Garden Landscaping with Color, Repetition and Design
Unity and harmony through consistency and repetition is created much like music that is built upon repetition. It is like listening to the same song again and again, it is worth repeating. Unity should be one of the primary goals in a landscape design. This unity can also be accomplished through similar textures, sizes, heights and color. Nature is a good place to look at for ideas. In geographical areas you will see soil, rock and plant types that are similar.
Transition A natural transition keeps a flow whereas an abrupt or major change in the landscape design doesn't feel professional. Changes should be gradual according to the element, height, form, size or color. You can also create illusion of distance by using warmer colors against cool colors to create a seemingly larger garden area. For example one nice transition is to plant plants with larger leaves and a heavy texture with small smooth leaf plants in the front.
Symmetrical balance Give your landscape a symmetrical balance, or mirrored refection of itself, wherein both sides have part of all of the same shape, form or height. Not everything in nature is structured as it is in formal gardens. This can also be accomplished by aligning a hedge or important feature along a property line with a house wall. People enjoy balance and the feeling of order and stability.
Asymmetrical Balance Carefully placed asymmetrical balanced (or in other words unbalance elements) for free a form and abstract appearance add a natural and relaxed feeling. Adding a few what seems randomly arranged visual elements gives contrast and an eye-catching interest between the flow of a balanced landscape.
Asymmetrical may be better understood as actually being unbalanced, abstract, or free form while still creating unity and balance through the repetition of some elements. Perceiving asymmetry in a garden may be somewhat more difficult but it is more natural and relaxed. Although they may seem randomly arranged, they are however carefully positioned for a visual balance.
An example of this is where a path or bed shape is different on each side of a dividing line. One side could be curved and the opposite side straight and they still share the same plants or elements. This kind of contrast is interesting and very pleasing to the eye. The key is to maintain unity and repetitive balance using things such as rocks, plants and decor.
Color Color adds life to a landscape! Colors can direct your eye to a particular area. Brighter colors such as red, yellow and orange are used in painting to bring objects closer to you. It is the same technique used in landscaping. Warm colors are usually in the foreground and cool colors like pastels, greens and blues in the background that seem farther away. This creates a feeling of a larger area. Black and white are versatile neutral colors used in both the foreground and the background.
Lines Lines in landscaping is an important structural principle in landscape designing. It is the way your eye moves or as it flows across the landscape. Straight lines give a strong, ordered feel to an area that seems to direct you in. A wavy line has a gentle, free flowing, relaxed feel that tends to invite you in.
Outdoor Architectural Structures An outdoor shade structure such as a pergola is a welcome element that can be implemented on a grand scale or as small as a trellis on a side yard. Shade structures can add element, lines and beauty to a landscape that creates a clean, useable and more inviting atmosphere.
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