Hi everyone—Having reached a “Golden Years” age, I have had the great opportunity to reexamine my life’s priorities regarding a work/life balance. Simply put: Life is short, time is valuable, family is first, friends are golden, experiences > things.

I made the decision to wind down my residential landscape design practice to full retirement beginning in 2022. I had a great 22 year run of being a small business owner with all of its sweat, stress, and joy. Seeing my designs come to life was always a great source of fun and satisfaction for me. Many thanks to all of my wonderful clients who followed my inspirations for their landscapes to fruition. I enjoyed working with you all immensely.

In the last year, I’ve also been fortunate to acquire a second home along the central California coast in the small town of Morro Bay. As a child, my home was in nearby San Luis Obispo so spending time on the central coast has been like coming home. I have been splitting my time almost equally between the two places.

Of course, I had to put in a new landscaped garden for myself in Morro Bay, and indulge in some of the plants I had missed, such as my own Meyer lemon tree, a baby Hass avocado, an Arbequina olive tree, lots of pollinator flowers and of course succulents. As a creative person, it’s impossible for me to truly ever stop making things, building things, or growing things!

I am also hoping and planning to use my horticultural knowledge to pursue landscape and planting projects that involve habitat restoration and regenerative native landscaping, both in Oregon and in California. If you have a special project along those lines, I may be able to help you. —Patricia Ashmun Acheff, September 1, 2024