Legacy from Antiquity.

Throughout the ages water has been an essential source of life and has dictated the form that gardens took as their most vital element. In arid lands such as Egypt, the annual floods used to irrigate the banks of the Nile, which turned the enclosed gardens into lush retreats, supplying the pools and nurturing pleasurable shade giving trees. As well as this miraculous annual rejuvenation, water was also drawn from the Nile along dykes and irrigation channels. These determined the shape and layout of gardens, usually set in a symmetrical grid. The pool was the centrepiece of the ancient Egyptian Garden and was usually the preserve of high society that used them for pleasure but also to stock fish and fowl.  The layout of the ancient Egyptian garden was deemed so important even in the afterlife that their layout can be seen in the tombs of pharaohs and nobility, in order to be used by the deceased. The Egyptians believed in deities such as Nut (also the sycamore tree Goddess) who provided for their needs in both life and the afterlife. Many of these representations are laden with pomegranates and figs so the deceased could continue to receive nourishment in the life there after. An example of this can be seen in the Tomb of Nebamun at Thebes c. 1400 BC. An inscription on another tomb at Thebes reads

‘ May I wander around my pool each day forever more. May my soul sit on the branches of the grave garden I have prepared for myself.  May I refresh myself each day under my sycamore.’

Water features both inside and outside Egyptian gardens placed a crucial role in daily ritual of religious life.  Larger gardens had several pools randomly placed to help cool the air.

Ancient Greece and the Roman Empire

The Ancient Greeks were filled with amazement when they first beheld the magnificent gardens of the eastern Persian Kings. Water features enhanced by architectural settings probably originated in Greece when springs were enclosed to preserve their purity and were later decorated as shrines.

Homer’s Odyssey has one of the earliest writings from ancient times of a Garden and water, written between 750 and 650 B.C. Mentioning the Garden of King Alcinous, being dependant on two things – Water and divine intervention. Homer describes the garden of Alcinous, king of the Phaeaceans as being rich with pears apples, pomegranates, and sweet figs that grow all year round. In Book V Homer also describes the garden of Calypso:

“And round about the cave there was a wood blossoming, alder and poplar and sweet-smelling cypress. And therein roosted birds long of wing, owls and falcons and chattering sea crows, which have their business in the waters. And lo, there about the hollow cave trailed a gadding garden vine, all rich with clusters. And fountains four set orderly were running with clear water, hard by one another, turned each to his own course. And all around soft meadows bloomed of violets and parsley, yea, even a deathless god who came thither might wonder at the sight and be glad at heart.’

In his book Phaedrus, written about 350 B.C, Plato and his friend chat beside a stream discussing the sanctified atmosphere of the location. Plato remarks

‘ The spring which runs under the plane, how beautifully cool its water is to the feet. ‘

As also seen earlier in ancient Egypt the Greeks also believed in Deities such as nymphs that inhabited streams and grottoes. Nymphs are personifications of the creative that foster activities of nature, most often identified with the life-giving outflow of springs. The association of nymphs and muses led to informal arrangements of figures in and around fountains and decoration which natural stones and shells.

The writing of the Roman poet Ovid in his Metamorphoses are some of the earliest descriptions of the way water sources have been decorated. He describes Diana’s grotto as a cave that included a fountain stream which had walls decorated with pumice beneath a mossy floor. To their grottoes and caves the ancients used to apply a deliberately roughened layer of pumice chips which Ovid called ‘ living pumice’. Green Ochre a natural earth pigment was also used to imitate the living moss of a grotto.

In Pompeii Italy there are many examples of fashionable water features that were used in the seaside city, which provided a welcome retreat from the stifling summer heat of Rome. The fortunate residents of the villas nearby could enjoy gardens that were refreshed and enlivened by fountains and pools. Marble sculptures, especially fountain figures in ancient Rome, often took their subject matter from mythology or something with particular reference to the owner of the house. Bronze was a popular metal and it was more durable than marble. Bronze wall fountains of animal heads over marble basins were very popular across the Roman Empire and were used individually or in groups around a water feature. Typical examples of these are Lion Wall Fountains and notably the two dogs and a boar from the richly decorated house of the Citharist at Pompeii, which are now on display in the Archaeological Museum of Naples. Lion head spouts were one of the earliest forms of water features. This is because the lion has been an icon for humanity appearing in nearly every culture across Europe, Asia, and Africa. The lion has been a popular symbol of imperial stateliness for thousands of years. It has also had a positive depiction in many cultures of bravery and strength yet being noble. This Lion symbolism has been used in garden water features from ancient times through to the present day.

