Building lots
are getting smaller, leaving less space for landscaping elements...what
to do?
Vertical compositions in shades
of green in two small entry courtyards.......
Design
Considerations for the Small Garden
Keep it simple...
Define the areas of your garden...be multi-functional,
using circulation as the main thread that gives definition to each area
Use simple, bold, well-defined shapes for
planting beds and pathways
Use fewer types of plants, but more of the
ones you like in larger masses
Consider plants for year-round interest...get
color from berries, leaves, bark
Fit plants to the space...use smaller scale,
narrower plants that will not overpower the site. (large, heavy, dark conifers
will take up too much space, whereas a small-scaled deciduous tree can
provide space underneath for activities, or other plantings)
Create privacy by using vertical elements
(both structural and horicultural)
Make every area functional...consider having
a semi-enclosed front patio
Layer plants ( bulbs growing through groundcovers,
vines and shrubs under trees)
Keep the color scheme simple..repeat colors
in leaves, flowers and berries
Use hardscape and architectural elements
that blend with the house...arbors, pergolas, firepit, fencing, screens....to
create extended outdoor 'rooms'
Use texture and color to create sense of
more space: large leaves in foreground, small leaves in background; bright,
saturated colors in foreground, pale,cool colors in background)
Consider eliminating the front lawn!- use
groundcovers, paving, shrubs....
Create changes in elevation- raised beds,
terraces with wide steps for seating
Use containers in groups of multi-sized
pots
Design for yourself...not the cars passing
by!
Use borrowed landscape...repeat elements
from outside the garden
Keep accents to a minimum but make them
special... use sculpture, water features, benches
Be creative...bring your personality into
the garden... give it a feeling of 'place'
Plant Considerations
for the Small Garden
Acer circinatum Vine Maple
Acer circinatum Little
Gem Dwarf Vine Maple
Acer palmatum Sango Kaku Coral
Bark Japanese Maple
Betula jacquemonti Jacquemont
White Birch
Styrax japonicum Japanese
Snowbell
Liquidambar styraciflua Sweetgum
Tree
Malus sargenti Sargent
Crabapple
Chamycyparisus obtusa Hinoki
Cypress
Metasequoia glyptostroboidies Dawn
Redwood
Picea abies nidiformis Dwarf
Nest Spruce
Tsuga canadensis Gentsch White Dwarf
White-tipped Hemlock
