Over the past 18 years, I have designed gardens for owners and have seen the good, the bad, and some of the designs are simply unsightly. Most of the time, it’s a few simple design mistakes that make the courtyard look disorganized, unplanned, and lifeless. From the initial site selection to choosing plants and incorporating them into the landscape, creating a beautiful garden does require some skill. Whether you’re planning a pollinator garden in the Midwest, a formal garden in the Northeast, or a drought-tolerant display garden in the Southwest, you’ll need to follow the same principles when designing. Here’s how to avoid the most common garden design mistakes before a project begins.
1. The Number of Plants Is an Even Number
While things in nature usually come in pairs (e.g. two eyes, two legs, two wings, and so on), it’s best not to use pairs or even numbers of plants. In addition to framing walkways or entrances, pairs or even numbers of plants will focus attention on a location, and the use of odd plants allows the eye to move in the field of view and gives the landscape a more natural, dynamic feel. To avoid incongruous symmetry, you can set the number of plants to odd arrays between 3 and 11 and avoid planting them in lines that are too straight. Numbers of more than 11 plants tend to be too cumbersome, so even numbers can be used if needed.
2. Clash of Colors
We often decorate our gardens in colourful colours. But when these colors clash with other plants and nearby buildings, the overall effect becomes too abrupt and pales. This tends to happen to people who are particularly fond of bright colors; For example, in a bright yellow house, there are bright yellow flowers everywhere. To compensate for the color conflict, choose some flowers that match the background color, such as yellow, white, and orange flowers in front of a dark house, and blue, purple, and red flowers in front of a light-colored house.
3. Mismatched Garden Style
When it comes to garden design mistakes, ignoring the architectural design of a house or other building is a major mistake. For example, a refurbished Victorian home, with its classic style and bold personality, paired with the clean design of a modern-style garden, can look out of place and aggressive. Similarly, the sleek lines and angular shapes of most modern and contemporary homes are overshadowed by large, showy flowers. It is important to avoid this major mistake so that the entire courtyard is renovated again.
4. Vacant Beds
One of the things I hate most about garden design is that the plants are unnaturally spaced out and planted in almost empty flower beds, surrounded by mulch . I often see this landscape in commercial areas and dense residential areas because they are considered “low maintenance”. However, the opposite is true, weeds will always try to fill the void . Moreover, these mulch gardens are not aesthetically pleasing. A more natural, plant-rich design not only looks more aesthetically pleasing, but also doesn’t require frequent weeding.
5. Not Following the Plan
Over the years, gardeners end up with a mess of plants that don’t work out of harmony with each other. I’m often asked to redesign landscapes like this one, where plants are planted, replanted, and replanted until they look cluttered. To avoid this kind of garden design mistake, it’s crucial to have a plan in place and stick to it. This plan should be consistent across the entire field of view, which means that all areas seen from a given angle should be consistent.