grasses. Boulders and stepping stones keep the planting loose and water-wise. A terracotta-floored porch with a pair of dark chairs finishes the approach.

Low view of agave and a boulder in dark mulch, with a tile-faced stair and a dark front door behind

Two dark modern Adirondack chairs with white cushions on a terracotta-tiled porch beside black-framed windows

Golden barrel cactus in black mulch in front of a boulder, a flowering shrub and the stuccoed entry

Chapter 2 · The Terraces and Paving

A herringbone brick courtyard

Reclaimed-look brick laid in a herringbone pattern runs across the courtyard behind the house, from the dining table at the back doors to the lounge seating by the grill island. Low step lights sit in the brick risers by the doors. The warm, slightly weathered brick pairs with the white stucco and dark windows.

Dining table and umbrella on a herringbone brick patio in front of the back doors, with step lights in the brick risers

Brick grill island with a stainless grill, bench and umbrella on herringbone brick, with a tall evergreen screen behind

Chapter 3 · The Planting

A curved planter and a path to the pergola

A curved white stucco planter wall holds agave, ferns and boulders, with a tall spiky tree-form plant at its center. A decomposed granite path winds past it to a column pergola at the back of the garden. A turquoise bistro chair adds a spot of color.

Decomposed granite path winding through agave and fern planting toward a column pergola, with the lit back doors at left

Curved white stucco planter with agave, ferns and boulders, a tall spiky tree-form plant at its center and the column pergola behind

Chapter 4 · After Dark

Warm light on brick, stucco and leaves

At twilight the courtyard turns gold: lanterns on the walls, uplights in the planting and glowing back doors. The planter wall reads as a white curve against the dark garden. Under the umbrella the brick grill island and bench hold the soft light.