Creative Garden Design - Tying it All Together By S Boulden At Isnare.com Ezine Articles

If properly planned, a landscape will come together as one 'big picture' with balance, variety, and proportion. To create such unity, repeat the same plants in various parts of your yard. Plan what you want and where you want it before you go to your local greenhouse. Aim for complementary plantings, tones, and colors rather than trying one of every height, dimension, and color.

Your landscape can be formal or informal; you can have plantings that mirror each other or well-balanced placements and focal points dispersed. Either way, try for a balance that presents a pleasing overall picture. Your plantings and hardscape selections should be proportionate to your dwelling and other structures. Bear in mind how big that azalea bush in front of your porch or deck will become in its maturity. Consider how much shade that small poplar tree will offer once it reaches its full height.

For garden beds, consider growth rates – you don't want a faster growing ground cover to dwarf any lovely blooms. Variety is pleasant, though too much diversity in your landscape can render it confusing and unsettling. Aiming for a balance includes leaving some empty space. Free space can be used to guide the eye to a favorite focal point, such as a fountain or outdoor fireplace. If you have a larger yard, create flower and/or vegetable garden oasis spots by creating beds and berms in certain well-placed areas. The key is to leave some open space to avoid a cluttered appearance.

Planning your garden beds before planting and even buying what you will put in them is important. You can begin with graph paper or a computer program, charting growth times, colors, heights, etc. but the real-life picture is most important. I suggest finding a big ball of twine or thick kite string and physically going out into your yard to delineate where, how big, and what shape your garden beds will be.

Beds can be straight lines or curved, geometrical or randomly shaped. Mark them off with string. Be sure to leave space for the tending of your garden beds. If you have the information about maturity heights and amount of spreading for your favorite plantings, mark them off with twine and/or using thin tomato stakes or twigs to show height. This way, you will not dwarf other plantings nor plant anything that will grow to be disproportionate.

You don't want plantings to take over your brick patio or your hammock! Color and texture planning are important, too. Choose a few plants that will offer beauty during winter or your off-season, such as ornamental grasses, juniper bushes, or a small myrtle tree. Too much of a good thing becomes discordant: don't try to include every color in the Crayola box. A good balance of color, with some variety but whose tones complement each other as well as your home, will offer the most holistic appeal. Plan length of growing and blooming times so you can enjoy your landscape as long as possible. Plan for adequate sun and water, too.

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