Flower Garden Lovers

Principles of Design in the Flower Garden

Although good design is instinctive for some people, the rest of us can achieve it through some education and, I believe, trial and error. Granted that trial and error can be rather expensive for some elements of flower garden and landscape design, but for the masses of smaller plantings and garden accessories, this can actually be where the fun comes in.

One might wonder why we should be bothered with the principles of design at all. Just throw some masses of colorful flowers out into the yard and call it a flower garden. Perhaps this could work for you, but if it does I suspect you are one of those for whom the principles are instinctive and you do incorporate good design. For others, think of what is left when the blooms are gone. That is when the elements of your design really shine.

In considering the principles of design, we mostly deal with the mass of our plantings and non-living elements, the textures of them and the colors they provide. Again, that is mass, texture and color. I suppose one could argue that color and texture are also principles of design but as they are so inherent in the other principles, I do not include them as seperate.

Perhaps the most basic of all the design principles for gardening and landscaping are balance, unity, harmony, utility and suitability. Of these, providing balance of the various elements is the most important.

With balance in a formal garden, symmetry of like items is called for. Meaning a tall conical evergreen on one side of the courtyard would be balanced by a tall conical evergreen on the other side.

With our more informal flower garden, it becomes more a matter of balancing mass on each side of your dividing line which is usually based on how you observe the flower garden. But there are other aspects to balance. Balance should be considered in the amount of hardy plants to the more tender plants according to your area, of plants to the non-living elements within your flower garden and landscape, of color of your plantings and the non-living elements, of the light and dark tones of your elements, of proportion of evergreens to deciduous plantings. But mostly balance has to do with the mass of your elements balancing each other.

And remember the balance of your elements as the seasons progress. We shall want color throughout the year and this is provided by the non-living elements as well as the living.

Unity has to do with how the parts fit together. This may very well go back to having an overriding theme for your landscaping and flower gardening. Sometimes this unity can be provided by a single element being used throughout the design. It could be a single type of building material, the same ground cover used throughout or even a single species or variety of plant used over and over.

When considering the principle of harmony, keep in mind the harmony of the color of your elements. As well, since dealing mostly with flowering plants, keep in mind the harmony of fragrance of your flowers.

(As a side note, one principle some designers like to incorporate is the contrast of colors of blooms such as blue flowers next to yellow flowers or interspersed within and the contrast of textures, living and non-living. If you try this just be sure the contrast is delightful and does not cause a discordance within the flower garden and your landscaping. This is one of those places where experimentation will come into play. It is play.)

The principles of utility and suitability have to do with such things as using only as much concrete as is really necessary within your landscaping. If stepping stones can fulfill the function, then strive to use these. But make sure you have all within your design that performs all the functions you and your family members, including pets, require. Is the design suitable for all the members and the lifestyle you lead?

As you design your flower garden and landscaping, you will probably incorporate other design principles such as repetition, rhythm, simplicity, etc. Keep these principles and especially those above in mind as you design your flower garden and landscaping.

© 2005, Sandra Dinkins-Wilson

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