Bark-covered plant containers reinforce the branchy, rustic look in the conservatory that Rand favors, using terra-cotta pots, stone urns and twig and bark baskets – uniting the display. A wicker settee lends itself to the perfect spot for relaxing and enjoying the view surrounding the conservatory. Lushly scented lavender echoes the ageless feel of the greenhouse conservatory.
Gardens, Pools & Spas
Branching Out
A Webster Groves conservatory blends artistic treasures with natural surroundings for a woodland retreat.
BY
Lucyann Boston
PHOTOGRAPHY
Michael Jacob


A weathered table and chairs collected over time from local antique malls provides a timeless vignette for enjoying the outdoors with the comforts of home.


Rand’s collection of garden art finds its way into the conservatory attached to his Webster Groves home.


When Rand set about transforming the greenhouse into living space, it was only natural that the rustic, woodland look of the garden that surrounds the home would be brought to the glass-enclosed space. “The teakwood double doors (into the conservatory),” he notes, “are from a teakwood shipment from India that I purchased.”


Colorful, whimsical contemporary pieces fill the space in unison with vintage furnishings and antique collectibles.
When he creates gardens, landscape designer Rand Rosenthal wants the plantings to appear as if Mother Nature had a hand in the plan. Gardens look best, he believes, if they blend in with their surroundings and appear to have been touched by time.

Tall trees, a stacked-stone wall and the bones of what had once been a fine garden first attracted Rand to his own home, a 100-year-old Dutch colonial in Webster Groves. Shortly after moving into the residence seven years ago, he began reclaiming the over-grown garden. Using the existing contours of the sloping land, Rand created a tumbling brook, which now curves around the house and splashes into a small, greenery-surrounded pond. By incorporating some of the moss-covered logs, rocks and natural artifacts he was clearing out of one part of the property into the project, he made the new stream look as if it had always been part of the land.

In addition to the wooded setting, a greenhouse attached to the side of the residence also attracted Rand to the property. Initially, he hoped to use it to start seedlings for some of the more unusual plants he uses in his business, which includes garden design work for the Saint Louis Symphony Showhouse and The Muny.

For the first three years he lived in the home, Rand struggled to incorporate the greenhouse into his business. The small size of the all-glass structure, however, made it impossible to produce enough plants to offset the cost of properly heating the space. In addition, he noted ruefully, gazing up at the trees that fill his woodsy landscape, “there is a certain sun requirement for a greenhouse, and the trees just kept getting taller and providing more and more shade.

“On the other hand,” he added cheerfully, “I had always wanted to have a conservatory and I decided using this space was about as close as I was ever going to get.”
When he set about transforming the greenhouse into living space, it was only natural that the rustic, woodland look of the garden that surrounds the home would be brought to the glass-enclosed space.

Well-worn brick replaced the pea gravel of the original floor. The mottled tan-and-white sycamore branches suspended from the ceiling are from Forest Park. “I walk a lot there,” he explains. “After one of the bad storms a couple of years ago, all these sycamore branches were littering the ground. I thought they would be perfect to use in here, so I harvested them and brought them home.” Tiny white lights twisted among the branches create a starlit effect even on cloudy nights.

As part of his business, Rand collects decorative outdoor art and antiques. What he doesn’t use, he resells in the booths he maintains at both the Warson Woods Antique Mall and Treasure Aisles in Maplewood. Several of those pieces have found their way into the conservatory.

“The teakwood double doors (into the conservatory),” he notes, “are from a teakwood shipment from India that I purchased.”

The cozy warmth of a wood-burning stove provides heat on chilly days. A ceiling paddle fan circulates the air when it’s warm. And a massive, old-world wall fountain dominates the far end of the greenhouse and fills the space with the soothing sound of splashing water. Antique wicker furniture, purchased at both of the antique malls, provides just the right note of rustic chic.

More recently, colorful, whimsical birds and other painted-wood accessories have been introduced into the conservatory décor by Rand’s fiancé Karen Gallina, who with her sister Mary Brungardt, owns Small Indulgences in Kirkwood. “I love mixing vintage with these contemporary pieces,” says Rand. “It’s a great marriage.”

Plants bank both sides of the fountain and accent the glass shelves that run along the sides of the conservatory. They are changed out seasonally with colorful, nodding cyclamen and lushly scented lavender holding the spotlight in late winter and early spring. In all seasons, Rand is partial to tropicals for their bright foliage both indoors and out and their ability to tolerate the St. Louis summer heat. One particular favorite is chartreuse, strap-like ‘Limelight’ dracaena. “It looks wonderful in shady areas,” he says. “It really pops out.”