Bones of the Garden

One way to think about creating your garden is to compare it to a musical. The bones give it the
beat or rhythm that you can tap your foot to throughout the seasons. ​

You're familiar with the phrase, "This house has good bones."  Like a home, a garden must also have "bones" that provide structure through all four seasons.  Fall and winter are the best time for the gardener to assess and reevaluate gardens and landscapes.  Would adding some boulders or a stone bench balance your front garden in the months when flowers aren't blooming?  Do you have enough shrubs and trees to serve as the bones of your garden through all seasons? If not, fall is the perfect time to plant them so their roots can spread and establish.  Does your garden contain plants that stand out in the fall?  Does your large perennial bed contain a balanced variety of bloom color, height, texture, and shape?  Have you transplanted flowers which are hidden, or were planted in the wrong spot?  These are a small sample of the questions we should ask ourselves this time of year.  

Each landscape is dynamic, ever changing, and transforming.  Plants and bulbs will multiply.  Shrubs and trees sometimes exceed our growth expectations in a few seasons.  Reevaluation in the fall is the way the most successful gardeners keep tabs on their outdoor spaces.  So walk around outside, take photos, and make notes in your garden journal.  Set yourself electronic reminders for when to tackle these tasks.​

Why are the bones of the garden important?  They provide structure, dimension, and foundation for the rest of the plantings on your property.  Bones offer winter interest and can be living like a hedge or inanimate like an arbor, fence or gate.  Bones are the first design element to consider when updating or starting from scratch.

For those who live in climates with all four seasons, it is worth considering what your garden looks like when deciduous plants have lost their leaves.  It is best to evaluate the bones of your garden when all the flowers have faded and plants have dropped their autumn leaves. Views from within the house and those seen by the public are especially important.  Southern gardeners also benefit from starting with a strong backdrop to support the continuous seasons of flowers and greenery. Bones of a garden include structure, rhythm and winter interest. They serve as the backdrop for the landscape.  Without good bones, a garden looks like a sloppy, hodgepodge collection; the result is unpleasant on the eyes. Even perennial and casual country gardens have bones. Purposefully including garden structure gives the gardener the luxury to splurge purchase a favorite plant without creating a mismatched landscape.  

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​One way to think about creating your garden is to compare it to a musical. The bones give it the beat or rhythm that you can tap your foot to throughout the seasons. Certain plants dance in the chorus line and during the various acts, star performers take center stage. Some plants, like those with a beautiful voice, command more attention than others, like the color yellow or variegated foliage.  In the winter, the star performers are the bones of the garden.

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Rhythm and Beat
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The beat is the steady pulse that you tap your feet to.  Rhythm is the actual sound of the notes, which in a song would be the same as the words.  The consistent beat in landscape provide unity and structure so that the garden looks cohesive and attractive not only in the winter, but throughout every season.  A misconception about bones is that they must be evergreen and formal. Let’s begin by putting that assumption aside. Of course, evergreens like boxwood, holly, arborvitae, and cypress add structure, and repeated placement offers a ‘beat’.  Rhythm is the choice of the individual plants and elements that form your landscape. .Let’s take a moment to consider other creative ways to achieve beat and rhythm. By repeating plant shapes and colors, or using containers of like shape and color family, we achieve a similar effect.

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​Evergreen 
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Let’s start with the obvious. Loose or sheared boxwood, holly, rhododendron, yews, and other evergreens are wonderful ways to add winter structure to the garden.  They are easy to shape and many cultivars are available for any size landscape. Beyond boxwood and arborvitae, look into other forms of evergreens: Japanese plum yews, magnolias, and some perennials.  The key here is to read labels and make sure the plant fits your growing conditions (light, soil, zone). For example, if you want your shrub to only grow 2-3’ tall, don’t purchase one that wants to grow 6’.  It requires more work and pruning to keep large plants within bounds. Too often after 10 years, homeowners are back to square one, ripping out plants that either were the wrong choice, or weren’t maintained properly. Mistakes like this will cost hundreds, if not thousands of dollars.  By repeating the same evergreen in strategic locations throughout your beds, you’ve created the chorus line for the spring, summer and fall seasons. Then in the winter, they step into the spotlight.

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Repetition
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Repeating the same color with varied plant material and possibly urns or artwork gives the garden rhythm too.  Think beyond the color of leaves. Evaluate the color and texture of bark, as well as urns, statuary, and flowers.  Let’s say your color theme is red/burgundy. For the spring, use red azalea/rhododendron; early summer, use astilbe, roses, and plants with burgundy foliage.  To support the color theme between bloom times, try planting Japanese Bloodgood Maple and Wine Rose Weigelia. In the winter, you might choose Sangu Kaku Maple Maple, or Red Twig Dogwood for its seasonal red bark.

