Japanese Style in the Garden
by Laura L. Bruner, Ph.D.
Japanese gardens have weathered the test of time.
Principles originating centuries ago still guide and inspire garden designers in search of harmony and beauty. Japanese gardens are often described as beautiful, simple, serene and harmonious. For the aspiring designer, intimidating also comes to mind. Some design principles are consistent across all design disciplines, while others seem new and challenging to a Western-minded gardener. Let’s explore the Japanese garden and discuss a few concepts that make this approach so enduring.
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Add a Woodland Garden
by Gene E. Bush
Perhaps the words “shade garden” would fit many gardeners better than “woodland garden.” Many gardeners will not have the opportunity to garden beneath mature trees, but rather will garden in the shade of a building. However, the needs of the two environments are very similar.
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Green on Green
by Nan K. Chase
If it’s a crime to plant loads of color, then I plead guilty. Color just feels good. Or does it?
The last few years during my morning walks around my neighborhood, I began to notice that my eyes were continually seeking out green-on-green gardens, landscapes that relied on nothing for their beauty other than year-round evergreens and perhaps a lawn area and some especially bright green summer additions.
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Shaken or Stirred?
by Richelle Stafne and Eric Stafne
Themed gardens remain a popular way of motivating or inspiring gardeners to design a garden with specific intent. Several years ago, I wrote an article about growing a salsa garden; a cocktail garden is similar. With the end product in mind – in this case, a cocktail – you have a plan for what you can do with your harvest. This can be a fun way to put a “spring” in your step, especially for new gardeners, those looking for creative ways to be inspired, or those who admittedly have no green thumb.
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Nighttime and Evening Gardens
by Alan Branhagen
Many of us work all day and by the time we get home to garden or relax in the garden, dusk is upon us. In the evening, the bright colors of the day recede and disappear and the creams, silvers and whites begin to glow with the fading light. We need some time to de-stress, relax and unwind from the day and we’re usually not in the mood for some energizing red colors anyway! A garden designed for evening and the night is the perfect match for many of us.
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Topiary Gardens
by Denise Schreiber
Ultimately, gardening is the act of ‘controlling’ plants and shaping the landscape to our own designs. Topiary takes ‘gardening’ to a higher level. Topiary, the art of training live plants to grow into a myriad of shapes and forms by clipping foliage and branches has been practiced since Roman times. The word itself comes from the word topiarius, a description of an ornamental landscape gardener or the creator of topia ...
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Zen Gardens
A Place For Harmony And Balance
by Claudia C. Swanson
It seems that now, more than ever, people are trying especially hard to make their busy lives less stressful and more meaningful. Gardening can help in a subtle way that few other activities can manage, and the guiding principles of Zen gardening can lead to the creation of a truly calming, harmonious, and uplifting environment. These gardens are not designed to excite the senses in the way that Western plots do but are places for the spirit to find peace and tranquility in which to grow. Zen Buddhism requires that every task is performed with love – and it is the love and care that is put into them that gives them a serene and kindly atmosphere.
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