How to Create an Art of Landscape Gardening That Will Please the Eye?

By Satya Narayan Das

Landscape gardening is liked to art as in painting a picture. If you are an artist your art teacher would have probably told you that painting a good picture should have a main point of interest, and that the rest of the points add to the picture to make it more beautiful and interesting. Therefore when landscaping gardening your need to create a picture with a central point and the rest an addition to the main feature.

1. Let's start with the lawn, this can be the central feature of your garden, a good lawn is not overcrowded with fussy bits of bedding and statuary or ornamentation. A lawn is best left as an open space to enhance the beauty of the bedding that surrounds it.

2. One or two additions in a large lawn space can break up a very large area; tasteful bedding at some point in a large lawn can create a point of interest.

3. If the lawn area is quite large you could place a gazebo with some bedding around the gazebo to make it easy to mow the lawn. Any structure directly on a lawn without a break such as flower bed will make mowing a lawn more difficult.

4. Large lawn can also handle a few trees, one or two depending on the size of the lawn, don't put too many trees else they will be in competition with each other for root space and air space, it will also create too much shade and the lawn around lots of trees will not do too well. Lawn requires a certain amount of sunlight and daylight to flourish.

5. Choosing trees for the garden don't place an over large tree that will overpower the garden, choose trees for their interesting features such as interesting foliage, unusual bark patterns, flowering trees, or fruit trees can have interesting features

6. A cluster of interesting shrubs in a flower bed can create extra points of interest to add to a flower bed, group the larger shrubs to the back and add smaller ones to the front; Shrubs also come in a variety of different foliage and colours which can give the painted effect.

7. The broad leaves of the Catalpa with its attractive flowers and seed pods that cling to the tree right into winter will give added interest through most of nature's seasons.

8. The Sugar Maple with its brilliant foliage, the interesting blossoms of a Tulip tree, the bright berries of an Ash, the bark of a White Birch, and the Copper beech leaves are all trees that can give your garden lots of colour and interest.

9. When placing your trees consider how they will look when fully grown. Take their height and spread into consideration when deciding where to place your trees, consider if the trees would look awkward next to each other. A long tall thin tree such as popular would look quite out of place next a Tulip tree for instance.

10. Some trees are evergreens and others shed leaves seasonally, these are factors to take into consideration the placing of the trees, for example placing a cluster of evergreens close to the dwelling will create a gloomy out look in the home. The home will never receive any sunlight. So be ware of placing trees near a house especially near the window areas, houses like gardens require sunlight to give it a feel of warmth and comfort.

Trees and lawn should be carefully chooses and placed to good effect. If you are not sure consult an expert who will help you in your choice.

Visit out blog http://www.landscape-idea-com for more interesting gardening ideas and tips.

How to create the art of landscape gardening for the beautification of your house and your lifestyle Tips on Landscape gardening

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Gardening in the Shade - Landscaping is About More Than Just the Sun

By Julie-Ann Amos

Bright and beautiful blooms certainly do add appeal to a property. They add curb appeal and they add a sort of serenity, too. Flowers can attract butterflies, hummingbirds, and fat bumble bees as well as create a natural fragrance that is like nothing you can buy in a scented candle or plug-in room deodorizer. Being able to enjoy the garden is a reason a lot of us purchase homes. If you have a shady piece of property, gardening is something that's going to be a bit more of a science, rather than something you can simply do on the fly. Despite living in the shade, you can still have a beautifully manicured lot with flowers of a wide variety.

A lot of new gardeners who have a fair amount of shade on their property have either spent time and money (and energy and frustration) trying to get flowers (that need more sun) to grow in the shade or just don't bother. Some gorgeous shade flowers also wither and die because inexperienced gardening enthusiasts plant them in direct sunlight.

Here are some things you'll want to learn more about so that you can grow gorgeous gardens, despite the lack of sunshine on your property:

Amount of Sun
Varying amounts of sun will make a difference. Some flowers grow in very shady conditions and some grow in moderately shady areas. Some areas of your property may get more sun than others and knowledge about the type of sun you get can help you choose the right plants for various areas.

