Tuesday, April 19, 2011

Landscape Design Zero Plants: Before & After


Landscapes take 3 + years to look good, on average. Most gardens get stuck in the '+'.
Unfinished, this garden is ready for showtime. Those pallets of stone, above, MAKE the garden, below. Ha, no plants, yet a garden is born. Why?

Landscape Design 'listens' to the site.
The biggest focal point in a garden? Your home. Vanishing Threshold.
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Consider: paint colors, light fixtures, shutters, doors, views into windows, turning windows into doors, getting rid of disgusting foundation plantings, pathways to move the eye + foot thru your garden, land stewardship, how to be in the garden for pleasure (tea-wine-canapes-luncheon-reading ipad-etc.), historical concepts of landscape design, thriftiness, no watering once established, no chemicals ever, no fertilizing once organically stabilized, groundcovers instead of mulch, succession planting, something coming into bloom throughout the year, canopy trees, understory trees, evergreen walls, & more.
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Consider all of the above & you won't wait 3 years, or 3 seconds, for a beautiful garden.
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Proof is in the pics above.
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Garden & Be Well, XO Tara
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Look at the new frontdoor again. See what I did? Took out the transom, replaced with a taller door. Getting rid of that subdivisiony horrendous aspect, ca. 1970's, of windows/door at same height. Guess how we chose the color for the frontdoor? (Another post.)
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Eco Gardening is a SMALL concept. Vanishing Threshold is how I create a garden.
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(Puppet Barbuda has zero attitude, she's all PUPPET'ude !)

9 comments:

Lori Buff said...

I love the idea of ground covers instead of mulch. That's what forests do. Brilliant.

Desert Dweller said...

The more elements accelerating maturity, though, the greater the budget for design and installation. Not the priority of all our weekend Harley outlaw / weekday black Hummer folks! But I do agree.

"How to be in the garden for pleasure" - I look forward to those days soon once more, Ms Barbuda!

Bruce Barone said...

I enlarged my garden yesterday :)

Nita Stacy said...

Amazing...hardscape makes it a garden.

home before dark said...

So agree with your gardening "manifesto." And I have never met a garden that didn't look better with some stone! And yes, sometimes as we toil we need to be reminded the garden is for pleasure. Sounds obvious, but it's true!

Maxine Watkins said...

Lovely, lovely, lovely. What a transformation! Can't wait to have our party there!

Unknown said...

I love this post- so many words of wisdom and all so true! I have a deal with my garden; I work in it just doing little things (pruning, dividing and yes- in my case- mulching ;)) until it gets hot, and then the garden works for ME all Summer with it calm, soothing beauty until it gets cool.....
great post!

Maura @ Kisiwa Creek Photography said...

Good Morning Tara!
I LOVE what you did with the stones...I love that natural look. So many things to consider in your list of things to think about. I'd love ground cover in our shade garden but until the plants spread we need to keep the water in the ground...it's so hot and dry here in Kansas. Hubby dug down 5 feet and the dirt is 'drier than a popcorn fart' as they say! no doubt we're in a drought here at the moment. Anyway...thanks for making me think.
Maura :)

JudyMac said...

What's not to love about a red door!