The Essential Garden Design Workbook / Edition 2

by Rosemary Alexander

Overview

The Essential Garden Design Workbook guides the reader through every stage of planning a garden — how to survey a site, how to choose landscaping materials, and how to develop planting schemes. This fully revised and updated second edition features new U.S. case studies and new photographs. Valuable tips on green gardening are new to this edition, and include how to harvest rainwater, how to design a green roof, tips on sustainable planting, and a guide to composting.

Tailor-made for hands-on gardeners, the workbook approach is accessible, practical, and can be used to create a garden from scratch and to redesign an existing garden. Gardeners will find easy ways to measure large spaces, estimate the height of a tree, and find the right proportions for a deck. They'll also find tips on space, light, and color. Includes hundreds of easy-to-follow line drawings and diagrams.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780881929751
Publisher:	Timber Press, Incorporated
Publication date:	05/20/2009
Edition description:	Older Edition
Pages:	292
Product dimensions:	7.90(w) x 9.70(h) x 1.00(d)

About the Author

Founder and principal of The English Gardening School at the Chelsea Physic Garden, London, Rosemary Alexander writes and lectures worldwide on garden design. She was awarded the Veitch Memorial Medal by the Royal Horticultural Society and lived as a tenant of the National Trust property in Kent. Her current Hampshire garden has been featured in most major gardening magazines. 

Read an Excerpt

If you would like a water feature in your garden, begin by considering the different types before deciding on the form it will take.Water has a seductive, elusive quality that can greatly enhance any setting and, when used effectively, is able to command more attention than any other garden feature. It has the attribute of reflecting light but also has, in the garden layout, a similar strength to a solid structure. If well designed and integrated, a water feature can be a great asset to a garden, but, if used badly, it can be a depressing mistake. Water should be used with discretion, becoming part of the structure of your design. In small gardens, water is best used formally, either in conjunction with a building or as a sculptural feature or fountain. Using water informally, in free-form shapes imitating natural ponds, requires more space. Decide early on which type of water feature you want, and then decide whether it should flow or be static. The safety aspect, particularly for children, is of prime concern — being caged in as a precaution does not enhance any water feature.

Although perhaps the single most magical feature in a garden, water is also the most difficult subject to get right. Once you have decided on your concept, it may be advisable to call in a water specialist who should be able to foresee any potential problems.

Water has been prized in the design of gardens since ancient times. It was used as an integral part of many early Mogul, Persian and Islamic gardens, cooling down the atmosphere, soothing the spirits and giving an additional dimension to a flat landscape.

In Europe during the Renaissance a renewed interest in hydraulics led to a proliferation of water devices, particularly in Italian and French gardens. Fountains had huge jets of water that soared into the air; grottoes had trick water features, which, to the amusement of the host, soaked unsuspecting visitors; cascades tumbled down water staircases; and a series of spouts and rills emitted sounds that imitated music. It was the height of fashion to include an unusual water feature in a garden setting, and wealthy landowners who took pride in their gardens engaged designers with knowledge of modern hydraulics to turn their fantasies into reality.

Although today we accept hydraulic systems, such as pumps, as part of everyday life, there is still huge scope for the imagination when it comes to using water in a garden.

Water awakens the senses. Its movement and reflection provide a feast for the eyes; the range of sounds it produces, from gentle dripping to loud crashing, has the ability to calm or invigorate; and its tactile quality, whether liquid or in the form of ice, is fascinating. When used in a garden it can provide a home for plants and wildlife, colourful swirls of fish and water plants adding to its visual appeal. Water can also enhance the quality of other materials, deepening the colours of mosaic tiles, for instance, or highlighting the smooth surface of river pebbles.

The most striking attribute of still water is its power to reflect, thereby doubling the value of any image that falls on its surface. This can be used to great effect in a garden. It can unify a design by bringing together the ground plane, the vertical plane and the overhead plane, and it can create a feeling of space by bringing light into the garden.

To bring out the best of water's reflective quality, it is important to contain the water in a material that is as dark as possible. The reflections on the surface of a swimming pool are usually poor or nonexistent during the day, because the floor and walls are generally pale in colour and can be clearly seen. If, on the other hand, the pool were painted black, the reflected images would be clear, even in cloudy weather, and the interior would be invisible. Of course, this would only apply to ornamental pools — a black swimming pool would be most uninviting.

Being unable to judge the depth of a pool or pond adds a sense of mystery to the feature and has practical advantages as well. Not only does the darkness obscure functional items, such as plant containers and supports for stepping stones, but it also allows the designer to construct a relatively shallow pool, thereby saving on construction expenses.

When thinking about reflections, consider the importance of the water level. As the side of the pool will be reflected in the water, the water level will appear to be lower than it is, reducing the apparent surface area.To maximize the reflective area, you will need to raise the water level as high as possible. In formal pools it should be kept just below the level of the coping stones or edging.

You can experiment with the effect of reflections by placing small objects on a hand mirror.