If yellow is your preference: Brass Buckle Japanese Holly, Golden globe arborvitae and junipers offer a yellow shrub layer, while Peabody or Golden Ribbon arborvitae provide veritable structure.  The Tiger’s Eye Sumac and Chamaecypirais 'Soft Serve' are beautiful focal points. Lower level perennials with yellow are Japanese forest grass and carex.

If you prefer a gray- green color theme, use the varied sized blue spruces.  Iseli fastigiate is tall and narrow, globe type is lower and round. Pancake or Bowling ball (cypress) offer a shrub layer.  Heuchera leaves have all- season silver interest. ​Special note about variegated foliage: for example, Daphne, boxwood, certain iris, and others.  Use these unique plants with interesting foliage as focal points or place in areas to attract attention. Too much variegation looks busy and fussy.  Variegation also does not show up well against light- colored backgrounds, such as pale stone, white or vanilla- colored brick, light siding, and white fences.

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With some thought and planning, using color to offer structure is easier than you might think.

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​Texture is another way to create rhythm and bones. For example, if you are a collector of daylilies, ornamental grasses, hydrangeas, or camellia, you can provide rhythm by repeating your collection throughout the landscape.  Then mix in contrasting foliage to make your favorite plants pop. For example, for grasses or daylilies, add oakleaf hydrangea or other large-leaved plants, or strongly structured evergreens.

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Shape
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Try repeating a form either in the hardscape or with the shape of plants (ball-shaped boxwood.)  The bones can also be part of the hardscape or overall shape of the repeated architectural elements.  You’ll often see this technique used in Japanese gardens and small modern gardens

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Urns, rocks, sculptures
 
Certain inanimate objects support the rhythm and structure of the garden.  If you have a lake or ocean home, using a variety of nautical elements adds consistent structure and interest as the seasons change.  If you live in a rural area or in the mountains, local rock formations, barrel planters, and rustic fences add structure. If your color scheme is red, choose a red urn, bird bath, or sculpture to support your theme.  More formal gardens may have metal orbs, obelisks, and benches to serve as the bones.

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Path and hardscape
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Paths, brick, pavers, and stone all provide structure and beauty while plants lay dormant for the winter.  Arbors, gates, garden furniture, water features and fountains, and stone pillars also contribute to offering structure and rhythm. Strong geometric lines and cleanly-edged beds are soothing to the eye and serve as part of the garden structure.  Truth be told, this is the time that the art of the stone craftsman shines —when the plants aren’t jumping in the spotlight. Ways to create rhythm with stone: if you have a small stone waterfall or pond, repeat larger varieties or colors of the same rock within the landscape by making arbor pillars and benches out of similar stone, or choosing pavers or garden boulder groupings in the same color/shape.  If you have a wood arbor, use the same stain on fencing or gate posts.

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Perennial, English or Cottage Gardens
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While all landscapes benefit from having a strong foundation, it is even more critical for perennial, English or cottage gardens. Without structure or rhythm, these areas may look weedy and hodgepodge. There are a couple of ways to create rhythm. First, you can use evergreens or structural elements like trellises or obelisks and repeat them within the bed. Second, plant larger structural herbaceous perennials like ornamental grasses, baptisia, peony, or cohosh or large hostas and repeat like you would a shrub. Then add your favorite perennials in between. Another option is to create groupings.  Each grouping would include 4-6 plants, one for each season: early spring, late spring, early summer, late summer, fall, and winter. Repeat these groupings throughout the planting beds. Perennials tend to only bloom for 2-3 weeks, so varying seasonal bloom time ensures color and visual interest throughout the year.

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Final Thoughts

When creating or evaluating your existing landscape, the first step is to evaluate its bones. Do you have too many star performers stealing the stage?  Is there one season when your garden appears flat and one-dimensional and could benefit by adding the height of a flowering tree or tall evergreens? What does your landscape look like in the winter?  What is creating a beat? Is it color? Evergreens? Hardscape? Keep views in mind as you evaluate the landscape. In a front yard where traffic may travel quickly, use bold statements of rhythm with strong color or structural evergreens.  For informal gardens, or gardens experienced while strolling or meandering along a path, you have the opportunity to use more subtle forms of structure, like groupings of perennials. Remember that creating the bones of your landscape doesn’t have to be the repetition of a tightly sheared, round boxwood.  There are infinite ways to achieve good bones in your own garden. Each method is a chance to infuse the landscape with your personal style and creativity.