Visualizing and Choosing a Topic

I have been theme gardening for a long time. Most I have learned through trial and error, as with most gardeners. Some days when I look at my gardens I feel I fumbled them into beauty. I hope this column lends a helping hand to those who are stumbling around with the concept of theme gardening.

Visualizing

A theme garden is simply a garden centered around a topic. That topic can really be anything, but it is a topic. The way to visualize how the topic works is to think of school days. In English class, your teacher wrote a topic on the blackboard for you to write an essay about. You simply and with creativity wrote an essay inside that topic. Think of words as flowers and the whole garden as a topic and theme gardening becomes simple.

Choosing the topic

Choosing a topic is the most important key to theme gardening. Depending on what type of personality you are can define what problems you will have choosing a topic. A gardener can either limit or drown themselves in ideas. With those personalities in mind I have developed a brainstorming system in helping you choose a topic. All you need is a pen and a few sheets paper to start out.

Here's the assignment:

Sheet #1:

On one sheet of paper brainstorm of 20 or more of your favorite things. Things meaning sounds, memories, views, colors, ideas, books... anything you enjoy. This is your messy page. You can doodle, dream, and smile your way to finishing this page.

My exercise:
My brainstorm sheet lists things such as art, falling in love, rain, red, "The Great Gatsby", etc...

Sheet #2:

Getting your ideas a little more organized you can switch to the second sheet of paper. The second sheet is just writing your 10 favorite ideas with lots of space in between them. Visualize (the word for today) how they can evolve into gardens. Write down ideas of plants, colors, and statues that you could incorporate into each garden.

My exercise:
rain - waterlilies, water garden, fountain, antique rain gauge, bubbling spring, rain lilies etc...

Sheet #3:

Pick the 5 gardens you really like and are excited about doing. Keep these garden ideas around and look at them maybe once a day this week. If you find more ideas for a garden write them down and start visualizing how your ideas can become a reality.

My exercise:
Expanding on rain and looking at it more my third sheet would look like this:

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