Ancient manuscripts on hydraulics were rediscovered during the renaissance when designers revived the lost art of fantastic fountains for the great Italian gardens.

Home landscaping design is not an exception to this. If planned with definite guidelines landscaping can be a fun activity. Here are some important points that can help you to plan out the landscape activity for faster results.
 
1) The first step is to get a clear idea about the purpose of your home garden. The purpose of a landscaping garden can be different for everyone. Some of the possible causes to grow a garden around home can be

a) Adding value to your home.
b) For maintenance purpose.
c) For yourself so that you can enjoy quality time with your family.

2) Write down your requirements or the elements that would like to see in your garden. This may include

a) Outdoor Patio
b) Fishponds / Rock gardens / Fountains
c) Statues
d) Walkways
e) Sandpits for kids to play

3) Once the purpose is finalized it’s time to make observations about your home yard. This required writing down all the existing elements already present in and around your home. Here is a sample list of existing landscaping elements for your reference.

a) Existing big tree and their positions from home building
b) Sunlight directions and their intensity
c) Wind flow and it’s direction
d) Presence of tall buildings around your home building (because they will obstruct sunlight)
e) Presence of street traffic/railway lines etc.
f) Presence of Lake/seashore/flowing River etc.

4) Once these simple observations are done it becomes easier to draft out a simple plan or layout using the requirements and the existing elements. You have a choice to completely remove some of the existing elements or even use them in the new design. You can create a number of alternatives or design options and then finalize one.

5) There are number of ways to execute your home landsaping design on ground. The first method is to simply hire a landscaping contactor to do this job and pay him for that or you can even do it yourself using some simple methods.

Home landscaping design is not an exception to this. If planned with definite guidelines landscaping can be a fun activity. Here are some important points that can help you to plan out the landscape activity for faster results.
 
1) The first step is to get a clear idea about the purpose of your home garden. The purpose of a landscaping garden can be different for everyone. Some of the possible causes to grow a garden around home can be

a) Adding value to your home.
b) For maintenance purpose.
c) For yourself so that you can enjoy quality time with your family.

2) Write down your requirements or the elements that would like to see in your garden. This may include

a) Outdoor Patio
b) Fishponds / Rock gardens / Fountains
c) Statues
d) Walkways
e) Sandpits for kids to play

3) Once the purpose is finalized it’s time to make observations about your home yard. This required writing down all the existing elements already present in and around your home. Here is a sample list of existing landscaping elements for your reference.

a) Existing big tree and their positions from home building
b) Sunlight directions and their intensity
c) Wind flow and it’s direction
d) Presence of tall buildings around your home building (because they will obstruct sunlight)
e) Presence of street traffic/railway lines etc.
f) Presence of Lake/seashore/flowing River etc.

4) Once these simple observations are done it becomes easier to draft out a simple plan or layout using the requirements and the existing elements. You have a choice to completely remove some of the existing elements or even use them in the new design. You can create a number of alternatives or design options and then finalize one.

5) There are number of ways to execute your home landsaping design on ground. The first method is to simply hire a landscaping contactor to do this job and pay him for that or you can even do it yourself using some simple methods.

The best way to work with garden fountains is to be creative; they come in many different styles so usually no matter what the space you have there will be a style that will fit into it.  Using different styles for different areas is crucial and often the more unusual styles can be overlooked in how they could improve the garden.  When most people think of garden fountains they automatically think of the bird bath style which is still very popular and many people choose these to encourage more wildlife into the garden, however there are other styles that can be utilised that will still allow the birds and wildlife to take advantage of the feature but will also cover up a space that might otherwise seem unsightly.

One such type is the hanging wall fountain these are very much unsung and do give an extra dimension to the garden.  If you have a wall space and are unsure how it can be effectively used and want to have something that has very simple installation and low maintenance these should be considered.  Garden fountains are very versatile which has been displayed within this article and the walls, floors or garden borders can all be used to house a garden fountain.  As mentioned previously garden fountains are very easy to maintain and the moving water allows them to operate even in cold temperatures, it is however usually recommended that they are switched off and drained if the threat of extreme weather is present.  The manufacture has been prepared so no specialist trades people are needed to install the garden fountains which allow you to have complete control over where and how you implement them into your garden.  If you are purchasing one of the large garden fountains then there are options to have a lining in the base or cement bowl depending on which best suites your space and would work best in your location.  The flexibility and the shear number of garden fountains is what make them one of the best solutions to enhancing your outdoor space.

