Landscape Gardening

Do-it-yourself Landscaping 

Ideas and Step-by-Step Planning and Help Guides

Memorial and Meditation Garden Landscapes - Walkway and Patio Edge Designs with Modern Low-maintenance Plants

Modern low-maintenance plants surrounding walkway and patio edges in memorial and meditation garden designs convey intimacy. Choosing suitable garden plants is crucial.

Low-Maintenance Plants for DIY Landscape Gardens - Bordering Walks and Patios in Memorial and Meditation Garden Designs

Low-maintenance plants are top choices for DIY landscape gardeners in designing a feasible landscape. They are no-nonsense picks for memorial and meditation gardens.

Pruning Deciduous Spring-flowering Shrubs: DIY Guide Pruning to Promote Attractive and Vigorous Plants

Skillful early summer pruning practices for spring-flowering deciduous shrubs are essential for DIY landscape gardeners. Proper pruning promotes healthy, vigorous shrubs.

Mulching Garden Landscape Shrubs and Trees: Concise DIY Guide - Mulching Practices that Aid Shrub and Tree Vigor

Mulching practices that improve and support shrub and tree health are essential for DIY landscape gardeners who want to create good-looking but money-wise projects.

Low-Maintenance Shrubs for Foundation Plantings: Dwarf Evergreen Shrubs Enhance Shady North-facing Front Landscapes

Low-maintenance small evergreen shrubs are first-rate selections for DIY landscape foundation plantings. They enrich the looks of shady front yard landscapes.

Landscape Garden Maintenance 

Landscape Garden Chores - Minor Garden Maintenance Tasks Reduce Major Landscape Renovations

Disease and pest damages, mechanical injuries, and moisture and heat stresses initially appear trivial. Inspection keeps minor maintenance from becoming renovation.

Landscape Maintenance Mistakes - Common Errors in Residential and Public Landscape

Landscape maintenance mistakes abound in both residential and public landscapes. What are some of these landscape maintenance errors and how do they happen? Photographs.

A Simple Lawn Fertilization System - Simple Effective and Inexpensive

Lawn care advice and tips from a leading expert on turf grass management can generate a stress-free guide to easy, effective, and inexpensive lawn care and landscaping.

Lawn Maintenance - Northeast US - A Calendar for Routine Cultural Practices

A calendar of cultural practices necessary for maintenance and upkeep of cool-season lawn grasses in the Northeast U.S. Other growing zones possess similar requirements.

Landscape Garden Summer Chores: Inspect Garden Plants, Maintain Flower Beds and Plan Gardens

August and September are busy times for landscape gardeners. Activity centers around inspecting and maintaining woody ornamentals and planning for next season's flowers.

Landscape Garden Styles 

Japanese-style Landscape Gardens - Creative Solutions for Small Space Contemporary Surroundings

A Japanese-style garden may be appropriate for small spaces. Consider how water, rocks and gravel, and plants influence and contribute to a Japanese-inspired landscape.

Morikami Japanese Gardens - Living Textbook of Japanese Garden History and Design

The Morikami Gardens in Del Ray Beach, FL are a living textbook They demonstrate periods of Japanese garden history and design from the 8th to the 20th century.

Japanese Karesansui-style Gardens - Contemplative Viewing Garden Museum of Fine Arts MFA Boston MA

The Japanese karesansui-style contemplative viewing garden at the Museum of Fine Arts (MFA) Boston, MA combines Japanese, New England and MFA elements and traditions.

The House of the Seven Gables: A Colonial Revival Garden (Salem, MA)

The Turner House (House of the Seven Gables - Salem, MA), made famous by Nathaniel Hawthorne, overlooks an early 20th Century Colonial Revival Garden

Hollister House Gardens - Rural CT: 20th Century English Garden Designs Adapted to North America.

Hollister House Gardens (Washington, CT) demonstrate how garden designs furnished with plants matched to regional- and micro-climates allow garden landscapes to thrive.

Beacon Hill Public Garden Spaces: North Slope Open Spaces, Cul-de-Sacs and Walkways (Boston, MA)

Residents of Beacon Hill's North Slope (Boston, MA) and civic and government groups work to transform derelict spaces and passageways into neighborhood garden spaces.

Hidden Gardens of Beacon Hill: Urban Garden Retreats and Small Shade Gardens in Boston MA

Beacon Hill (Boston, MA) residents fashion hidden backyard gardens. Garden retreats come into being from small pieces of degraded urban soil and shaded settings.

Historic Landscapes: New England - Survey of Selected 20th Century Gardens

Twentieth century New England garden landscapes show diversity that demonstrates society's expanding financial and social bases. Here are four such historic designs.

