By Jim McCausland, Sunset senior garden writer
I frequently notice how much entries matter in garden design. You see a gate, you want to go through it; you know that something worth seeing must be on the other side.
The following torii gate was designed and built by Al Krug in Lacey, Washington for Marian Mehegan.
Krug did another gate below I like in a style that's much more Western, but with some Eastern influence.
It marks the main entry walk to a house in Olympia, Washington. I saw it in spring, when the Clematis armandii was in bloom. Over time, the vine will completely cover it.
This steel gate was made for John and Laurie Shonerd in Medford, Oregon.
It opens into a vegetable garden that is enclosed by a wire mesh deer fence. While the fence isn't the most beautiful thing in the world, the gate transforms the transition into the garden.
The landscape designer on the job was Jane Hardgrove of Talent, Oregon.
