March Landscape Artisan. Spring

Transcription

1 March 2013 Landscape Artisans Landscape Artisan Spring

2 Containing Spring With winter s departure, we turn our attention outdoors, and what better way to enjoy the upcoming season than with versatile, colorful and easy-to-maintain containers. Early each spring as the snow recedes to the corners of our yards, we turn our attention outside. We anticipate the first buds of spring and many of us watch a favorite tree or plant awaken from winter s sleep. Some may look forward to the blooms of a favorite Magnolia tree, the vivid gold of forsythia, or the pastel colors of tulips. These welcome colors, textures, and even aromas transport us forward to a time when we will be relaxing in our gardens or entertaining with friends on our patios. At this time many may start thinking of making improvements such as planting a flowering tree in a nondescript back corner or adding a cutting garden to replace an old shrub bed. Some might even imagine a expanding a patio for entertaining more guests. These are all great ideas, but what if we want to make an impact without making structural changes? A flexible choice and one that can have a great impact is the use of flower containers. Less costly and disruptive than new plantings or construction, containers can be placed almost anywhere you wish to add a splash of color or soften hard features. And since they are planted with annual flowers instead of perennials, you ll always have a large selection of flowering material from which to choose, not a small consideration if you have a party or event and you need your property looking its best. Lastly, since they are filled with annuals and select perennials, weeding and pruning are not necessary, limiting maintenance to watering and fertilization. The goal is to create a space that you find pleasing. There are a few considerations to keep in mind when selecting containers. You ll probably first want to decide on where you want to place the containers. Location will help determine size and color, but that doesn t mean you have to use large containers in spacious areas such as a pool deck, for example. Many people use two or even three containers of decreasing size in a location that could accommodate one large pot. You may also want to place a window box on an entry landing instead of a round container. Another item to consider is the style of container. Many people select containers that match the style of their homes. Stone urns and more formal planters that are classic in design and possess clean symmetrical lines compliment Federal, Colonial, or Georgian style homes. If you own a cottage you may want to consider window boxes, wheelbarrows, or even watering cans for a lighter more whimsical look to accent your home. More contemporary homes are often adorned by shallow, bowl-shaped pots. Don t think, however, that you must be limited to any one of these choices. Many people use a mix of these styles to suit their needs. The goal is to create a space that you find pleasing, so select containers that you like and fit your personality. Once you ve decided on the type of container and where you will place it, plant selection can begin. (continued next page) 1 2

3 Containing Spring (continued from page 2) A place to start is by choosing colors that you like, but also remember to consider color combinations. You may love the colors red and yellow individually but would not want to see them together in a pot. And keep in mind that color can be introduced through plant foliage and not just flower petals. Many plants such as grasses and vines are used in pots for the variety of their foliage and their unique forms. Using material like this of different sizes and shapes creates more contrast and a greater range of texture. And remember that these choices are made for each seasonal rotation. New flowers and plants arrive each month of the season ready provide an immediate and dramatic impact. There are so many options to consider when installing flower containers that it may seem daunting. These options, however, give containers their versatility and allow them to reflect our individualism and personalities. 3 4

4 The Great Outdoors Whether you prefer the campfire feel of a fire pit, the comfort of an outdoor living room or the convenience of an outdoor kitchen, your home exterior presents excellent opportunities for developing spaces that enhance, reward, and rejuvenate. Pools have always been a popular choice for relaxation and rejuvenation. For many people, the convenience of staying home and entertaining with family and friends offsets maintenance costs. And today s pools feature such innovations as infinity-edges, advanced LED lighting, and the even the incorporation of fire elements such as torches and fire pits. Many homeowners are also choosing to install salt-water pools which have higher installation costs but require less maintenance. And with the use of colored tile, stone, and even mosaics, your pool can be as individual as you are. Outdoor cooking has expanded beyond the mere grill. It s common now to find multiple stone-topped workstations complete with grill, sink, refrigerator, and cabinets. Many homeowners are choosing conveniences such as wood ovens and microwaves. When designing an outdoor kitchen, consideration should be given to how the space will be used. Many people like to entertain large groups whereas others would prefer smaller more intimate gatherings. Whatever the preference, however,with a so many options from which to choose, the possibilities are endless. Water features aren t just fountains anymore. Koi ponds and reflective pools are the choice of many homeowners. And many are integrated into the landscape so they are natural extensions of the overall landscape design. Spas provide the ultimate in relaxation. Whereas pools serve as a focal point for family activity, spas are more intimate spaces for reflection as well as rejuvenation. And depending on what options you select, a spa can be used year-round. Of course, many of the innovations we see trending in pools, we also find in spas: infinity and zero-edges, colored stone and tile, and LED lighting. The design ideas are endless. The cornerstone of any outdoor space is the patio. A place to entertain and reflect, the patio is the focal point of outdoor activity. But the patio has evolved to include firepits, often round in design, a configuration which invites interaction among those gathered. And the evolution has not stopped there. The fire pit has given way to the fireplace, which has the ability to funnel smoke away from homes and guests. Factor in recent developments in weatherproof fabrics and electronics, and it should come as no surprise that a growing trend is the development of outdoor living rooms, complete with sofas, recliners and televisions. 5 6

5 s June 2013 Landscape Artisan Planting a Seed Using a journal to improve your landscaping. How many times have we put off planning a landscape project till warm weather arrives only to discover that we ve missed the window of opportunity and needed to wait till next year? A garden journal, begun now in mid-winter, is the perfect tool to avoid this pitfall and also helps us establish a working budget. The winter may seem an odd time to look critically at our properties, but with leaves off trees and shrubs and little to no snow on the ground, we can review our landscapes and reflect on the ways we interact with it. What views from our house do we wish to improve? Where would we like more color or texture? Would we like to grow our own vegetables, enjoy a cutting garden, or entertain on a patio or around a fire pit? All these ideas should be explored in our journals, and doing so will lead us to more specific questions that will help firm our ideas and our budgets. If we wish for a cutting garden, what colors would we prefer? Do we want more cuttings at one time of the season than another, say more flowers in July and August than April and May? If it s a patio we want, do we want one large enough to entertain many people or only a few? Will we need enough space to serve meals, or do we only desire an intimate area for reflection? Should it have plentiful shade or ample sun? Perhaps we wish to maintain a vegetable garden. In our journals we can create a list of our favorite recipes and the vegetables and herbs we d like to harvest for those recipes. We should also consider how much time we will have to spend in the garden? While we re exploring questions like these in our journals, we can be perusing magazines looking for examples that we like and placing these pictures and articles in our journals. In a short amount of time we ll have an excellent resource for our project. We ll have a strong understanding of exactly what we want, a firm grasp of our budget, and a means of communicating our ideas with a landscape professional. By doing the planning now, we can spend more time actually installing our ideas when the weather improves and enjoy our projects this season. Tracy Milot is a Seasonal Color Specialist with The Schumacher Companies. She has over a decade in the landscape industry specializing in perennial, annual flower, and vegetable gardening serving both residential and commercial clients. In the next issue Landscape Artisan Summer The Organic Vegetable Garden Flower Arrangements: Bringing Your Garden Inside Essential Soil Nutrients Landscape Artisans Published by: The Schumacher Companies, Inc. Corporate Address: 392 Pleasant Street West Bridgewater, MA Cape Cod Address: 93 Stony Hill Road Chatham, MA info@dschumacher.com tel: fax: All Rights Reserved