Arrangement of Plant Forms

Once you understand that all plants have a form, try arranging some in front of your house (see post prior to this one).

Take a photo, place tracing paper on top, then start creating a nice composition of plants. You don't need to know specific plant materials at this point.  Just arrange the forms in a pleasing way...and don't forget to layer your plants.  Two to three rows (one in front of the other) is much better than one!   Don't stop at one option.  Try several until you find the perfect solution for you and your house.

Plant Forms

There are three design elements to consider when creating a planting design: form, texture and color.

Each plant you choose encompasses these characteristics in different ways. Though you should consider all of these it is important to know that form is the most consistent, then texture and finally color.

A good planting design should start with a strong composition of forms.  Below are some examples.

Can you think of plants in your area that fit these forms...whether tree, shrub or even perennial?

A Wonderful Stroke of Luck

Remember that not getting what you want is sometimes a wonderful stroke of luck.
Tenzin Gyatso (14th Dali lama)

A friend sent this quote to me today and I realized it sums up my life perfectly over the past few months. Back in January I had to make a shift from one position to another. I wasn't sure about it at first, but now am more than elated. My new position is teaching full-time and I'm thrilled to wake up every morning. How fortunate to share my love of gardens and design with eager students.  Can this be true?

Image source unknown...do you know where it originated?

Cocktails in the Garden

I was attending a conference at the Desert Botanical Garden last week (which was lovely, by the way) and ran into my good friend and fabulous designer Tres Fromme. I love showing his garden ink drawings. He whipped this up for me while there (I'm sure it wasn't mad doodling during an intense presentation...cough).

For some reason we had a lot of discussion about enjoying cocktails in a beautiful garden setting (not such a bad thing). You can find Tres at studioOutside.

Two Small Jumps Equals One Big Leap

Tomorrow I'm making a big shift in my life.

It's the day I split my professional life between two places: my position at a botanic garden, plus a new position, teaching landscape design to horticulture students.

I am excited about sharing my enthusiasm for garden design and equally thrilled to learn a fresh perspective from students and fellow faculty. I've learned so much the past eight years from my fellow botanic garden staff, that I can't wait to pass that on too.

Photo courtesy of hearblack

This is what popped out of my fortune cookie the other day:

Two small jumps are sometimes better than one big leap.

Though neither of these positions are small by any means, together I think they'll make my creative life richer. And here we go...