Historic Gardens and Landscapes: New England - Survey of Selected 17th-18th Century Garden Landscapes

Historic and traditional garden landscapes in New England range from colonial times to modern times. Here is a survey of selected 17th to18th century landscape styles.

Historic Landscapes and Gardens: New England - Survey of Selected 19th Century Gardens

Historic and traditional garden landscapes in New England range from colonial times to modern times. Here is a survey of selected 19th century landscape styles.

Hedges for Landscapes and Gardens 

Garden Landscape Hedges - Provide Shelter Privacy Physical and Psychological Barriers

Landscape garden hedges can be formal or informal. They provide shelter, privacy and barriers. They should complement landscape designs for which they are planned.

Barberry Shrubs (Berberis spp.) - Selections for Physical Barrier Landscape Hedges

Barberry shrubs are exceptional choices for low physical barrier landscape hedges. Described are barberry characteristics, cultivation details and eight good selections. Photos.

Hydrangea paniculata - Panicled Hydrangea: Small Trees and Shrubs in the Modern Landscape

The old-fashioned panicled hydrangea (Hydrangea paniculata 'Grandiflora'), a traditional feature of Northeast American garden landscapes, makes a comeback in new forms.

Carolina Spicebush in Hedges and Natural Gardens: Calycanthus floridus Cultivars Characteristics Culture and Habit

Carolina spicebush or sweetshrub (Calycanthus floridus) and its cultivars are large, hardy, shade-loving shrubs at home in hedges, mixed shrub beds and natural gardens.

Trees in Landscape Gardens / Tree Care 

Oaks - Shade Trees for Sizable Areas - Four Eastern North American Oaks for Large-scale Landscape Designs

Landscape designs for large areas need trees like oaks (Quercus spp.) that are in proportion to the design and relatively maintenance-free. Oaks provide color and shade.

Crapemyrtle (Lagerstroemia) Shrubs and Trees: Hardiness Site Selection Cultivation Diseases and Landscape Use

Landscape gardeners have numerous crapemyrtle (Lagerstroemia) hybrids and cultivars from which to choose. Options suit most southwest and southern landscape settings.

Crapemyrtle (Lagerstroemia) Species amp Cultivars: Garden Landscape History Garden Resources amp Breeding and Selection

Crapemyrtles (Lagerstroemia) are summer-bloomers in southern U.S. landscape gardens. Grown for over two hundred years, these plants are often called "southern lilacs."

Crapemyrtle (Lagerstroemia) Dwarf Shrubs: Modern Low Maintenance Summer-blooming amp Heat Tolerant Cultivars

Easy-to-grow crapemyrtle (Lagerstroemia) dwarf shrubs are newcomers to landscape gardens. Heat tolerant, pest-resistant and summer flowering, they ensure design novelty.

Planning for Your Spring Garden Landscape 

Yellow-Foliage Plants Echo Color of the Year: PANTONE® Color "Mimosa" Creates Ideas for Winter Landscape Gardens

Yellow-foliage evergreen plants are attention-getters and liven up winter landscape gardens. They mimic sunshine and echo PANTONE® 2009 Color of the Year 14-0848 "Mimosa".

Flowering Plants for Southern Garden Landscapes

Athens Select Plants and Southern Living Plant Collections team up in 2009 to bring flowering plants to gardeners in warm and humid southern landscapes. A good source to help southern gardeners plan ahead.

Deer-resistant Loropetalums - New Dwarf Cultivars Featured in Southern Living Plant Collection

The 2009 Southern Living%u2122 Plant Collection features three dwarf deer-resistant Loropetalum cultivars for low-maintenance southern landscape gardens.

Planting Trees and Shrubs - Preparation: Inspect Roots and Correct Problems to Ensure Good Establishment

Trees and shrubs reach consumers in ways that may result in root defects. Inspect roots and correct problems to ensure proper establishment, stress new planting guides.

Planting Trees and Shrubs - Installation: Backfill, Mulch, Stake and Prune to Ensure Good Establishment

Trees and shrubs need acceptable backfill, mulch, staking and pruning for good growth. New planting guides stress backfill and mulch depths to ensure good establishment.

Tree Death in the Landscape: Manage garden and urban trees for health and longevity.

Avoid tree death in garden and urban landscapes by using appropriate planting and cultural techniques, good sense and attention to detail, especially during construction.

Spring-blooming Flower Bulbs 

Spring-blooming Bulb Designs Now - Midsummer Planning for Pest-free Bulb Combinations

Midsummer is a good time to plan pest-free spring-blooming bulb gardens. Design combinations for all garden styles - containers, small patio gardens, or large spaces.

