Serenity in the Garden

In honor of my new book, The Spirit of Stone - 101 Practical and Creative Stonescaping Ideas for Your Garden  (St. Lynn's Press, 2017) that was released last week I am sharing this post about stone benches. Stone Bench - Dallas Arboretum - photo by Jan Johnsen Stone Bench by  Johnsen Landscapes & Pools In the heat of the summer when we should be pruning what we really want to do is sit in the cool shade and drink a tall glass of iced tea. Antique sandstone Bench from  English Garden Antiques Ah, a place to sit in the cool leafy shade!  What better contrast to the soft green lushness that surrounds you than a stone seat or bench, immutable, grounded and cool to the touch... sitting on stone outdoors grounds you and aligns you to the earth's electromagnetic pulse... It is like a calming sedative that you feel almost immediately. See some great stone benches at the  Stonepost  website Stone seats...

sculpture by Ruth Moilliet - Bluebell 2 The best place to seek God is in a garden. You can dig for him there. ~ George Bernard Shaw Many of us turn to gardens and landscapes as a way to create a more meaningful connection to the earth. This urge is the impetus behind this garden blog. I share my experiences in the garden world as a way to inspire others to ‘touch the earth’. garden by Jan Johnsen  I believe the piece of ground outside our door can be a conduit for us to appreciate the energy that flows within plants, water, trees, sunlight, rocks, birds and assorted creatures. It is in a garden, as George Bernard Shaw declared, where we can touch the divine. Looking at the natural world in this way is nothing new. The idea of sanctified outdoor space was the genesis for the sacred groves of the Egyptians, Indians and Greeks. It birthed the medieval labyrinths and Native Americans’ 'medicine wheels'. And ancient Chinese geomanc...

Myburgh copper poppies   If you want a nice touch in your flower beds try this: Copper Poppies! Stephen Myburgh makes Copper Poppies  in three sizes. They are easy to place – gently push the stem of the flower into the ground.  Buy several and create a simple arrangement with a few of these. And the Poppies collect water for the birds or you can float candles in them. Great idea.

Storm King Art Center by Jerry L. Thompson     Considered one of the world’s foremost sculpture parks, the  Storm King  Art Center   features 100 works of art across 500 acres in the Hudson Valley of New York.  Large, abstract works frame and transform the landscape:  An Andy Goldsworthy stone wall snakes through the woods and into a pond.  Mark di Suvero's work stands tall.  Richard Serra shares the scene with a stand of trees:   Maya Lin's art undulates across the fields.   The stone art of Isamu Noguchi, Momo Taro, invites interaction:  Co-founder H. Peter Stern  quoted Isamu Noguchi -  “Noguchi says that there are two ways of proceeding as a sculptor.  One is to plan what you’re going to do and then do it.  The other is to create, and then see what you have done.  Noguchi puts himself in the second category as an artist, and I’d say that...

JACK YOUNGERMAN This graceful work takes a flat rectangle and twists it into curving forms; it appears lightweight and to be almost floating.  Youngerman has an abiding interest in non-Western art and his work, to me, conjures up a Japanese feeling.   It speaks of waves,wings and leaves, complementing the natural forms found in a garden. The cast fiberglass piece is clean and fresh against the green feathery pines behind it. Without the pines it would not stand out as it does. The landscape and the art are intertwined. Youngerman was introduced to the arts on the GI Bill in the post-WW 2 School of Paris, which offered instruction by masters such as Constantin Brancusi, Jean Arp and Henri Matisse. These artists and their fluid, organic forms influenced Youngerman greatly.  He is 87 now and still going strong. I took this photo in 2013 at the LongHouse Reserve in Long Island, NY. This place combines great landscapes with great art - a definite 'must ...

I love elephants. And I love plants. = This is wonderful. I don't know where this is...does anyone?

A green bottle tree festooned with holiday lights... I took this at the home of Ricky Boscarino which is called Luna Parc. He is an extremely creative artist whose home is an art piece! It is open 2 times a year.

These amazing crystals are in a garden designed by Art Luna. Check out the website:  http://www.artlunagarden.com/projects1.html Where is it? California, of course.  

Lawrence Halprin, an American icon of modern landscape architecture, was married to Anna Halprin, a talented choreographer and modern dance advocate. She was his muse.     David Paul Morris/Getty Images   Her effect on Lawrence has not been discussed much. But, like Frank Lloyd Wright's last wife, she influenced him greatly.   Lawrence Halprin, in fact, used the word 'choreography' to describe his melding of modernism, nature and movement in his many landscapes. Planetary Dance on Mt Tamalpais, organized by Anna Halprin   Mr. Halprin (from Brooklyn) gave us the modern style of landscape architecture after World War 2. This style used concrete as much as it did vegetation. But he also gave us space, urban open space. I remember making the pilgrimage to his Ghirardelli Square in San Francisco as young landscape arch. student...the idea of an open urban space that encouraged fun and excitement was imp...

Buddha Garden - Jan Johnsen “I think the true gardener is a lover of his flowers, not a critic of them.  I think the true gardener is the reverent servant of Nature, not her truculent, wife-beating master.  I think the true gardener, the older he grows, should more and more develop a humble, grateful and uncertain spirit." Reginald Farrer If you are, like me, on the road to developing a more humble, grateful and uncertain spirit, there is no better way to help this along than by placing a Buddha (or one his 'associates') in a landscape setting. Volcanic Ash Buddha from Indonesia Meaningful treasures such as a jizo, Buddha or Indonesian goddess remind us to slow down, take a breath  and live in the moment. Buddha statues elicit a serene response in us...although I am not exactly sure why. Perhaps it is their quiet countenance. Just looking at the photo below calms me down. Buddha head photo By Jennifer Cheung, Sunset Buddha heads, in ...

  The White Garden in Lewisboro, NY opened its gates for one day today...and oh, what a day it was! Every April, Shelby White kicks off the Open Days garden-touring season by inviting all garden lovers to visit her phenomenal 45-acre woodland estate in the lower Hudson Valley.   I walked in and gasped - there are nearly 750,000 daffodils scattered among the rolling oak-hickory woods and mulched pathways. The view was breathtaking. And then I noticed that the fellow handing out maps of the extensive grounds was none other than Patrick Chassé, eminent landscape designer! That was when I realized that this garden was going to be even more than a magnificent daffodil display. Patrick was as gracious as ever and told me not to miss the formal grounds around the house, the moss garden, and to check out the grotto. He also said that this is the best year for daffodils that we have had in about 8 years. And the timing was perfect - the daffs were in full bloom ...