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Each Sunday, The Garden Designer will provide answers to readers' questions about creating inviting and alive outdoor spaces. Gardens are one of the highest forms of self-expression, and I hope to give readers the tools necessary to bring their garden dreams passionately to life.
E-mailThe Garden Designer / Phil Wood
A rose by any other name ...
The season of roses is upon us as they show their gorgeous faces in our gardens. Roses are too good to pass up, and in this large group of plants you should be able to find a few that...
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Little Ballard backyard bustles with artistic, diverse elements
Water splashes from a ceramic jar into a pond in Diana Isaiou's backyard. The greenhouse conceals a secret garden room paved with stone...
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Gravel is easy on the eye and on the pocketbook
The crushed rock on this pathway makes a pleasant crunching sound underfoot. Timbers edge the path...
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Ferns could be the answer to your gardening question
Are you looking for plants that are low-maintenance, thrive in the Northwest and, best of all, add a texture that no other plant can? Then look no further than ferns. Ferns are the...
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Design, texture, variety can give garden year-round charm
Raised beds with a variety of plants give this Bainbridge Island garden mass appeal. It serves a practical purpose but also is aesthetically pleasing...
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To pave the way for terrace or patio, consider surface, seasons, location, lighting
Stamped concrete gives a rich texture underfoot to the terrace at left. Paving not only makes your terrace distinctive, it's also a good investment...
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Whether you think like Mother Nature or Louis XIV, you have to think design
Northwest live in a magnificent horticultural climate and can grow specimens from all over the globe. But such a worldly hubbub needs something to hold it together, what British gardeners...
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Whatever your garden needs, leave it to the trees
When placing them, think first about what you want them to do. One of their most important functions is to give scale to a design. True, you could have a garden without the overstory...
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Long and lovely in yellow, red and green
Ornamental grasses have become increasingly popular in recent years, with good reason. Grasses bring linear texture to your garden not provided by any other group of plants.
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Basic color theory will help when grouping flowers, foliage
Color is an important part of the planting-design tool kit. A blaze of color goes with our image of our gardens. How do we create - and control - that vision?
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There's an art to illuminating your garden
Long winter nights can turn our thoughts to lighting in the garden. Good lighting on stairs and paths and along driveways provides safety. Lights around doorways can give a greater feeling of security.
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These Plants are at home in their Zone
Gardening with native plants seems like a natural thing to do. We can be certain that plants that have been growing on their own for thousands of years will do well in our own backyards, can't we?
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Create structure in a bare winter garden
Our gardens overflow with color and texture in spring, summer and fall. Winter brings a more somber tone; perennials die down, and deciduous...
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Why not build a wall this winter?
Are you looking for a winter project that will add a sense of solidity and style to your garden, while solving landscape problems at the same time? Consider building a stone wall to level a slope for a terrace or planting area.
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Know your site to grow your garden
Site analysis may sound like a technical term, but it's simply a process that helps you figure out what you need to know about your property...
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English composition can help us design our own gardens
The English landscape style, born in Britain 250 years ago, can help us design our own gardens today. The style was influenced by popular...
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Deck above can float amid sea of plants
Q: We built a new home last year. We find that we spend most of our time outside on a large deck that is one story above the garden. The deck is convenient...
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Layering can screen views in, out of garden
Q: Would you talk about layering in garden design? A: Layering is a useful design tool. In the garden, we can layer vertically and horizontally...
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French style focuses on sense of formality
How is it that a French garden built more than 300 years ago can have such a lasting impact on garden design? The garden at Chateau de Vaux-le-Vicomte...
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Map out paths before creating new space
Q: We are planning to reorient our garage so the doors will open parallel to the street instead of at right angles to it. This will allow us...
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A volley of ideas for badminton court
Q: We have a sloping property and want a badminton court. The total slope is about 4 feet from one side to the other. Do you have any suggestions...
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Make your garden a work of art by paying attention to composition
When Dan Hinkley, co-owner of Heronswood Nursery in Kingston, finished his first perennial border, he was proud of it. Now he sees the problems...
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How to add splash of style to your garden design
Q: What ideas do you have for creating personal style in my garden? A: You can find many ways to add personal style to your garden. Creating style arises out...
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Long-ago partnership yields timeless principles
A hundred years ago in Britain, Gertrude Jekyll and Edwin Lutyens, who made individual contributions to the arts, came together to create more than 100 gardens that can teach us lessons we can use to design gardens today.
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Rocks can reflect natural suggestions
Q: We would like to place large rocks in our garden. Do you have suggestions about natural placement? A: Stone provides structure in the...
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Plant selection, design care keys to gardening on slope
Q. Is it possible to create and successfully maintain an herb and vegetable garden on a slope? I have a slope area (50 feet by 7 feet) in my backyard...
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How to gather ideas for a garden all your own
Q: Would you discuss some sources of inspiration for garden design?
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