Pest-proof Spring-blooming Bulbs - Daffodils and Minor Bulbs Equal Enduring Landscape Groupings

All daffodils are deer and garden pest resistant. Daffodils planted with minor pest-resident bulbs create stunning and hardy spring displays in garden landscapes.

Spring-blooming Bulbs

Designing a spring-blooming bulb garden now, along with buying bulbs to plant anytime from September through November, are not mpriority items for most gardeners.

2008 Catalogs of Spring-blooming Bulbs - Quality Bulbs Insure Superior Spring-blooming Bulb Gardens

Independent garden centers, discount big-box stores and internet / mail order catalog vendors market spring-blooming bulbs. Which source is best for landscape gardens?

Spring-blooming Bulbs Design Ideas - Narcissus Minor Bulbs - Bloom Times and Landscape Settings

Planted together Narcissus (daffodil) bulbs and specialty (minor) bulbs lead to pest-resistant, perennial and naturalised landscape garden designs.

Book Reviews 

The Landscape Gardener's Book Shelf

Hydrangeas for American Gardens - By Michael A Dirr (A Review)

"Hydrangeas for American Gardens" by respected plantsman Michael A. Dirr is the first book to deal specifically with hydrangeas in North American landscape gardens.

Regarding the Trees( A Review) - Tree use and care tree house family tree and tree of life middle school students

Regarding the Trees, written by Kate Klise and illustrated by M. Sarah Klise, is a perfect summer read for middle-school students and witty adults.

Gardener's Yoga: Bend & Stretch, Dig & Grow

Gardener's Yoga written by Veronica D'Orazio and illustrated by Tim Foss, can help put yoga and its benefits into any gardener's routine. Gardeners learn to relax and stretch muscles.

The Landscape Design Book Shelf - Essential Landscape - Garden Design Books New and Tried-and-True Favorites

Here are some of my favorite basic books about landscape and garden design that have prominent places on my bookshelf. I reach for them first.

Rememberance and Papaver rhoeas 

Memorial Day - 2008

Here are some blogs and articles that offer garden-landscape design ideas for using corn poppies (Papaver rhoeas) to enliven summer gardens while symbolizing remembrance.

Landscape Gardening with Native N. A. Plants. 

Deer-resistant Flowering Shrubs - Native North American Ornamental Shrubs of Landscape Importance

Is it possible for landscape gardeners in eastern North America to successfully plant and grow shrubs and small trees despite heavy populations of Virginia white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus)? The answer is definitely yes. Five photos of practical shrubs included.

Eastern Redbud Trees in Landscapes: Cercis Canadensis Enrich Garden Landscapes in Spring and Autumn

Eastern redbud trees and cultivars enrich landscape gardens with varieties of form, silhouettes and unusual seasonal color. Site selection is essential for good display.

VA Spiderwort in Natural Gardens: Tradescantia virginiana - VNPS 2008 Wildflower of the Year

Virginia spiderwort (Tradescantia virginiana), Virginia Native Plant Society 2008 Wildflower of the Year, is a long-blooming herbaceous perennial for native plant gardens.

Five Invasive Trees of Virginia - Nonnative Species Aggressive Spreaders and Prolific Reproducers

Descriptions and photos of five nonnative (alien) invasive tree species of Virginia. Focus on history, importance in built landscapes and, control and management.

Easy Wildflower Landscaping - Wildflower Lawns and Meadows - Mow Sow and Grow.

Compost and barrier-mulches are the secrets to easy wildflower landscaping. Establish wildflower meadows and lawns without using a pre-planting contact herbicide.

Deer-resistant Landscape Trees - Native North American Small Ornamental Trees of Landscape Importance

White-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus) readily select small trees as available food sources. Native deer-resistant plants ensure success in built landscapes.

Hamamelis Autumn Landscape Gold - H virginiana brightens natural and native landscapes

Hamamelis virginiana, a North American native, brings interesting golden flowers and leaf color to the autumn landscape. It merits more use in planned landscapes.

Deer-resistant Landscape Trees - Native North American Small Ornamental Trees of Landscape Importance

White-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus) readily select small trees as available food sources. Native deer-resistant plants ensure success in built landscapes.

Hamamelis Spring Landscape Gold - H vernalis Blooms in Spring with Color and Fragrance

Hamamelis vernalis, a North American native, is a two-season landscape performer with fragrant yellow spring blooms and deep yellow autumn leaves.

Eastern Skunk Cabbage in Bog and Water Gardens - Symplocarpus foetidus - VNP Society 2009 Wildflower of the Year

Skunk Cabbage (Symplocarpus foetidus), Virginia Native Plant Society 2009 Wildflower of the Year, is an early blooming native plant at home in bog and water gardens.