Shade Trees

When selecting a tree for shade, consider if you want it to provide shade all year round (evergreen) or to allow for the winter sun to come through (deciduous).

Evergreen trees (ones that do not lose all their leaves during the winter) provide many benefits. Evergreen trees provide consistent shade, privacy, wind breaking, and focal points throughout the year. They provide an evergreen backdrop for flower borders and focal points. And they don’t cause as much maintenance during the fall months because they don’t dump their leaves all at once.

Deciduous trees (ones that lose their leaves during the winter) also have many benefits. By losing their leaves in the winter, the tree allows sunlight to warm a house and grounds during the cold months. Most deciduous trees have leaves that will display a beautiful fall color before dropping the leaves. And deciduous trees will allow for early spring bulbs to receive direct sun before the tree leaves begin to emerge again.

Also consider the tree’s habit and size at maturity.

Keep in mind that trees provide different levels of shade. Some trees (such as a Silver Birch) have a light canopy and will allow filtered sunlight to come through while other trees (such as a Norway Maple) have a dense canopy and will provide solid shade underneath.

Screening with Trees

To provide a screen for privacy or for blocking an ugly view, plant a group of trees together. You’ll want evergreen trees so that you’ll have continual screening.

An interesting way to use trees for screening is to use pleached trees. Pleached trees have bare tree trunks, but their canopy of branches and leaves are clipped like hedges. In The Complete Planting Design Course, Hilary Thomas writes that they “are like a hedge on legs.” To make a pleached hedge, plant trees with enough room to let their roots grow and thrive, and let the trees grow to about 6 feet–or however high you need the trees to be. Then, cut off the leader branch. Train the branches to grow sideways with wires and plant ties.

Wind Breaks and Shelter from Trees

Too much wind can cause plant damage, water evaporation, and soil erosion. Trees can help reduce wind damage and provide a sheltered garden space. You can find more information about using trees as windbreaks at FunctionalGardens.com.   

Trees as Focal Points

After you have selected trees for structure and function, consider using  some trees for focal points.

When considering a tree for a focal point, understand its form and texture. Also consider how it will look with the other plantings in the garden.

If you have a small garden and are choosing one tree as a focal point, be sure that it looks interesting for multiple seasons. An ideal focal point tree for a small garden has spring flowers, summer foliage, fall color, and interesting branches in the winter (Japanese Maple is a nice choice).

Other tips for focal point trees:

• Plant a tree with fall color in a flower bed with blue, purple, and gold fall flowers.
• Plant a tree with interesting winter branches and bark with early blooming spring bulbs.
• Place garden artwork near the base of a tree to call more attention to it.

After you have decided on the types and locations of trees in your yard, you’ll know the function and sunlight situation in order to continue designing your garden with shrubs and flowers.

by Shannon Mendez

Tree with a weeping habit

When designing gardens with trees, it’s good to understand a tree’s habit. A tree’s habit is the arrangement of its branches.

The common habits of trees are:

• Fastigate: All of the branches ascend. These types of bushes and trees are ideal in situations where you need height but not width.
• Tortuous: The branches in these trees and bushes contort. This habit can be a focal point in a garden.
• Weeping: All of the branches droop downwards from the main stem. This habit draws the eye downward, beneath the tree. This habit also gives a restful feeling.
• Pendulous: The beginning of the branches grow upwards, but the end of the branch droop downwards. This habit also draws the eye below the tree and gives a restful feeling.
• Horizontal: The branches grow horizontally. This habit is ideal for a focal point and gives a restful feeling.
• Architectural or Sculptural: The branches are unique, with strong forms and textures. This habit can be a focal point in a garden and often provides year-round interest.

Even though a tree has a natural habit, you may still need to prune a tree. A basic guideline is to remove inward growing and crossing branches. Also remove any dead, damaged, or diseased branches. If you’ve chosen the right tree, in the right location, you shouldn’t have to do too much more pruning for a tree.

For more information about choosing trees for your garden, see Designing Gardens with Trees.

by Shannon Mendez

Moss. Adding plants like tufted moss to your garden makes the space look like a retreat, and allows you to focus on relaxing and renewing your strength. You can put the moss at the entryway and throughout the sides of the garden for a welcoming but secluded feel.

Stone lantern. A Japanese stone lantern will make a space look mysterious and alluring. You may even want to put a few hanging baskets around the lantern to bring more attention to the plants. A container herb garden would look nice around the lantern as well. The lantern not only helps to conserve energy, but gives your Japanese garden design a warm, exotic look.

Sand garden. A sand garden or a Zen rock garden goes well within a Japanese Garden. These gardens offer special places within your new space for reflection and meditation.

A tea house. This can be a small house or building within your garden where you can go to spend time alone or to interact with loved ones in a peaceful environment. The windows in your tea house should be facing other peaceful scenes in the garden, such as the Japanese lantern or the Zen rock garden, so that even while you are inside you can experience the tranquility of the entire garden. You can even bring some of your container plants into the teahouse—things like lavender flowers and aloe vera plants will add to the atmosphere nicely, and you can use these plants for medicinal purposes as well.

Designing a traditional Japanese Garden takes some studying and practice. It is a garden design theme that will be well worth your time, creating peace and tranquility in your environment.

Edited for GardenArtistics.com

One of the best things about ornamental plants is that you can use them to express your own personal style, even though they are a part of nature. You can choose the size and shape of the plants you want to use, and garden wall planters or hanging baskets could help to give your plants an exotic feel that will make every room in your home more inviting. And these decoration additions don’t have to be expensive—you can get colorful, vibrant plants from a roadside stand or even your local grocery store.

If you want to incorporate rare ornamental plants into your decor, it will be much more affordable than getting new furniture for the room, and it can turn your old space into a new and exciting room. For instance, if you’re decorating with an Asian theme in mind, you may want to get a few bonsai trees and plant them in angular, metallic vases to complete the look of the room. There are also plants that can be used for both ornamental and aromatic purposes; lavender plants look great in rooms with all white or black and make the room smell great. The oil from the plant can also be used on the skin to get rid of toxins and blemishes. The aloe vera plant can be used in rooms with a Southwestern theme since the plant resembles a cactus. When the leaves are cut, the gel from the leaves can help to soothe burns and cuts.

You can select the plants you want based on color, size or soil requirements, and you can change this part of the decor any time you want—affordably. Your local hardware store will also be able to give you ideas for planting your exotic flowers and will give you basic information on container gardening that you’ll definitely need to know.

Edited for Garden Artistics