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Why use a Garden Designer?

8:19 PM | Labels:


he art of Garden design, is clearly specific to each country and the Italian garden style is by far one of the most complex. Italian gardens have evolved throughout history by following social changes and Italian garden design has been shaped and influenced by several factors over the years.

The principal factor has been the control of agricultural practises by the Aristocracy, war and the availability of food. Therefore, in order to interpret the specific style and identity of the differing phases of the Italian garden design throughout history correctly, one would need an extremely good understanding of Italian culture and history. Mistakes are easily made regarding the interpretation of various Italian garden styles from Renaissance to contemporary or from formal to informal.
A professional garden designer can prevent the homebuyer in Italy from making some socially embarrassing and rather expensive errors when designing his or her Italian garden. A good garden designer will compliment and underline the existing architecture of the house with intelligent garden design, as good garden design could be paralleled to the Italian fashion industry.


For example, even the ugliest house can be rendered attractive with good garden design, in the same way that even the least attractive of humans can be transformed instantly by dressing him/her in fine Italian clothing.
There are still bargains to be found on the Italian property market and it does still harbour some great investments. An Italian garden designed in the correct manner will make a major difference to the value of any Italian property, rendering it automatically attractive and pleasant at first sight.Such harmony between the house and the surrounding landscape is not easily achieved without professional advice and any money spent on a will generally be retained (and possibly even doubled!) in the value of that property in years to come. However, it has to be said that a complicated, high-maintenance garden can have the opposite effect and can, in actual fact, scare the potential home-buyer away.

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Understanding Garden & Landscape Design

8:18 PM | Labels:



Designing a garden landscape incorporates several professional disciplines including the need for horticulture knowledge, construction expertise, drainage and irrigation expertise, as well as the need to have an extensive knowledge of design principles and how to incorporate them creatively in the overall plans. Landscape design draws on all of these different disciplines to achieve the unity of design which is necessary to create a safe, flourishing and aesthetically pleasing, functional landscape.
Once the designer understands the site, the client's needs and the budget constraints, the landscape design starts with the creation of a conceptual plan, which is a rough layout of all of the design elements and there location within the site property boundaries and their relationship to the environment and the adjacent land. With the conceptual design drawn, a meeting between the client or client's representative and the landscape designer brings the conceptual design to a greater refinement based on how much in line the design solution is to the client's desires, the budget and the design elements they wish to see in the final landscape.

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Gardening Tips

9:05 AM | Labels:


Summer Flowers: Gardening Tips for Summer


Summer is a time of beauty and abundance in the garden. It’s also a busy time for the gardener, full of chores that are necessary to care for and maintain the health of your plants. Listed below are some of the core tasks of the season to help you prioritize your workload.
Indoor garden
Early summer is the ideal time to plant containers, such as patio pots, window boxes, and hanging baskets. All threat of frost has surely passed along with the passing of spring, so you can safely put containers outside. Don’t forget to feed container-bound plants as the summer progresses.
Dead-heading
This is also listed as a spring chore, but you should continue to dead-head flowers that have passed throughout the summer (this increases bloom time and strengthens the plant). Pay special attention to dead-heading flowers that self-seed once they have passed so that you maintain control over where they spread in your garden. If you want to propagate certain plants, you can save the flower heads for planting at a later date.
Pest Patrol
Keep a close watch over your garden for any sign of pests so that you can move quickly and take action before the problem spreads out of control. On roses especially, keep an eye out for aphids and mildew. This is also a good time to reapply pepper wax or whatever you might be using to keep the deer, rabbits and other big pests away too.
Staking & Support
Put stakes and supports in place for tall, herbaceous plants, like peonies and delphiniums. This will prevent them from falling over or look messy as they grow taller and heavy with blooms with the progressing season. Likewise, as climbers display new growth, be sure to position them on a support system in order to maintain control over where they grow and prevent an untidy appearance.
Watering
Don’t forget to keep up with your watering, especially as the very hot weather sets in. If you don’t water enough, roots will stay near the surface, making them even more prone to the heat. An inch of water a week is a good rule of thumb, so don’t just spritz, water deeply to keep those roots digging deeper.
Plant Bulbs
Mid-summer is the time to plant bulbs that will bloom in the fall, such as colchicum. Wait for late summer to plant bulbs that will bloom in the spring.
Sow Annuals
Now that all threat of frost is gone, early summer is a perfect time to sow hardy annuals, such as lupines, outdoors in the garden. You can also sow biennials, such as forget-me-nots. These hardy plants are easy to grow outdoors from seed.
Vegetables
Time to get those tomatoes and other frost sensitive plants in the ground! Know the frost date for your area (check with your local extension service) and as soon as it’s safe, get things started. More time in the ground means bigger and quicker harvests.
Prune Shrubs
Although many shrubs do not require pruning, some shrubs that flower in the spring and early summer, such as lilacs, will greatly benefit from pruning once they have finished flowering. This keeps them looking lovely season after season. Refer to the appropriate page in the web site for pruning tips; a good rule of thumb is prune right after things bloom and you’re always safe from pruning off flower buds.
Of course, there is plenty more activity in the summer garden than the chores listed above, but this will give you a good indication of some of the essential activities that need to be tended to.
Be sure, of course, to take some time to sit back, relax, and enjoy the joys of summer in your garden…a cherished time of year for every gardener.

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