Serenity in the Garden

During this time of  Covid-19,  we must cultivate outselves, our well being and our gardens. Plants can be a soothing balm for troubled times.  This is modified from the National Garden Bureau - click on the words for some great and informative links.  Start  some seeds . Plan a  vegetable garden .   Plan to grow flowers for the joy they bring. Take an  online class  about plants or gardens, or watch some  YouTube instruction videos .   Plan an  herb garden.     T ake a walk in a nearby natural area:  woods, field, desert, beach or park.  Take this time to groom or repot houseplants.  Remove dead leaves, refresh the soil, take cuttings of favorites so that later you can share the wealth with friends. Create a new indoor display of plants.  Make a row of small pots in bloom on your kitchen counter or the windowsill above your sink.  Plan a new  group of cont...

Next Wednesday I will be speaking to the Wellfleet Garden Club  (on magical Cape Cod, Mass)  about the secrets of serene garden design. It is not just about plants! Although plant energy affects us all. It is also about line and color and rocks and direction and the power of place..all packaged in a garden that uplifts and soothes. Heaven is a Garden. Jan Johnsen  That is what I will be sharing. It is a popular, engaging talk full of new/old ideas that you can use in your outdoor space, no matter the size. The talk is based on what is in my book, 'Heaven is a Garden - Designing Serene Outdoor Spaces for Inspiration and Reflection'  .  It is chock full of tips and suggestions based on what I have learned over 45 years as a landscape designer. I hope you can come if you live near by. You will enjoy it! Garden Gate - J johnsen

This show tells the stories of ten important American places.  Contemporary landscape photographs evoke  the original spirit of a site and capture the change that has occurred since the site was first designed.  It opens December 15 at  1285 Avenue of the Americas Art Gallery  in New York City.  (between 51st and 52d Sts)  with a  free  public reception. 6 - 8 pm.    The show runs through Friday, March 6, 2015. See more at: http://aslany.org/event/lalh-100-years-design-land-opening-reception

The Association of Professional Landscape Designers (APLD) has officially made its magazine available to everyone. For years, it was only open to the eyes of members but no more.... 'The Designer' is a magazine that is full of fascinating advice, tips and examples for everyone who likes landscape design. I am proud to say I have an article on designing with the four cardinal directions on page 28 of this digital publication. Check it out!

photo by Jan Johnsen  This post got many thumbs up on Google + this year: Are you feeling a little down? depressed? Well here is a way to fix that -  go out and plant something... Studies have found that an hour of gardening a day reduces the risk of heart disease and stroke and increases bone density more efficiently than aerobics or swimming! In fact, even looking at nature can result in a drop in blood pressure within five minutes and lower our stress hormones. One 16-year study in Australia revealed that those who did daily gardening even cut their risk of getting dementia in later life.    (Gardening boosts endorphins, the body’s good-mood chemicals. Personally, my theory is that we need the sunlight on our pineal gland and this can delay dementia, but I have no proof, its just a 'knowing') Here is a lovely story from  Timesonline United Kingdom,  dated March 27, 2010 "...Jane Robertson was earning a small fortu...

A “how-to” subject like gardening is rich with great stories that can educate, fascinate and enlighten others.  This is why I like Garden Blog s....they can take what others might think is mundane and transform it into a delightful new take on life.  I also love to blog because I want to share what I have learned about gardens and landscape design with other kindred spirits.  So with that, I think Garden Bloggers, designers and garden lovers alike will love the upcoming    Garden Bloggers Conference . Its in Atlanta on September 22 - 24, 2013. Speaker Line-Up:   Garden Visionary, Top Bloggers,  Award-Winning Authors and Journalists, and Social Media Experts.   View  the complete list of speakers and their profiles. Dan Hinkley You'll hear from Dan Hinkley, Amy Stewart, Robin Horton, Steve Aitken, Felicia Feaster, Rochelle Greayer, Matt Mattus, Michelle Slatalla, Adam Japko, Chris Heiler, and more!...

  Polygonatum odoratum ‘Variegatum’ The 2013 Perennial Plant of the Year is Award is Variegated Solomon’s Seal. It is deer resistant and loves shade. This award is a big deal for this shady woodland gem... Variegated Solomon’s Seal or Polygonatum odoratum ‘Variegatum’ grows 18 to 24 inches tall and tolerates full-shade. It is  a great companion plant to hostas, brunnera, dicentra, ferns, and astilbes. The sweet fragrance of its small, bell-shaped white flowers will enhance your walk along a pathway on a spring morning. And you can use its variegated foliage in spring floral arrangements. And finally, this all-season shade lover offers yellow fall foliage color. photo by George Weigel It will spread by rhizomes to form colonies. Increase by dividing clumps every two to three years. photo by Rush Creek growers   Below are all of the Perennial Plants of the Year since the beginning of the program in 1990.  2012  B...

I am a 'Small is Beautiful' devotee.    I once attended a talk by the great E.F. Schumacher (1911-1977). I never forgot it. He spoke the truth so eloquently...but this was in the 1970s and look at where we are now. No one was listening. Schumacher is widely acknowledged as the originator of many concepts on the theory and practice of sustainable development.  He explained that we must get back to a more manageable way of doing things...:   "I have no doubt that it is possible to give a new direction to technological development, a direction that shall lead it back to the real needs of man, and that also means: to the actual size of man. Man is small, and, therefore, small is beautiful.”    - E. F. Schumacher     Schumacher  put human wellbeing as the central concern of development.  Not growth! And he urged that we rebalance our efforts at technological innovation away from the 'wants' and more to...

As we all know, gardens are a contrivance. Designed landscapes are artifice. Gardens are a grand collaboration, a co-creative endeavor with a certain Ms. Nature. Our partnership is an unequal one, for sure, as we are simply intruding on her domain, seeking to improve what is inarguably a perfect system. With that said, I look to Mother Nature for inspiration and guidance. She never fails to renew and replenish. Toward that end, each year I camp at the Audubon Society's Wellfleet Bay Wildlife Sanctuary in South Wellfleet, Massachusetts for about a week amidst 1,100 acres of sandy pitch pine woodlands, meadows, maple and beech forest, salt marsh and fresh water ponds. This gem fronts onto Wellfleet Bay where naturalists volunteer to explain the wonders of the natural world to any who show up. I get recharged here. Cape Cod, which juts out into the Atlantic Ocean more than any other place in the United States, is the world's largest glacially f...

The British have always been the leaders in Landscape Design.....Since 1972, The British Association of Landscape Industries (BALI)  has represented UK's landscaping sector. Their membership comprises interior and exterior landscapers and designers, grounds maintenance contractors, and companies supplying industry-related products and services. And they all have one thing in common: a commitment to delivering professional excellence by continually raising standards across the industry. These photos are a testament to that. They show some wonderful photos on the website BALI (click here) and I had to share some with you.  If you live in UK and are in the business I guess you already know about BALI....this 'eye candy' is for the rest of us. Very Inspiring, yes?