Enjoyment By Design


Please note: Thank you for visiting my Cottage Garden topic and reading my columns, published here from February 1997 through spring 2003! This Cottage Garden column was written by Barbara M. Martin and is Copyrighted by Barbara M. Martin. It may not be altered or copied or published elsewhere in whole or in part without specific permission from the author. I regret I am no longer actively editing or contributing to this suite101.com topic as of mid-2003. Happy Gardening!

This article was originally published here in February 1997 under the title "What Makes a Good Garden Design". I think it is timeless enough to republish while I take a short cyberbreak (aka vacation). ENJOY!

To me, a good garden design is more than a fancy blueprint covered with beautiful graphics painstakingly drawn to scale. Instead, a good design will empower people to enjoy their gardens.

A good design will be a "good fit" in many ways: life style, interests, gardening skills, budget, manpower, space ... time frame. Not to forget style and taste! I believe a garden can and should express the owner's personality. After all, what is a garden for but enjoyment!

One of the best ways to develop a good garden plan is to use the concept of putting the right plant in the right place, or "right plant -- right place". This is a powerful method. It helps keep the garden looking good because healthy plants are always more attractive than sickly plants. It helps to minimize maintenance chores, and can help reduce the need for chemical use in the garden.

Right plant -- right place goes beyond the practical, and into the realm of aesthetics. It helps maximize the positive aspects of existing features of your site, because the site itself will suggest design approaches. What at first glance seems to be a problem may, in fact, become a positive!

For example, a hot sunny slope can become a wonderfully fragrant herb garden or a butterfly garden or a Mediterranean garden. A tiny shaded nook can become any one of a number of magical places: staging for a Japanese style water basin, or a tiny piece of woodland with ferns and mossy rocks, or a home for toads and hobbits.... Each of these themes traces itself back to the physical constraints of the site itself. The details depend on the surrounding elements and other garden features so that the new enhances the overall effect.

The copyright of the article Enjoyment By Design in Cottage Garden is owned by Barbara M. Martin. Permission to republish Enjoyment By Design in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.

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