Home » Plants & Animals » English Country Gardening » An Illusion Of Space

An Illusion Of Space

© Jane Hollis

In these modern days, when land is an expensive commodity, many of us have to settle for gardens smaller than we would wish. However, there are many tricks we can employ to make a small garden feel larger than it is.

One of the first principles is to ensure that the garden cannot be seen in its entirety in one glance. One way of achieving this is to break the garden into separate rooms divided by hedges or trelliswork. If this approach is too formal for your liking, then a similar effect can be created by the judicious placing of trees, tall shrubs and structures (such as summerhouses) so as to partially obscure sections of the garden.

You can also divide the garden by using different treatments for the 'floor' of the garden. Many gardens follow the predictable pattern of a strip of paving outside the house, then a large expanse of lawn to the end of the garden. By creating a succession of different 'floor treatments', however, you can divide the garden into different areas, which increases the feeling of space. For example, your paved area could lead onto a gravel garden, then a circle of mown lawn, interlocking with another circle of rough grass, culminating in a wooded area surfaced with bark chips.

The treatment of garden boundaries is another way to create a feeling of space in the garden. Tall fences are often necessary for privacy, but they often become the dominant feature of the garden emphasising all too clearly where the garden ends. Try painting them a dark colour, clothing them in climbers and surrounding them with shrubs so that they seem to melt away. If you are lucky enough to enjoy a good view beyond the garden, then create a minimal boundary which makes it difficult to see when the garden ends and the adjoining land begins.

Just as you can borrow a view, you can 'borrow' your neighbour's plants. If your neighbour has a fine shrub or tree which can be seen from your garden, then consider planting a couple of similar specimens your side of the boundary. If the boundary is disguised as suggested earlier, it will look like all three plants are in your own garden!

The colours you use in your garden can also change the feeling of size in the garden. Bright colours, such as red, demand your attention and if planted at the end of the garden, can appear to shorten the perspective of the garden. Misty blues and mauves, however, have the opposite effect, seemingly fading into the distance. You can use size and shape of foliage in a similar way, by using large leaved plants by the house, and smaller leaves towards the end of the garden.

The copyright of the article An Illusion Of Space in English Country Gardening is owned by . Permission to republish An Illusion Of Space in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.