Rose gardens and rose garden designs are typically quite stunning on their own, but if you are looking for a spectacular way to make them even more dramatic and stunning, you should consider adding cast stone wall fountains to the mix. Cast stone wall fountains are quite beautiful, and can really add a lot of beauty to any garden, especially rose gardens which are already stunning all on their own. Because rose gardens are typically filled with so much color, the contrast added by the cast stone wall fountains can really be an aesthetic improvement.

Rose Garden Designs using Cast Stone Wall Fountains

If you are looking for the right rose garden design and you already know what type of outdoor wall fountains you will be using, then you can essentially base the design of your rose garden on the hardscape elements. It would be stunning, for example, for you to let your roses climb the walls on either side of your outdoor wall fountains, to add some drama to the stone or brick walls that your fountains adorn. Can you imagine the dramatic appearance of brightly colored roses climbing over stark outdoor wall fountains? It really would be a stunning sight, and visitors to your rose garden would be absolutely thrilled to see it. Find out more about ways to incorporate wall fountains with your outdoor decor at http://www.ckclandscapinginc.com.

If on the other hand, you have already begun to grow your rose garden and are looking for ways to add cast stone wall fountains to the d?cor, you may have a little more difficulty because you will have to find fountains that not only fit in with the colors of your rose garden, but you will also have to find wall fountains that work well with the space that you already have. While many people begin with cast stone fountains and add other elements like rose bushes later, some people choose their flowers long before hard-scaping elements like cast stone wall fountains, rocks, fences and walls are ever even added.

Many garden designers place trellises, gazebos or arbors that border their rose garden or even place in the center of the rose garden. By using such a design it makes it much easier to find a place to hang outdoor wall fountains in the absence of brick walls or other type of walls and borders that typically border rose gardens. Learn about the positive aspects of incorporating wall fountains with your landscaping at http://www.witch-crafted.com/garden8.htm.

Cast Stone Wall Fountains and Colors

Rose gardens, by nature, are truly stunning, simply because they involve so much bright color. The people who create rose gardens generally tend to work very hard at cultivating them, growing the perfect roses, pruning the bushes perfectly. Anyone who puts this much energy into a rose garden will understand how absolutely imperative it is to find garden elements that work perfectly in the decor and design of the garden. You do not want your cast stone wall fountains to contrast your rose gardens in the wrong way. You want all of the colors, all of the textures, shapes and design elements to fit together in the perfect way; otherwise you are simply wasting your time and money, exploring design options that might never work.

Finding not only the perfect cast stone wall fountains, but also the perfect rose garden designs is really up to you ultimately, because gardening is all about tending to something that you enjoy and are passionate about, rather than simply accepting the advice of a stranger. As long as you understand that choosing outdoor wall fountains has a lot to do with making them blend in with your garden, you will do just fine when it comes to designing your beautiful rose garden around your cast stone water features, and your beautiful outdoor wall fountains around your stunning rose garden designs.

Landscape Garden Design: Gathering Places & Focal Points

Your landscape will be more interesting and enjoyable if you consider:

? Outdoor kitchens. These structures create a focal point for your yard and, similar to the kitchen inside the home, become a natural gathering place. It is imperative that you have a good layout so that all your appliances fit and are convenient for use. Landscape designers and landscape architects will help you during the planning phase to check your deed restrictions concerning rules regulating such items as size, lot coverage percentages, height, and color materials.

? Patio design. A patio creates a transition space between the house and the yard. Depending on your preference, your patio design can run the gamut from an elegant open-air greenhouse to an outdoor living room. Patios affect the emotional and physical space of the interior by changing the view out the window.

? Landscape lighting. Expertise is essential in landscape lighting design, planning and installation. “About 50 percent of the technical work has to do with placement of the light fixtures,” explains Jeff Halper, landscape garden design specialist with Exterior Worlds. “You really don’t want to see the nuts and bolts of the system. You only want to see the beautiful effect created by the lights.”

? Other hardscapes. You have many choices with hardscapes, the non-plant material of your yard. They include pool decking, entry walks and pathways, gates, decks and arbors, retaining walls, driveways and motor courts.

Landscape Garden Design: Themes

Many homeowners like to choose a theme for their landscape architecture. One popular choice is classical landscape design, which is a type of formal landscape design that uses linear, clean lines to develop an orderly look. These “lines” can be drawn with rows of trees and well-trimmed hedges or perhaps a seat wall made of perfectly arranged terra cotta tiles. Greenery can soften any harshness.

