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by Michael D. Weishan
After you have decided upon the style of your garden, (see Landscaping
Lesson, Traditional Gardening, Spring 1999) the next step
is to define its space. Begin by thinking about your garden's
exterior boundaries. On small lots, especially urban ones, the
demands of living in close proximity to one's neighbors often
force the owner to define and defend boundaries with a fence,
a hedge or some other device. Whenever space constraints and privacy
are not an issue, we have a tendency to neglect this concept often
to the detriment of our landscape's overall cohesiveness. The
best metaphor I can think of is that a landscape without a boundary
is like a picture without a frame. Even an exquisite canvas looks
better with some kind of border.
This principle is well-illustrated in the adjoining
illustrations taken from a 1930s guide promoting evergreens (which
explains the heavy emphasis on their use). In the illustration
showing the garden before the addition of exterior boundaries,
the lot looks open and exposed: it has an unfinished look. With
the placement of some simple plantings along the perimeter, spruce
trees in this example, the landscape begins to take shape and
the various design possibilities are more clearly evident. As
with a frame for a painting, the type of plant material or structure
you choose to define your garden's outer perimeter should relate
to the overall style of the garden. I would not necessarily recommend
exclusively using spruces there are far more interesting solutions
but you get the idea. The need for an outer perimeter doesn't
mean total enclosure. Far from it. Often the suggestion of a defined
border is the only requirement to achieve the desired effect.
Traditionally, if an attractive vista or some other interesting
prospect lay outside the garden's immediate borders, it would
be framed so as to enable the viewer to peer past the foreground
into the distance, as if through some large picture window. This
idea of framing the view is borrowed from art you only need to
look at most good landscape painting to see this is the case.
Any space, no matter what its size, needs definition
to be effective. This premise is valued in interior design, but
for some reason the need for visual enclosure is rarely given
much consideration outdoors. Think of the boundaries of your garden
as you do about the walls of your house: as organizational features
that allow you to define your space, keep out unwanted elements,
and let in pleasant elements. Equally important is how you use
the space within the yard the internal divisions, if you will.
Your house has rooms, after all, and so should your garden. Historically,
our gardens were always separated into different areas by their
use or function. Pleasure grounds were distinct from work areas,
carriage yards from vegetable gardens, and so on. Obviously, there
were practical aspects to this: in keeping unwanted animals, sights
and smells away from the more recreational areas of the landscape.
But there was more to this separation than practical, day-to-day
concerns.
Outside, spaces look better when their different components are
delineated in some way. Our Colonial forebears knew this lesson
instinctually, and as easily as they carved out their house plots,
farms, and fields from the virgin continent, they subdivided the
space internally into a series of rooms that progressed logically,
according to the dictates of use and the desire for aesthetics.
A glance at any old New England farm, each field bordered with
those wonderful old stone walls, will confirm this.
Look at the picture of the small suburban lot above.
The yard is pleasantly divided into three main areas. Off the
living room there is a small oval lawn for games and other outdoor
entertainment; adjoining it, and separated by a short flight of
steps, is a flower garden area with a lovely, small summerhouse
adjoining the lawn; behind the garage, and screened off from the
rest of the yard by an arbor and a hedge, is the vegetable garden.
Each space comes alive and makes sense to the viewer because each
has been given a logical definition and purpose. Obviously, the
choices made here reflect the wonts and habits of the owners:
a swimming pool could easily have been substituted for the vegetable
garden, for example; the small sundial garden off the oval lawn
would also work nicely as a lovely terrace and outdoor sitting
area. Your use and needs will ultimately determine what your garden
will contain. The important thing to realize is how much better
these elements will look if different areas of the yard are clearly
defined.
There are many different ways to divide a property into logical
rooms. The idea is to choose a plan or layout that is appropriate
to the feel and look of your garden. Also, you should consider
the degree of separation or privacy you require. For example,
a 6-foot brick wall will give a much greater degree of enclosure
than a low row of hedge shrubs such as boxwoods. Historically,
lines of trees, flower borders, fences, walls or changes in ground
level (such as descending terraces) were common features and continue
to be appropriate means of subdividing and defining space.
As important and historically correct as it is to logically divide
and arrange your garden space, be careful not to do so to such
an extent that it becomes a series of chopped up spaces that ceases
to function as a whole. Each division should be justifiable and,
most important, should seek to maximize the internal space available
in each area. If you are lucky enough to have a large field or
open space, for example, don't subdivide it into three or four
little sections unless there is a very good reason for doing so.
Similarly, in very small gardens, a good general rule is to fortify
the exterior boundaries, and maximize interior space wherever
possible. You should also try to carve out windows, or views,
into areas beyond your garden to suggest an open, expansive feeling.
After you have decided how you can make the most of your garden
space, the next step is to make sure that all the various pieces
complement each other. In the same way that you strive to unite
the decor of the various rooms of your house, you should do the
same with your garden. This is what we call unity in design, and
that will be the subject of our next Landscaping Lesson.
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