If the sun does not fall directly on the surface of the water, the reflected sky appears a more intense blue. This fact can be used to advantage in small town courtyards, where the enhanced colour and light reflected back from the surface of the water can turn a gloomy, dull space into one with vibrant interest.

To increase the darkness or depth of colour of the water, dramatize the effect by using dark large-leaved evergreens in the background.

Moving water shimmers and sparkles in the light and adds a refreshing quality of sound which is much appreciated in hot countries. Because of the way light dances on moving water, it works best when it is positioned in full sun. Fountains, for instance, are particularly effective when positioned in full sun with a shady background, preferably of dark green plants.

One way in which moving water differs from still water is by the sounds it creates. A small amount — trickling onto rocks in a pool, for instance — can be delicate and musical, whereas a large volume, forced up through the jet of a powerful fountain or cascading over rocks into a pool far below, can produce loud hissing or burbling sounds that bring a sense of excitement to a garden. In an urban setting these sounds can help to reduce outside noise, particularly the distant sounds of traffic or people.

Table of Contents

	Acknowledgements	7
	Introduction	11
Chapter 1	Research, Preparation and Design Appraisal	13
	The Garden Owner's Requirements	15
	Making a Site Survey	18
	Surveying the Site	23
	Making a Sketch Plan of the Site Survey	30
	Basic Drawing Skills	34
	Drawing up the Site Survey to Scale	41
	Recording Information for the Site Inventory: The Checklist	45
	The Garden and Its Setting	46
	Recording Existing Conditions	52
	Legal Considerations	58
	Drawing up the Site Inventory Plan	59
	Drawing up the Site Appraisal	61
	Moving towards the Design Stage	61
	Drawing Concept Diagrams	64
	Consolidating the Information	64
Chapter 2	Developing the Design: Focusing on the Ground Plane	65
	Approaching the Design Process	67
	Drawing Skills for Presentation Plans	67
	Designing with Patterns and Shapes	76
	Creating Grids for Different Sites	81
	Theme Plans	89
	Planning an Outdoor Space	95
	Space	95
	Light	97
	Scale and Proportion	99
	Water	101
	Refining Ideas for the Preliminary Garden Layout Plan	110
	The Ground Plane or Garden Floor: Horizontal Elements in the Design	111
	Materials	115
	Vertical and Overhead Elements	124
	The Preliminary Garden Layout Plan	129
	Colour plates	133
Chapter 3	Finalizing the Garden Layout Plan	141
	The Role of the Vertical Plane	143
	Vertical Features	144
	Materials	150
	Structural Planting: Barriers and Enclosures	155
	The Role of the Overhead Plane	158
	Overhead Features	159
	Garden Accessories	165
	Practical Considerations	177
	Finalizing a Scheme for the Final Garden Layout Plan	181
	Colour plates	187
Chapter 4	Creating a Planting Plan	193
	The Role of Planting	195
	Principles of Planting Design	197
	Seasonal Changes in Plant Compositions	201
	Practical Considerations	203
	Planting Styles	205
	Creating a Planting Plan	206
	Colour plates	220
Chapter 5	Visualizing and Constructing the Design	229
	Enhancing the Plan	231
	Using Colour	231
	Applying Tone and Rendering Texture	232
	Using Photographs	236
	Mood Boards	238
	Drawing Sections and Elevations	240
	Axonometric Projections	245
	Construction, Planting and Maintenance	254
	Your Role as Garden Designer	257
	Keeping a Plant Notebook	259
	Core Plant List	265
	Plant Hardiness Zones	271
	Glossary	275
	Recommended Reading	283
	Index	287

Editorial Reviews

Alexander writes with a rare understanding for all of the living organisms—humans, plants and wild creatures—who will occupy and benefit from the garden that is under design.” —Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

“I especially like the book's 400 line drawings. Most are helpful, some humorous.” —Virginian-Pilot

From the Publisher

Alexander writes with a rare understanding for all of the living organisms -- humans, plants and wild creatures -- who will occupy and benefit from the garden that is under design.

Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

"I especially like the book's 400 line drawings. Most are helpful, some humorous."

Virginian-Pilot

"Alexander presents an excellent, comprehensive overview of a complicated subject, with many excellent examples."—Better Homes and Gardens, May 2005

Better Homes and Gardens

"Highly recommended as a detailed instructional for learning to blend individually creative instincts with practical necessities to create truly memorable gardens." James A. Cox, Bookwatch, March 2005
— James A. Cox

Bookwatch

"This is a comprehensive, almost scholarly guide to the secrets of good garden design."—Amy Stewart, American Gardener, March/April 2005
— Amy Stewart

American Gardener

"Highly recommended as a detailed instructional for learning to blend individually creative instincts with practical necessities to create truly memorable gardens." James A. Cox, Bookwatch, March 2005

Bookwatch - James A. Cox

"This is a comprehensive, almost scholarly guide to the secrets of good garden design."—Amy Stewart, American Gardener, March/April 2005

American Gardener - Amy Stewart