Garden Profile: the work of Jim Rewinski

Landscape designer Jim Rewinski might well have gained his love of nature while growing up on the grounds of National Golf Links of America in Southampton, where his father, Tom, worked as the greens superintendent. Or it could have been from rambling in the Sebonac woods looking for unusual rocks, ponds and frogs.

His keen eye for meticulous care may have come from his father, whose footsteps he followed as a golf course manager for a while before choosing to become a landscape designer. But Mr. Rewinski’s love of gardening and horticultural skills was more likely passed on from his mother, Patricia, he said during a recent interview.

Having seen all sides of the care and maintenance of lawns, trees and borders has contributed to his success as a designer, so much so that he has mastered the medium. But it’s in looking at his own design work, that two talents have come to the fore; a keen eye for detail, whether he is working with plants or stone; and a sense of timing in the landscape. Mr. Rewinski plays with both of these elements in gardens that he has built from scratch.

But a seminal part of the man also plays a big part in one of his smallest gardens. Having a big heart, he is often loathe to send large material—doomed because of construction and renovation changes—off to the compost pile. He just cannot throw away a perfectly good plant.

A friend with a tiny property in Southampton Village allowed the master designer to indulge himself when it came to laying out the garden. Fortunately for the owner, Mr. Rewinski’s ingenious thinking led to a cohesive and delightful space that incorporated all the found material.

“It is a 90 percent recycled garden” he said, adding that plant refugees from all over were fit into the layout, and even the stone was given to him by another friend.

The property was a tangled wood before Mr. Rewinski started seven years ago to tame this tiny sprite of a garden. Since it was a very small space, every aspect of the view—whether from the house, the pool or back garden patios, the entrance gate, etc.—became doubly important.

Just siting the pool was an exercise in precision as there was only 3 inches on one side and 2½ inches on the other side of wiggle room between the two side setbacks. As a result of space restrictions, he narrowed and lengthened the pool to play with the perspective.

But the setbacks were not the only challenges this small space faced. A former driveway added compaction issues; getting into the back yard with a machine was another tight fit; and, underground it was quickly discovered there were several old foundations from former buildings, revealing layers of civilization below the surface.

To top it all off, two years ago the old cesspools collapsed and everything had to be dug up and replanted.

Undaunted, Mr. Rewinski prevailed.

Today the pool area and patios are surrounded by gardens and have become an extension of the interior living space. The shrubs and a tall, old silver maple provide privacy and some shade.

Large irregular flagstones form an interlocking path from the side gate which leads into this little village oasis from the driveway. The beautiful stonework continues around the pool and extends into a cool back patio and shade garden at the other end.

In this serene spot, the bold-leaved ligularias, petasites and hosta contrast with the delicate fronds of ferns that cast their shadows on a stone bench which Jim built from a slab of bluestone.

Seated in the shade, one can overlook the sun-splashed water and flower beds. The house color, the bluestone and the grey pool liner all blend together in a muted palette, but the gardens around them are buoyant.

The northern sun border reflects the southern shade border in mass and color but Mr. Rewinski has chosen completely different plants for each flower bed due to the sunlight differences. Multi-textural and bright, the gardens turn from pink in June to yellow in July, adding a lot of excitement to this little space.

Perhaps the best thing about this garden is that from the street, you would never guess it is there.

The same textural contrast can be seen in many of the gardens Mr. Rewinski has designed. And the color changes are inherent in the passing of the seasons, which become a monthly change in hue for his perennial beds.

Mr. Rewinski’s delight in texture, color, rocks and timing is shared by the owners of a Sagaponack landscape which he has worked on for years. This couple seems to enjoy collaborating and letting him do his own thing at the same time. Their mutual sensibility can be seen in a wooded shade garden that Mr. Rewinski has helped the owners create over 15 years through several renovations.

Broad-leaved and needled evergreens line the driveway and screen out the neighbors. But bright, warm-hued daylilies pop out from the deep green tones of the taller backdrop.

In pools of sun, deep indigo buddleias vibrate in strong contrast to the orange and peaches of the daylilies. The route is punctuated at the end by a large-leaved unusual styrax whose large white bell-shaped flowers glow in the cool shade of June.

The garden here in Sagaponack is a challenge because of the amount of shade which wraps around the residence, coupled with a sunny back lawn. But by using the bold white spikes of aesculus in the back garden, like the styrax on the drive, the lower light is illuminated with a floral candelabra.

Mr. Rewinski’s style is evident in the juxtaposition of multi-textural perennials, grasses and bamboos. Round lacy achemilla is planted in a small, sunny area next to a bank of long, elegant chartreuse hakoneckloa, heart-shaped brunnera, spiky blue festucas and foamy green sedums. The plants all give away his love for texture and color, whether subtle or bold, which is so easily found in his work.

And here too he has played with stone but in a completely different way.

Large boulders are somewhat hidden throughout the growing season when they are surrounded by plant material, but they pop out in the winter when everything dies back down. Over the years, they have gotten covered with moss. And heucheras have seeded themselves on top and in cracks.

The owner has made a playful face mask out of clay for the trunk of one of oaks that surveys the garden. It blends perfectly with the lichen on the trees and the rocks down below.

Additionally, the owners have planted a brilliantly hued cut-flower garden and some containers themselves that reflect the strong colors on the driveway.

But it may be the view from the second story that they love the most. According to the lady of the house, the view from the windows makes her and her husband feel as if they are living in the treetops.

In fact, she reported that she and her husband have decorated one room to reflect the colors and textures of the garden that they look out on. Their goal was to blend the interior and exterior, as this room reminds them of a tree house set in a wonderful woodland garden.

Lest one forget, Mr. Rewinski is also a much in demand landscaper. He has mowed his share of East End lawns and lovingly maintained the work of those who came before him. His basic gardening techniques have been honed over the years as he has provided the upkeep to some of the grand old estates here.

Visiting a Bridgehampton estate under Mr. Rewinski’s meticulous care, it is clear that this man not only knows what he’s doing but also that he loves his work.

Enormous old specimen trees line the 100-year-old property which was laid out and planted before Mr. Rewinski was born. Taking just one step on the multi-acred property, it is immediately evident that he clearly has appreciated, and kept true to, the original designer’s creation.

Here, there are numerous textures and colors on view on a grand scale, as are the lessons of proper timing of pruning practices that have kept this landscape in top shape.

But it’s the magnificent lawn that is perhaps the most meticulous and time-consuming chore of all, according to Mr. Rewinski.

It’s at this elegant Bridgehampton estate that the usually tight-lipped designer opened up a bit and professed with a laugh the amount of work that must be put in to maintain such a property.
“I must have driven the same distance from here to Patchogue and back,” he said of the amount of time he’d spent so far this summer cutting the client’s vast green swath with a Dixie Chopper mower.

April Gonzales, an affiliated member of the ASLA, has worked with both landscape architects and property owners in designing, installing and maintaining landscapes on the Eastern End of Long Island for more than 20 years.