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10 Ideas for an Exuberantly Abundant Landscape
Let passion and largesse overflow for a garden that provides a rich experience along with a beautiful scene
Houzz Contributor. Debra Prinzing is a Seattle- and Los Angeles-based outdoor living expert who writes and lectures on gardens and home design. She has a background in textiles, journalism, landscape design and horticulture. A frequent speaker for botanical garden, horticultural society and flower show audiences, Debra is also a regular radio and television guest. Her five books include Garden Writers Association Gold Award-winning Stylish Sheds and Elegant Hideaways (Clarkson-Potter/Random House, 2008) and The Abundant Garden (2005). She is now at work on her new book about seasonal, local and sustainably-grown cut flowers with photographer David Perry. You can read more about it at www.afreshbouquet.com.
Debra is the new contributing garden editor for Better Homes & Gardens and her feature...
Houzz Contributor. Debra Prinzing is a Seattle- and Los Angeles-based outdoor... More »
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After spending 15 years writing about home and garden design, I've absorbed countless lessons about using design to express personal style and a feeling of abundance.
I love the word "abundance" itself. It evokes a sense of largesse, and who doesn't want an abundant selection of plants to use in their garden? Websters defines "abundance" as "a great or plentiful amount; fullness or overflowing." One landscape designer told me "abundance" to her meant "no dirt — anywhere!" Another explained it this way: "No wimpy plants!"
Exploring beautiful gardens and meeting the designers who've created them (pros and self-taught gardeners alike), I have begun to appreciate that people who yearn for abundance are ones who live a lifestyle that spills from their home into the garden. They are zealous and passionate about their patch of land. They have a generosity of spirit, and they love color, texture and forms — and, of course, each of these is reflected in their planting choices.
To me, there are 10 concepts that communicate abundance:
I love the word "abundance" itself. It evokes a sense of largesse, and who doesn't want an abundant selection of plants to use in their garden? Websters defines "abundance" as "a great or plentiful amount; fullness or overflowing." One landscape designer told me "abundance" to her meant "no dirt — anywhere!" Another explained it this way: "No wimpy plants!"
Exploring beautiful gardens and meeting the designers who've created them (pros and self-taught gardeners alike), I have begun to appreciate that people who yearn for abundance are ones who live a lifestyle that spills from their home into the garden. They are zealous and passionate about their patch of land. They have a generosity of spirit, and they love color, texture and forms — and, of course, each of these is reflected in their planting choices.
To me, there are 10 concepts that communicate abundance:
- Color
- Views
- Timelessness
- Layers
- Intimacy
- Focal points
- Movement
- Ornamentation
- Spontaneity
- Pattern
| Color. This abundant border is defined by colorful plants, from the Japanese blood grass in the foreground to the rhubarb-red Sedum 'Autumn Joy' in the back of the border. This palette enlivens nearby plants and demands attention. When used with confidence, color can create important focal points in the landscape. It can signal where to enter and how to proceed; it also draws the eye and invites exploration. Successful use of color is often restrained, limited to a narrow but powerful palette, which is exactly what you see in this design. |
| Views. When a landscape is oriented to take advantage of framed views and vistas, it feels doubly abundant. This gorgeous semiwild landscape is exposed to the elements and has a seemingly endless perspective. The cloud-filled sky is invited into the open scheme, lending a sense of drama. Everything is oriented outward, including the suggestion of a grassy trail leading to the world's edge. |
| Timelessness. What makes this border abundant? For one thing, no soil is exposed, thanks to mature plantings and a well-defined canopy and understory. I love the balance between each planting layer, from the ancient live oak trees overhead to the plump hydrangeas, to the heliotropes and ajuga that knit everything together. Several of the abundant design concepts I admire appear in this scene, including a sense of timelessness. The pergola is partially obscured by a healthy wisteria, which has entwined itself around the posts and beams. Imagine being seated there, away and unplugged — thoroughly embedded in this garden. |