Another idea is an English garden design, which is noted for its informal approach to gardening and is hugely popular in the United States. Houston’s semi-tropical climate is well suited for vine-covered arbors, riotous rose gardens, dazzling azaleas and beds of seasonal color-all plant materials that fit well within the English garden’s impression of abundance.

If your home’s architecture is a good match, think about a modern landscape design. In this style, boundaries between areas of color, textures and shapes are undefined-or conversely, sharply defined. Color and composition create the emotional response. Combining freshness and flair, these designs use dramatic geometric shapes to convey a point of view that is elegant and natural. Water and light are often used, as in beautifully-lit outdoor water fountains, to enhance the sensual loveliness and liveliness.

Don’t forget a “green” green garden. That is, one that is ecologically helpful, practical and sustainable. “With a design for a green garden, the goals are similar to any other landscape project. However, we do put a special focus on reducing the Big Four of ongoing landscape maintenance: watering, trimming, weeding and mulching,” says Halper.

You don’t need to be a lawn and garden expert or landscape designer to do this. Here are a few tips for creating a super yet simple garden and patio design that will be a knockout!

The first step is to take a birds-eye view of your garden and patio area. Make a rough sketch of your space, and play around with a few designs until you like what you see. As you’re doing this, get some great ideas from existing garden and patio decorations. Pay a visit to other people’s gardens, or public gardens. Look through home landscaping and gardening magazines, find what you like, and develop plans of your own.

Decide what style or theme is right for you… formal, casual, rustic, Southwestern, Japanese… there are enormous possibilities. Then stay with that style and theme so the overall effect does not become confusing. For instance, you wouldn’t want to combine bronze garden sculptures of saints or cherubs with rustic wooden wagon wheels.

Imagine what your patio area will most often be used for. You may plan to entertain lots of outdoor dinner guests. If so, be sure your patio space has plenty of room for the largest number of people right from the beginning. Your patio may be more of a private, reflective retreat for enjoying the sun, reading a book, or gazing up at the stars. Determine the use of shade, open sun, or even covering it with a roof.

Now take your favorite ideas and put them into your rough plans – and soon you’ll have a design that is ready for action.

The next step is to create your garden and patio design to scale – you can use landscaping software for this, or do it by hand. Choose the flowers you intend to plant, noting how many you will need for each month of your growing season, and select the landscaping structures that will give your design its form.

Some say the secret to a beautiful garden and patio design is having a good amount of hard structure. This is what landscape designers refer to as “good bones” – walls, fences, garden bridges, gates, garden arbors, landscape statues, garden fountains … even a strong line of evergreen plants.

Garden structures such as these create forms and lines, giving your garden and patio design definition and dimension. Plus, in the winter when most plants are empty and bare, your garden will preserve its shape and sense of completeness. It’s amazing how just one or two structures can produce this satisfying effect.

Most garden and landscaping structures are built to withstand the elements. Treated pine, cedar and teak garden furniture, trellises, arbors, and decorative fencing are great choices. Stone, copper, and bronze garden statuary will never let you down. Garden fountains bring incredible beauty and atmosphere to any garden and patio design – in fact, entire gardens have been built around them.

Next, choose annual spring flowers and perennial plants that will give you blooms from one season to the next. For instance, select carefree roses that need no pruning or spraying, and bloom continuously from spring through fall. Fill planters with beautiful blooming flowers such as Oriental lilies or verbena for different colors all summer long. Establish flower beds in corners or along walk ways. Always consider your local climate and plant according to the sun and shade needs of your plants.

As you plan your garden and patio design, create paths or walk ways that lead from one area to the next. Rambling garden paths are relaxing and charming… and if laid out thoughtfully, will be a big help to you as the gardener. Paths can be of stone, brick, flagstone, gravel, or mown turf, although grass paths require more upkeep. Garden sculptures or sitting benches thoughtfully placed along the way provide wonderful expression.

If you want garden and patio designs that are pre-drawn, there are ready-made plans available in books and magazines. This is another fine way to get off to a solid start. Use pre-made garden plans from start to finish, or incorporate parts of them right into you own creative plans.

Copyright 2006 Robert Mosse

We began by installing lights in the trees next to the home in order to illuminate the roof and balcony, and we placed lights under the eaves of the porch and patio to illuminate the surfaces, walls, and windows. We planted a small Italian garden in the front near the trees. In it, we placed a variety of ground cover plant species, shrubbery, and smaller, ornamental trees. This lent an organic sense to a very symmetrical and elegant structure, and helped develop the Classical theme we were asked to create. We completed the design in the front with urns placed on either side of the stairs that led up to the front door. This worked to create a sense of grand entryway that alluded to a sense of Roman antiquity and classical design.

