Readers may copy from the website to use as handout for a program if my name is used as the author.

Copyright 2000 by Peggy Case

Contrast, color, and repetition. When planning or changing your landscaping plantings, those are the three main principles of design to be considered. This was the subject of a recent seminar I attended and I’ll share it with you.

Contrast is important as it makes the difference between an uninteresting grouping of shrubbery and one that looks right. Plan for contrast between the color , the form, and the texture of plantings.

When choosing landscaping elements, look for a contrast between the color of the leaves, either in spring, summer or fall. For instance, crimson barberry looks great with a light green ground cover. The large lime-green leaves of hostas are showcased in a ground cover of finely textured perennial sweet woodruff.

The difference in size and form of plants provides another contrast. The plantings in a grouping should not be all the same type or size. Look for the best choice for each location and reinforce that design with repetition. The largest shrub or plant can be used once with plenty of impact, but the smallest elements should be repeated to give weight to the design.

Ground covers in the landscape are always the most numerous of plants. They provide a stage for the larger specimen plant, to show it off. For instance, under a gorgeous flowering crab, you often see sheets of low ground covering plantings of spring bulbs. One bulb of blue grape hyacinths would never do the trick, only a vast planting can balance the flowering crab.

When using plants that bloom, repetition of the same color can be gorgeous. Do you remember seeing ornamental pears, with delicate white blooms, paired with tall svelte white blooming tulips at the flower shows? The repetition of white bloom makes a design statement we all recognize. On the other hand, wonderful contrast can be achieved with the introduction of a few bright blooms of another color.

Repetition is the reason we do not plant one tulip of every color available, we plant a few clumps of one color which bloom in the spring with a real color punch. And lining them up in a row is wrong, too. Keep the tulips bunched for the best effect.

Plants that will be neighbors in your landscape should each have a distinct personality. Don’t plant different plants next to each other that have the same size, form, texture or color. Let each have its place. The largest can be a smoke bush in bright red leaves, with a couple of smaller green euonymus, under-planted with a large grouping of a gray leaved ground cover, like perennial pinks.

With a little attention to contrast in color, form, and texture, you can plan a landscape that looks better than most. With repetition of form or texture or color in the smaller elements in the design, it can be even better.

Peggy Case, 400 US 250, New London, Ohio 44851, Phone 419-929-6117, sunnyacres@hmcltd.net

THE ENGLISH COTTAGE GARDEN

copyright 1999 by Peggy Case
400 US 250
New London, Ohio 44851
Readers may copy from the website to use as handout for a program if my name is used as the author.

I love English cottage gardens! I collect jigsaw puzzles, which feature quaint little houses with thatched roofs and climbing roses, surrounded with a wild mix of flowers, vines, bushes, and vegetables. I look for greeting cards with cottage gardens. I read about cottage gardens and I like to visit gardens that look that way.

Reading the current glossy magazines about gardening inspires me to try a cottage garden of my own. All the gorgeous pictures, filled with an abundance of soft colored perennials and herbs, tempt me to order a batch of old-fashioned flower seeds or head to the nearest garden center to find those quaint romantic flowers of the past.

. This style of planting got its start years ago in 'Merrie Olde England.' Long ago, when the lower classes served the upper classes in the manor house or castle, the big gardens were very fine and grand - fountains, waterfalls, herbaceous borders, glass houses full of exotic plants from afar, geometric parterres, and landscaped meadows filled with sheep.

The castle/manor gardeners tended several acres of precise beds that were changed every season to feature different flowers. The titled and wealthy English landowners took great pride in their long ever-blooming borders.

The servant class shared this love of gardens but had only small dooryards to plant and no money for flowers, so they snitched cuttings and seeds from the grand gardens and started them in their own humble plots. These small gardens, filled with an assortment of pilfered plantings, became known as English Cottage Gardens.

Cottage gardens featured vines on fences: clematis, honeysuckle, ivy, pole beans, gourds, and morning glory. Perennials and annuals such as rhubarb, herbs, iris, delphinium, phlox, lilies, primroses, chrysanthemums, larkspurs, marigolds, peonies and daisies were used in wild profusion.

All the popular bulbs: tulips, glads, hyacinths, dahlias, or daffodils, plus the minor bulbs: grape hyacinths, snowdrops, star of Bethlehem, crocus, squill, or glory of the snow were planted in every empty spot.

Mixed in with all these were vegetables of all kinds, fruit trees, berry bushes and roses! Roses everywhere, beside the door, at the windows, along the fence, and up the trees. It is this look of exuberance that marks a cottage garden.

Today a type of cottage garden still exists in the English countryside. While we were touring England going from one famous grand garden to another, we saw lots of little villages. Narrow streets lined with darling picture card houses were everywhere. Nearly every home had its flower garden and hanging baskets, with flower boxes at every window.

Going through the Cotswolds was a visual treat! Jigsaw puzzle pictures at every turn! Lots of lovely little homes with thatched roofs and gorgeous flowers and I was delighted with every one. I took pictures of as many as I could and "Sweet Briar Cottage" was one of my favorites.

Peggy Case, 400 US 250, New London, Ohio 44851, Phone 419-929-6117, sunnyacres@hmcltd.net

Edible Flowers

Copyright by Peggy Case 2001
Readers may copy from the website to use as handout for a program if my name is used as the author.

Have you ever heard of edible flowers?

Some flowers like pansies, petals of roses, nasturtium, violas, and wild violets are safe to eat. They taste a little like bland lettuce, but the use of real flowers to dress up an open-face sandwich is inspired.

Once for garden club, I picked and washed two dozen pansy blossoms and some mint and sage leaves. On crust-trimmed squares of rye and wheat bread, I spread a delicious blend of cream cheese and snippets of chives and garnished each with a pansy blossom and a herb leaf.

The little creations were a hit! Although a few older ladies were hesitant to eat the flowers trimming, the majority took a brave bite and ate flowers. Most of the flavor was in the cream cheese spread, but the little sandwiches were beautiful and delicious.

As with all foods, cleanliness and preservation is important. Wash the blossoms carefully and keep the edible flowers in the refrigerator until used; keep the finished sandwiches there, too.

Never use anything floral for food unless you have read enough articles about edible flowers to be sure you are using truly safe flowers for eating. The sandwiches should not be prepared too far in advance as the flowers may wilt. A little experimentation will show you just how long ahead you can prepare them.

When you wash the flowers, pat them dry before refrigeration. Mix up the cream cheese in your mixer and add snippets of edible herbs. I used chives, but I’ve had the same thing with other herbs added. Experiment here and find the flavors you like. French tarragon is good, try it.

There is never a dull moment for gardeners. There is always something new to try, see, or read about. Have fun.