How can you create a sense of mystery and anticipation and make your garden have depth? The Japanese have done this for centuries. They developed a technique to conceal parts on a garden from the initial view; than gradually to reveal them.
In just a twenty-foot space lush foliage and planted containers in a layered planting fronted by airy foliage can make a mystery retreat in an area. Couple that with swirls of bricks in a patio, stone paths, or retaining walls around a concrete swimming pool and you can heighten the mystery and anticipation.
Another simple way is to screen just part of a view from the house or patio with an arbor to frame a panorama in the distance. Only when you go beyond the shrub screen is the view entirely revealed. This technique is very effective at making it impossible to determine or judge a space at the first glance.
Creating depth by arranging plants in certain ways can add to the allure. Our landscape designers and landscape architects often add depth creating irregular borders as they produce a greater sensation of depth than a linear unadorned fence or uniform hedge. They use the outer edges of the garden and mass together vines, small trees, and shrubs of different shapes.
Double-planting is another landscape tool used by our design team. Planting one row of plants in front of another one makes it appear as the greenery goes back further than it really does. There’s room for double planting in all sizes of gardens.
“Layering” structures for greater depth like attaching a wooden trellis to a tall brick wall, or a concrete wall with planters in front of it, or even a fountain in front of a large retaining wall provides depth.
Whether you’re interested in simply creating a difference between close up or far off objects, or you want a swimming pool surrounded by an area of mystery, we can help you with our Mpls and St. Paul designers. Call us on 952-292-7717.
