Creating a Garden Sanctuary

Here are some things to think about when planning your landscape project.   

Using an arbor to separate a long, narrow garden into two areas is a great way to maximize the space. For example, one area could be for dining and the other for a small planting bed. Or, by simply changing the ground cover—pavers vs. grass or pebbles—you can clearly define two separate areas.

Structures not only add interest to your garden, but they can also be practical—for example, installing a wall bench. This works well as a seating area or a planting bed. Just make sure the wall bench is wide enough to sit comfortably.

Other structures could include arbors, pavers, retaining walls, stone walls, benches, statues, or birdbaths.

Balancing your landscape with focal points adds visual interest. Not only is it important to have softscape elements in your garden, such as trees and bushes, but balancing them with hardscape elements keeps things visually stimulating. By adding features such as a retaining wall or a ceramic pot, you can create eye-catching views for your garden visitors.

Focal points can be accented by pebble pathways, arbors, or enfilades (an enfilade—pronounced en-fuh-leyd—is a view through to another view). The enfilade allows the garden visitor to see through an arbor, past the pool, to a statue at the end of a garden. Then, looking from the statue at the end of the garden, the visitor can look back through the arbor and see a different focal point.

As pathways or complete ground cover, pea gravel, river rock, cobble, or large granite pieces can all be used for different landscaping needs. Most of these materials come in different sizes but within the same color scheme. Larger granite pieces can be used to add visual interest to your landscape or as a border to separate different areas.

One of the most underutilized areas of your landscape is the outdoor walls. These are great places to put a trellis, vine, or start an espalier (pronounced es-PAL-yer), which is a plant that has been trained to grow in a flat plane against a wall or fence. The term also describes the technique of training a plant to grow this way.

This is often an idea that is not considered during the planning phase. Are you interested in having color during that time of year? Some trees are deciduous and lose their leaves, but they can still be interesting elements because of their structure. Think of oak and madrone trees or persimmon trees in late fall.

We hope these ideas have been helpful in gaining a better understanding of landscape techniques to keep your garden flourishing!