A productive farm and home set in the urban grid of southern Portland – the front portion of this property is dedicated to domestic outdoor space, while the back portion supports a working market garden, being rented to an organic vegetable grower. The market garden core includes a tool shed, wash station, greenhouse, and heritage apple tree, purposefully arranged so that the owners and farmer could be in each other’s viewshed but also maintain privacy and personal space.

The domestic yard features climate-forward ornamental planting, and the outer perimeter of the property is dedicated to re-naturalized native habitat planting. Planting highlights include deer grass and hummingbird fuschia, which pairs perfectly with a grove of existing ponderosa pines. The lowest and wettest part of the property, behind the market garden, is planted in a regional wetland mix of Willamette Valley ponderosa pine, quaking aspen, and native willows. A woodsy habitat patch behind the garage features two indestructible bank stabilization superstars: bracken fern and snowberry.  

Collaborators: Architecture by GRIT Architecture

Completed: 2021