Soil
The soil conditions make a big impact on what will grow and how hardily. Knowing about your soil conditions can help you prepare the ground accordingly. There are tests that can help you and products that can improve conditions as well.

Plant Type
Once you begin shade gardening you'll see that there are a lot more shade plants to choose from than you might have expected. You might begin the process expecting to have just a few different plants but once you begin your landscaping project, you'll see that there are actually a lot of options.

Gardening is a wonderful hobby that's good for the body, mind, and soul. There's a lot of satisfaction in planning your garden, shopping for your flowers, and after the hard work is done --- watching your property come alive with colour and fragrance. There are a number of resources that can help you maximise your shady spaces.

Check out Julie-Ann's Shade Gardening information hub and get information about how to prep your garden, how to choose the right flowers, and browse through many photos of the dozens of beautiful shade flower choices.

Julie-Ann Amos is a professional writer and owner of Exquisite Writing, a global professional writing agency

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Gardening & Landscaping - A Lucrative Career Option

By Mahima Kini

Do you love taking care of plants? Are you always busy decorating your garden and making it look more exotic? Now you can develop your hobby into a career and set up your own business. The demand for landscape artists and gardening experts is rising constantly.

More and more people are seeking the services of professionals to plan, maintain and decorate their private, public and business gardens. Gardening and Landscaping are fields which offer stable employment and wonderful financial opportunities.

Nature of Work:

• Landscape gardeners work to develop muddy fields into beautiful gardens full of flowers and plants.
• They work for private gardens, public parks, golf courses, greenhouses, and terrace gardens to create exotic flower beds, lawns, and trees.
• They use their knowledge of botany, landscape installation, plant materials, soil science, and pest and disease identification and treatment, to create wonderful landscapes and gardens.
• They prepare the ground for planting, transplant nursery plants, use fertilizers and pesticides and sow seeds.
• Trim and prune hedges, trees, and shrubs.
• Install rock gardens, ponds, decorate, and maintain drainage systems.
• Retain walls, fences, and planters, and advise clients on plant care.
• They often work with tools ranging from small trowels to large lawn mowers, tractors, loaders etc.

Landscape and Gardening are tough jobs involving a lot of creativity and knowledge of plants. There will always be lucrative job potential for individuals with the interest and proper training in landscaping.

Career Opportunities in Gardening & Landscaping:

Landscaping professionals mostly work outside in nurseries or botanical gardens. They can choose to become Horticulturists, Countryside Rangers, Garden Managers, Landscaping Architects and can start their own business too. Landscape gardeners can find employment in:

- Retail gardening centers
- Landscaping and lawn care agencies
- Indoor gardens and botanical centers
- Tree farms
- Cemeteries
- Greenhouses
- Government departments

Skills Required for Gardening/Landscaping

Though there is no particular academic qualification for being a landscape gardener yet a few qualities can prove beneficial. These include:

- Love for nature
- Good understanding of plants
- Artistic flair
- Good eyesight
- Physically strong
- Hard-working

Landscaping Business

To start any business one needs to make arrangements for the basic assets required. For Gardening & Landscaping, acquire the following -

Gardener: A truck or trailer to carry your equipment and debris. A lawn mower, rake, broom and other small hand tools will also be required.

Landscaper: Basically you need hand tools and a truck or trailer. While starting, try getting most of the equipments on rent. Once your business is well-set, you can consider buying your own tools and machinery.

InteriorScaper: A truck or other heavy vehicle is necessary. Apart from that, you might need watering cans and other assorted small hand tools.

Start small and then slowly move forward. This way you will not be investing too much and the profits can provide for buying tools and other expenditure. Use word-of-mouth, flyers or classified ads to sell your services.

Gardens and Parks are gaining popularity. The top five botanic gardens alone generate over three million visitors per annum. The total number of businesses operating in the landscaping sector is predicted to rise by 45% in the coming years. So get ready to turn your hobby into a full-time employment opportunity that will give you guaranteed returns !

Mahima Kini has written a wide variety of Career-based articles and created content for Educational websites. To learn about various Unique, career-oriented Online Courses, visit http://www.careerchoicewizard.com

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