Making Gardens Beautiful.

Making gardens beautiful is to use the flows of nature and harmonic geometry, to create ‘desire lines’ and layers of interest.

Beauty comes in many forms and people have different tastes, but all forms share the same underlying principles. We all share the appreciation of these natural laws, because we are also part of nature.

These principles are the foundation of all successful design. With a good ground plan, good use of perspective, and the right choices of materials and planting, any garden can become a joy for the senses.

Where to start?

In the same way that each note is important to the feelings created by music, every element of a garden contributes to its overall atmosphere. The goal therefore, is to bring all aspects together into one coherent whole and the best way to achieve this is to start from the foundations up.

A garden is fundamentally ‘your space’, so although it’s often overlooked, the most important first stage should be to imagine the garden as empty, and then design the proportions and flows of the space itself.
Alternatively, starting by trying to arrange the ‘things’ we want to put into a garden actually makes the design process more difficult and usually leads to problems of clutter, awkward angles, and wasted space.

Though it may not be immediately obvious, every garden already has natural zones. These are dictated by the boundaries, the path of the sun, and the surrounding environment. Taking the time to recognise these and include their shapes into the design will make the finished plan more free flowing and intuitive.

These areas are often also ‘micro-climates’, so rather than thinking of the limitations of a garden as being obstacles or problems, it is helpful to think of them as the mountains, rivers and valleys of the garden, around which the plants will find their ideal growing conditions.

All life is movement.

Gardens and plants are not fixed and static, they are continuously moving and adapting to their environment. The design therefore, has to consider the effects of the times of day, the seasons, and even the passing years.

Likewise, users of the garden will move around the space in two main ways, with their feet and with their eyes. So to really maximize the effective space it’s important to consider how to direct a viewer's attention.

Our minds are conditioned to seek the fastest most effective way to gather information about our surroundings. No doubt for safety reasons, we want the most important first -

What am I likely to fall over?
What might cut or poison me?
Is that a dangerous animal over there?
What's the best route to escape?

There are therefore, physical shapes and colours we are attracted to first. This is a conditioned reflex, one which we find it hard to resist. Obviously, when designing a garden we want to avoid creating feelings of fear or confusion, but instead to evoke feelings of security, interest and pleasure.

Both magicians and artists use this same understanding to create their illusions and spectacle. Knowing what will attract or distract people's attention makes it possible to create desire-lines, views, or even illusions. If done well these techniques can significantly change the atmosphere and sense of proportion of a garden.

Techniques to guide the eyes.

1 - Using contrast:

High contrasts of light, colour, and texture attract our eyes quickly. Our minds are looking for things which stand out as different. This change from the immediate surroundings also means that it is easy for the eye and mind to recognise its characteristics.
Light and dark, warm and cool colors, and rough and smooth textures can all be
used to create contrast and direct a viewer’s attention.

2 - Repeating elements:

Our minds will begin to identify and group things which are the same. So if we see a number of things with similarities, our eyes will tend to move between them to determine if there is a pattern which might be interesting to us.
Repeating elements such as patterns, shapes, or colors can be used throughout a garden to create a sense of cohesiveness and also to lead the eye.

3 - Using lines and shapes:

The use of lines and shapes creates a sense of direction and movement. The viewer’s eyes are inclined to follow these lines in order to understand their nature and extent.

Diagonal lines and S-curves are particularly effective in leading the eye.

Diagonals create a sense of energy.
A series of horizontals conveys stability and calm.
Curves evoke grace and fluidity.
Jagged or spikey convey tension and drama.

4 - Using clear focal points:

A focal point is the main area of interest which will draw a person's attension. It should be distinct and stand out from the other elements. This can be achieved through color, contrast, texture, size, or movement.

Generally focal points are any unique or significant objects or details.

5 - Using the rule of thirds:

The rule of thirds is a basic principle of composition where dividing a scene into three equal parts will create a balanced and aesthetically pleasing composition. Using this principle, you can place your focal point at one of the intersection points. The viewer will instinctively find this type of composition pleasing, and will not be fighting against it.

6 - Manipulating the sense of perspective:

A viewer’s eye will tend to track from the foreground onto the middle ground and then through to the distance. By including some of the other techniques on this path you can guide the direction that the viewer's eye will travel.

In wide gardens, a greater sense of depth can be achieved by placing a focal point at the end of the garden and by shielding or distracting from the side boundaries.

In long narrow gardens, the sense of having more width can be achieved by encouraging the eye to move from side to side, thereby having to go on a longer journey to the end of the garden. Again, obscuring the end of the garden altogether will also add to this effect.

If you want a garden to appear longer you can adjust the proportions of repeating geometric shapes. For example, if you have two equal circle shapes, one in the foreground and one further away. If you adjust the size of the distant circle by making it slightly smaller, this will have the effect of making it appear further
away.

Likewise, lines which cross our path appear to increase width, and lines which run in the direction of our view extend our sense of distance.

Harmonic Aesthetics

Though too complex to discuss properly on this page it is worth noting some of the other useful considerations in aesthetic design.

1) The wheel of colour.

2) The visual weight of objects &

3) The Golden Ratio of nature (The Fibonacci Sequence).

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