Re: Finding the right garden idiom

Hi Ben ?

You always seem to ask such interesting questions in this forum!

Why a place looks like itself and not somewhere else is always interesting to
me.  I enjoy sharing photographs on Flickr and when I see a landscape shot I
often find myself trying to guess where it might be (at least what type of
climate) and then testing myself to see if I am correct.  Either way, I try to
understand why I was right or misled.

One of the big things that clue me in is foliage color and texture.  When I
first became interested in plants (about 40 years ago) I always found the
diversity of foliage color and form to be an interesting yet underrated aspect
of plant appreciation.  The foliage is an automatic back-drop for ephemeral
flowers and is always present whenever the plant is growing, and discounting
the impact of its color or form leads to poor aesthetic combinations.

Each flora has its own range of foliage colors and textures.  Plants in
mediterranean climates are often fine textured, with notable exceptions.  In
spite of this apparent similarities, there is still enough variation to choose
from for pleasing arrangements:
http://flickr.com/photos/hortulus_aptus/1835244176/in/pool-medit-garden

I've noted while visiting the Eastern US that the greens there are quite
strident, bright, rich.  Mediterranean floras often have foliage with more of
a drab or taupe green, unless they are silvery, gray, etc.  This is perhaps
one of the largest adjustments people have when moving from a summer wet
climate to a summer dry ? learning to live with this different range of
greens.  Rather than treating it as a liability, one can honor it, make it
seem more deliberate, normal, acceptable, by playing off these colors.
http://flickr.com/photos/montanaraven/136982054/in/pool-medit-garden

As seen in the above photo, many Mediterranean locales include weathered
limestone and other rocks prominently, because of centuries of landscape
eroding.  This become the vernacular of these landscapes.
http://flickr.com/photos/hortulus_aptus/1877317741/in/pool-medit-garden

Here in California, a far newer land geologically, this is less common (though
not actually rare), plus the colors of our soil outcrops are quite varied
because of the state?s unique natural history.
http://flickr.com/photos/mister_goleta/147041612/in/pool-medit-garden

The orange of the California poppies in the last shot are perhaps
quintessentially Californian (though our state flower is becoming a weed in
foreign lands I understand).  This 'California orange' would perhaps look as
out of place in France or Italy as red field poppies would look here.
http://flickr.com/photos/turquoise_bleue/455488704/in/pool-medit-garden

One can choose to honor their own local climate by repeating colors, textures,
forms within a garden (native or exotic), or if desirable, push the limits of
our experience by employing the vernacular of other mediterranean regions. 
Though largely similar to California in many ways, Chile does have its own
unique look:
http://flickr.com/photos/henry-gail/508825387/in/pool-medit-garden

Of you can take common elements and combine them in unusual or striking ways
to create more contrast, surprise, and innovation.
http://flickr.com/photos/sophiesunset/608742596/in/pool-medit-garden

Whenever I approach any of this, flowers are always quite secondary to the
processing, knowing that they will only provide their input during their
specific season, especially in our summer dry mediterranean climate.

Note that all the photos above are from a Flickr 'pool' I created a while ago.
 Other Flickr members can submit their shots to this group (which is moderated
by me), or I can 'invite' them to include their shots.  Now with over 1500
photos, there is plenty to browse for inspiration for your own garden project.
http://flickr.com/groups/medit-garden/

Regards,
Seán O.

Seán A. O'Hara
sean(at)gimcw.org
www.hortulusaptus.com
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