Reclaimed Brick Brings History and Charm to the Garden

Reclaimed materials have antique charm, especially reclaimed bricks, because their age shows their history. Dings, small pockmarks, rough edges and faded stains and paints all make for a beautifully aged set of

Find Yourself in an Epic Garden in the Shade

Some gardeners consider shade a curse, but a landscape of mature trees is really an asset if you’re willing to work with it. Trees keep us cool in summer, cutting down on cooling costs, and deciduous trees let i

How to Design a Great Garden on a Sloped Lot

Frequently we gardeners run up against what seems to be an insurmountable obstacle in our quest to attain a beautiful and functional garden space. So it is with the dreaded sloping lot.

8 Ways to Create a Neighborly Front Yard

Many of us find ourselves living in communities defined not by common acquaintances, knowledge and culture, but by geography or economics. Rather than knowing our neighbors from childhood, we may not know our ne

17th-Century Ideas Add Formal Grandeur to the Garden

Our gardens may seem a long way from the well-tended acres surrounding Italian villas and French palaces, but we can take many features directly from them to create our own gardens of formal grandeur. Formal gar

Problem Solving With the Pros: A Garden Built From Scratch

Nature is not always easy to find in the Netherlands. This is a country that was not built by appropriating parcels from the forest or meadow, but one that was largely built up from the sea centuries ago. How th

Secrets of a Successful Water Garden

Sometimes the sound of flowing water is just what the doctor ordered. Whether you’ve just returned home from work or have been busy pulling weeds in the hot sun, a backyard water garden makes for a luxurious res

Tour a New American Garden in New Jersey

James Golden says he is a New American gardener. By this he means he mimics nature by planting large swaths of plants, following in the footsteps of such greats as Wolfgang Oehme, James van Sweden and Piet Oudol

New Ways to Design With Water

Traditional water features only scratch the surface of what water can do in the landscape. It is the elixir of life for plants, and it sculpts rock and soil into the wondrous patterns that inspire our designs. I

Problem Solving With the Pros: An Abundant Garden Stretches Its Means

Donald Pell purchased a Pennsylvania farm in 2008. His plan was to house his office, create a sustainable working farm and provide living space for family members. Soon after that, the economy tanked and the cou

See 5 Colorado Landscapes That Blend Nature With Artistry

The expansive vistas, sprawling forests and towering mountain peaks of the Rockies create landscapes of unparalleled scale and grandeur. Rather than being imposed on this environment, these five Colorado garden

Problem Solving With the Pros: How to Build a Garden in an Urban Canyon

Jeffrey Erb is a landscape designer who embraces a good challenge. Working in New York City, he encounters on a daily basis logistical problems that would make other designers cringe. Erb’s goal is to make a pos

Building Green: The Paths, Beds and Decks That Define Your Landscape

In the previous Building Green story, we looked at plant materials and how you can make healthier choices by selecting species that are native, easier to maintain or both. The other part of your yard that needs

10 Ways to Make the Most of Your Side Yard

The side yard is often just a glorified alleyway, and even when it’s not, we tend to treat it as such. Hemmed in, frequently the side yard is a spot where two structures are as close together as building codes w

How to Create a Zen-Inspired Garden

I’ve been asked frequently over the years to create Zen gardens for clients. After drawing spaces laden with stone lanterns and Buddha heads, then being told, “No, that’s not quite right for me,” I began to reth

Create a Remarkable Garden by Thinking in 3-D

A great garden, I’ve always believed, is one that takes full advantage of its space with apparent ease. It doesn’t work too hard at being something it isn’t. It wears itself well and with quiet confidence, fully

Design Solutions for Oddly Shaped Backyards

While oddly shaped backyards present design challenges, their imperfections make them so much more interesting than cookie-cutter square or rectangular gardens. The key to landscaping a rear yard that’s tiny, na

Problem Solving With the Pros: Rustic Simplicity in a Country Garden

The owner of this Connecticut property built a house out of 150-year-old barn wood for a year-round weekend retreat. She called on landscape architect Janice Parker to sculpt a 1½-acre garden out of the 20-acre

The Garden Gate: A Preface to the Story Your Garden Wants to Tell

A great garden tells a story: about the land, its history and the people who forged a partnership with nature to create it. The beginning is a good place to start a story, which is why the entrance to a garden i

How to Site and Size a Rain Garden for Your Landscape

Rain gardens are growing in popularity as an environmentally friendly way to infiltrate stormwater into the home landscape. They have great potential to decrease overall demand on municipal sewer systems and are