Landscape Design Principles, Plants, and Your Garden

Plant and cultivation techniques to make it all beautiful

Garden design is made up of a number of elements: the plants, the land, and the gardener. Climate, style, and personal choices mean that the variations are infinite and you can make your own unique creation.

More on style. Design Notes: Concepts|Definitions|Elements

Lots of pages are here which are full of information gleaned from my years of gardening in Ohio. The intent is to inspire and help you create your garden. One thing about gardeners- they love to share info and help others along the way to horticultural success!

Garden Basics

What you can find here, in 5 parts.

This is the master list of articles and some highlighted descriptions to help you find your way around. Walk your way through, or just go to the archives to find just what you want. Garden Planning,1 .Creating Your Garden, 2. Garden Details,3. Seasons of Joy,4. Conclusions,5.

Garden Planning

everything needed for the planning stages of your garden experience

Theme designs like a hummingbird garden are delightful.

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Color Designs like a White Garden might be just what you picture for summer evenings.

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Need peace, quiet, and contemplation? A serenity garden could be the space you long for.

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Five Point Plan for your new place.

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Food gardens: your own French Potager, Veggies, Herbs.

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Looking out Your Window, Including the Land in Your Landscape.

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10 Winter Features,See Your Garden Bones,Foundation Faux Pas

• Getting the right tools
• Choosing Your Style
• Foundation planting
• Have a brick house?
• A Cottage garden
• Victorian Gardens
• An English garden
• American style landscape
• The country garden
• Fairy garden inspirations
• Color planning for flower borders
• Companion planting
• Selecting a tree
• Planting a tree or shrub
• Yard Maintenance
• Midwest gardening
• Garden Catalogs
• Simple sitemap

Ask yourself these questions, below. Three Garden Questions.

“As overwhelming as your garden might seem, it boils down to three questions: What do you have to work with, what are you hoping to accomplish, and how do you make it happen?” -Billy Goodnick, Garden Wise Guy

Farmer Fred says, Ask yourself these questions:
• What do you like most about your site? What don’t you like? How do you and other members of your family plan to use the landscape and its new spaces?
• If you have pets, do they have specific requirements that will influence your design? For example, do you want to shut them out of or let them into specific areas?
• What is the architectural style of your house? What aspect of it do you want to carry through into the landscape?
• Is there some particular landscape style that you want to use? For example: Formal? Natural? Japanese? English?
• Are there any special plants you want to use? What colors of foliage and flowers do you want to use?
• Are you or any members of your family allergic to any plants or to bees?
• What sort of paving surfaces do you like? Brick? Wood? Stone? Concrete? Other?
• Do you have a special need or desire to attract birds or to screen out the wind?
• Are there any easements, setbacks, or zoning regulations that will influence what you do? Are there any underground utility lines or old water pipes you should be aware of? Can you locate them from old plans? -From Farmer Fred’s “list of 10 questions“

“Designing the garden is like learning to speak. You begin with odd words – learning the individual plants. Then you create a simple phrase, finding two or three plants that look well together, next comes a sentence and finally the complete story.”
~ Beth Chatto

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Create a garden, next.
Creating Your Garden,page 2. Garden Details,page 3. Seasons of Joy,page 4. Conclusions,page 5.