The home had been built toward the front of the lot, so the majority of the property lay behind the house. This provided a great deal of room to develop an Italian garden with a number of functional and aesthetic elements that fit the lifestyles of the owners. The first thing we designed for them was a planter, shaped like a small wall, which surrounded the rear perimeter of the home. This provided a casual seating area for the home owners that they use as an overlook point to appreciate the scenery beyond. In the morning they could sit outside and watch the sunrise while they drank coffee and talked, or comfortably recline while they read the paper.

Just a few feet from this planter, we built a water fountain. We designed it as a rectangle to continue the movement of the house, because all Italian gardens are intended to follow the linear movement of architecture and maintain a sense of order and proportion throughout their continuity. Although the fountain featured very simple and compact proportions, we made it look much more dramatic and prominent by installing four water jets and 4 underwater lights to draw attention to it in the dark.

Around the fountain we then laid down a paver patio using a blend of hardscape and softscape paving. This blended construction made the patio appear to be fading into the grass, and caused the patio and surrounding gardens to look more classically Italian. The patio was surrounded by bull nose coping and sloped slightly toward the planter walls, which were built with unseen, 1-inch drain channel to provide a convenient and unobtrusive means of water runoff. We then filled the space around the new patio and planter with an Italian garden featuring cypress and decorative handmade pottery.

At the far end of the property, we completed our project with an arbor that functioned as a destination for outdoor entertainment and a terminus for the Italian garden design. The garden arbor was built on a limestone patio, and was constructed out of Permacast columns and a cedar top. We installed a ceiling fan within the arbor, and decorated the patio with tables and chairs to provide a comfortable gathering place for visiting guests.

One very unique feature was also added to this arbor to complete its design. This final piece was a mirror built to look like a window. Because the property bordered a commercial lot that had a rather unattractive building on it, we wanted to create a sense of enclosure and provide a focal point that would draw the eye away from the eyesore behind the arbor. A mirror proved much more useful for this purpose, because it both blocked the view of the building, and it magnified the apparent size of the Italian garden, fountain, planter, and rear of the home.

Small Garden Design: The Problems

A small garden design comes with big challenges. Perhaps your property abuts the two-story blank wall of a neighbor’s townhouse. Maybe the space is all straight lines and right angles. Or you’ve remodeled your home, changed the elevation, added a new room and reduced the size of your backyard, all of which affect the relationship to the existing landscape.

Turning Liabilities into Assets

With small garden design, as with all landscape design, the goal is to create spaces in which the home and architectural elements have a relationship with the yard and surrounding area. First, consider the big picture-your assets and liabilities. Begin by looking at the large, possibly immoveable factors, such as trees, a long fence-line or pool equipment, and decide if they are liabilities or assets. In this way, you test the viability and capacity of the site, a determination that will help clarify your landscape design options. Landscape designers or landscape architects can bring expertise and experience to this process.

Small Garden Design: Features to Consider

? Hardscapes. Decks, patios, pergolas, arbors and gates can be used to help define a small space, break it up or create interest. These choices, in effect, create other rooms. Your material selection adds further texture, thus making the space livelier.

? Water features such as swimming pools or outdoor water fountains. Swimming pools can be custom-made to fit into a small garden design. Also outdoor water fountains can be used to good effect in small gardens. Water features create movement and pleasant sounds, both elements that heighten your enjoyment of a landscape.

? Landscape lighting. Landscape lighting, in particular, can bring an element of drama to a small space. It is good to keep in mind that your landscape is viewed at night for about 30 percent of the time. Since so many people work and don’t come home until after dark, landscape lighting means homeowners can still enjoy their outdoor property, whenever they get home. It turns the landscape into a 24-hour event. Landscape lighting is also very practical as it provides security and nighttime lighting for any tricky steps.

? Infrastructure, like irrigation systems and drainage systems. Irrigation and drainage systems are the work-horses of Houston gardens. Sprinkler systems deliver water to plants during our long, intense summer months and drainage systems take away excess water when we get our infamous torrential rains. They save money, time and worry.

The Heart of Small Garden Design

Jeff Halper, landscape design specialist with Exterior Worlds, says, “The overall objective of any great landscape design, including small garden designs, is to create a space that breathes with the home and has a relationship to its surroundings. It should reflect the client’s visual desires and functionally work together in every aspect.”