Daily Dose Blogger Bios
How-To's, Garden Do's
(a new garden during plant installation)
I enjoyed reading about the plants and such on your blog. My question is --How does one get started landscaping--or gardening--or making one's yard look more iniviting that its current sorry state?--We recently renovated our early 1900's row house and our attentions have now turned to the outside--and I am overwhelmed--I want something simple, tasteful, not too much work--thanks for any advice you might have
catherine_illian | Jan 20, 2007 1:35:37 PM
Hi Catherine ... I love helping out, girlfriend, but since I don't know the details of your site or your budget I can't give specific design advice, but I can give you guidance so you can avoid some common mistakes, and tips that will help you shimmy, not toil, down your garden path.
Be a copy-cat - Don't try to be original... that's for people who want to dawdle endlessly in their gardens, collecting rare and fussy hybrids. Peruse garden magazines and books, go to botanical gardens, take walks in neighborhoods that are heavily gardened.. When you see something you like, use it! Artists call this 'appropriation'. Designers call this ...'designing'.
Don't skimp on the big stuff. Most gardens need to be irrigated. A good system will probably be your biggest expense while creating your garden. Unless you want hours of handwatering while it is freshly planted, and all spring and summer long, do yourself a favor - bite the bullet and install an irrigation system.
Think foliage, not flowers - if you want a garden that isn't too much work, don't plant flowers. Many of the coolest plants have small or insignificant flowers, relying instead on dramatic foliage to provide interest. Wherever there is a showy flower, there is work. Instead, think form. Structure. Architecture.
(I'm not done! More info after the jump ...)
Keep off the grass - don't plant lawn! Not only are lawns water hogs, they need chemical fertilizers to look green and lush, and they require more care than anything else in a garden. Gardens with lawns need weekly maintenance, gardens without can get by with less than half that. Patios, paved areas, gravel, and tough plants that tolerate the weather extremes of your climate are superior choices.
Repeat yourself - this is so important for a cohesive planting. Don't use one of this plant, and one of another, and so on, unless you want your garden to look like a crazy quilt. Choose fewer plants, and use bigger quantities. Create rhythm by repeating plant clusters throughout the landscape.
Be odd - this trick of the trade is very simple - always plant in odd numbers. A grouping of four plants - dull. A grouping of five - dynamic!
Go pro - consult a professional in your area. Unless you have a desire to putter in a garden and to devote your spare time and brain space to all things plant-related, the garden designing is often best left to the experts. If money is tight, try the local university - you might find a great talent in the making, waiting for their first client.
Best of luck!
Your Germinatrix
Germi-
That's genius about the odd number of plants. Do you have any photos of odd vs. even so I can see what it looks like? Not that I have a yard, mind you...
This is really succinct, excellent advice for a beginning gardener. The only thing I would differ with is that lawns can be grown without chemicals, although I do agree that they are more work and usually need more watering -- except where I live!
Are there any gardening books you can recommend? Not about plant types, per se, but basics on how to garden, pull weeds, prepping soil, etc.
La Gringa is totally correct, everybody - being from a dry area, I have a bias against the thirsty lawn! But there are ways to organically grow beautiful lawns, especially in Gringa's lovely Honduras, where water is plentiful!
Cleona - I learned how to garden by reading Sunset's Garden Guides - I think they have them for all parts of the country now. There is a basic landscape how-to in the back of each big guide, and every year they publish a landscape annual, which takes you through all the months of the year and what you should do in the garden. Also, Rodale Press has an Encyclopedia of Organic Gardening that is indespensible for the beginning gardener - and even though it is a bit daunting, reading The New York Times 1000 Gardening Questions and Answers cover to cover helped to make me the gardener I am today. You don't have to be as obsessive, of course, but everything you need you need will be in these books somewhere.
This looks great, especially for the first day of spring. We love everything about these warm days including gardening and have so made a post linking to your blog from ours at www.gosmelltheflowers.com/blog.