Trendiness in your own garden
It seems like the last few months, every time I open a magazine, I have found an article on terrariums.
Perhaps it is the time of year. A warm, moist, tropical, self-enclosed world entices, especially when in most parts of the country, cold and snow abound. But I think something else is at play here. Terrariums are back in style.
It’s been quite a while since they were last so popular. I remember making terrariums in the early 1970s. My girlfriends and I, all teenagers, thought they were “far out” and “groovy.” We also thought they were a new idea, not realizing that the Victorians had gardened under glass.
The resurgence of terrariums has made me realize that gardening and garden design have trends that go in and out of style. This was a revelation to me. I had always associated fashion and trendiness with clothing and make up and maybe furniture and automobile design. I had just never thought about plants and gardens in the same vein.
Some garden trends have very practical reasons behind them. Water-wise gardening has become popular as people have begun to appreciate water as a limited resource here in the West. Fire-resistant gardens are popular, not to mention safer, in areas threatened by wildfires. Certain plants have fallen out of favor due to devastating diseases, only to surge back in popularity once disease resistant varieties are found. Pyracantha is a good example.
However, most trends in the history of garden design have nothing to do with practicality. Gardens originally were strictly utilitarian. Each plant was grown for its specific use whether it is culinary, medicinal, for clothing dyes or perfumes. Over time, aesthetics began to be considered. Gardens for beauty began to be grown, mostly by the wealthy. For hundreds of years these gardens were formal and very structured.
Landscapers began to chafe at the restrictions posed by formal gardens. New movements sprang up that touted a more natural design. After the Industrial Revolution and the birth of the middle class, people had more time for leisure activities. Landscapes and design were not strictly for the wealthy anymore.
Since then, trends have swung back and forth between formal and natural. Various geographical themed gardens have had waves of popularity. There are alpine rock gardens, cactus and succulent gardens, tropical gardens, Japanese gardens, Mediterranean gardens, and more.
Lawns and foundation plantings have gone in and out of fashion. Single-colored gardens have been the rage. Initially it was the white garden popularized by Vita Sackville-West. More recently plants with black or chocolate foliage or blossoms have been popular. Plants with variegated leaves have had waves of popularity. Hollyhocks (Alcea rosea) and Sweet Peas (Lathyrus odoratus) had been labeled old-fashioned and almost forgotten, only to see a later resurgence. I spoke with a local nurseryman who said plants with chartreuse colored leaves seemed the most popular last year. Terrariums are certainly in fashion now.
Although there are popularity surges and trends in plants and landscape designs, you do not have to be constrained by them. If your favorite plant is out of favor, it may be more difficult to locate, but with the Internet and search engines you should be able to find seeds or seedlings. As long as the plants are suitable for the location you have, which includes space, soil, climate and water considerations, then go for it. Do group plants that have similar needs together, but plant what pleases you.
Karen Metz is a Master Gardener with the University of California Cooperative Extension office in Fairfield. If you have gardening questions, call the Master Gardener’s office at 784-1322.
Short URL: http://www.dailyrepublic.com/?p=127331
Posted by Karen Metz
on Jan 22 2012.
Filed under Local lifestyle columnists. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can leave a response or trackback to this entry
