Theme Garden Design, part 2

Wiese Acres Children and Butterflies Garden

Once you've answered the questions about what you want your garden to look and feel like and have decided on a theme, there are a few other decisions yet to be made.  How do you want your theme to be stated?  Do you want your theme to be bold - something that makes it immediately known to anyone looking that this is your theme?  Or do you want it more subtle - something that becomes known to the guests wandering through your gardens only as they spend a little more time there?

Wiese Acres Nostalgia Garden

Once you've decided that,  you can proceed to create a list of elements that will define your theme.  Colors, materials, objects, symbols, and plants can all be used to define a theme.  Things that are immediately visible, like colors and objects will tend to give you a bolder theme.  In the Wiese Acres Angel garden, the numerous angel statues tucked in amongst the plants loudly state the theme of this garden.  Materials used to create hardscaping within the garden may or may not give a strong sense of the theme.  In my Nostalgia Garden, the stepping stones used are part of creating the theme.  That is not what first indicates that theme to most people, so it is a more subtle part of  the definition.  Plants are most often a subtle indication of the theme.  In the All Creatures Great and Small garden , I know that the Crimson Pygmy barberry and the Little Kitten miscanthus are part of the theme, but the meanderer has to stop and look at the names of the plants to begin to recognize the theme.

You can decide to use just a few features to define your theme, or you can carry your theme throughout all aspects of the garden, incorporating theme elements in your hardscaping (walkways, structures, walls, etc.), planting bed shapes, plant materials, and garden decor.  The more elements of your garden into which you incorporate your theme, the stronger the sense of theme becomes for anyone entering your garden.

Hardscaping is really a matter of personal choice, regardless of the theme you choose.  A rule of thumb, though, is that brick and wood hardscaping will give you a more traditional theme, while stone and metal produce a more contemporary feel.

Garden structures, such as arbors, pergolas, gazebos, fences, and garden sheds can be used as design elements in the theme.  Decorative elements, such as bird baths and houses, statuary, and lighting are also useful in weaving the theme throughout the garden space.  It is often helpful to select one main element and build your theme around it.  In the English Tea garden, I used an old English looking sculpture of a "courting" boy and girl, and built the rest of the theme around that one element.

Tomorrow we'll talk about some specific types of theme gardens and elements that can be used to define the theme.