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| Layers. Layering is an often-discussed design concept but one not always achieved. This landscape uses masses of prairie-inspired perennials and ornamental grasses, layered not in rows but in irregular planting swaths to evoke a deep, lavish border. Some of my favorite specimens appear, including Joe Pye Weed, black-eyed Susan, Russian sage and silver grass (Miscanthus sinensis). |
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| While not all of us can have a decades-old garden, those who do are quite fortunate. Because planting trees first is, of course, the ultimate abundant design strategy. If you don't have a timeless garden, you can emulate this style by encouraging a naturalistic approach. Appreciate the architecture of your trees; encourage mossy rocks and ground covers to blanket the earth. Allow plants to grow to their full and inherent forms. Then give yourself a place where you can walk, contemplate and appreciate what you have. Here, the small section of green lawn is a soothing place of rest amidst the large conifers and broadleaf evergreens at its edge. Stunning! |
Intimacy. Intimacy feeds and nurtures the human occupants there. Narrow openings suggest privacy, like this almost-secret pathway between the trees. There's a hidden destination, and you're not quite sure where it leads. Even though the trees tower overhead, the perennial border below is filled with all sorts of alluring plants. The senses are enlivened, and one is drawn to the fragrant catmint, the soft-to-the-touch lamb's ear and the visually exciting alliums and foxgloves.
Focal points. This scene includes multiple abundant ideas — and all play together beautifully to make me wish I could be transported here. There is a timeless feeling expressed in the simple palette of native stone and green vegetation. The lovely twig bench placed at the turn of the path is a hard-to-ignore interior focal point. Layered textures provide interest, even though this is a landscape with mostly foliage. Generous in its gifts, this garden beckons visitors to enter — and remain in its presence.
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| Movement and ornamentation. There is something so perfect about this snapshot. I'm drawn to it time and again. The scene has two wonderful expressions of abundance. First, there's a sense of movement and energy conveyed by the masses of ornamental grasses on the hillside — they have a kinetic vibe that's dynamic, even if the breezes are still. Second, the ornamentation is sublime. A bowl placed on a pedestal. That's it. Effortless. |
Movement, spontaneity and color. Abundance doesn't have to occur in a grand landscape. The spirit of an abundant garden can live on a patio or deck — expressed in thoughtful, well-arranged container gardens like those shown here.
Movement, spontaneity and a great sense of color overflow from these pots and make this a rather alluring place to be.
Movement, spontaneity and a great sense of color overflow from these pots and make this a rather alluring place to be.
Pattern. Shapes, forms and patterns communicate abundance here, giving visual cues about the vocabulary of this garden. There's an obvious grid-style pattern formed by the concrete pavers, comprising a simple geometric installation that gives this garden its intentional structure. The foliage and flower colors reinforce the modern, graphic message of this garden's design.
Abundance is an attitude of living in the garden, of cherishing plants, of combining art and horticulture, and of expressing one's highly personal style.
Next: How to work with spontaneity for an abundant garden
Abundance is an attitude of living in the garden, of cherishing plants, of combining art and horticulture, and of expressing one's highly personal style.
Next: How to work with spontaneity for an abundant garden
Ideabook updated on Jan. 19, 2013.
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I totally am of the "no dirt - anywhere" persuasion, unless it's to define a path made with walking stones (as seen on the left of my garden photo)
@Appytrails, love the blues! What flowers are those?
@stacyleavitt, I work at a garden where they actually FEED the deer!! By planting deer resistant plants and using organic spray, we are able to keep quite an impressive garden going. I would suggest try start planting close to your house with only deer resistant plants (I know nothing is deer proof) and staying on top of your spraying regimen, and you might be ok. I also have deer on my property... you can see the hoofprints every morning of where they'd been the night before. The hardest part is keep watch on the newly budding daylilies and get them sprayed before the deer find them first.