a well-design product should be so good that it is barely noticeable. By omitting the unnecessary… the essential factors come to the fore: the products become ‘quiet, pleasing, comprehensible and long lasting’.
– Dieter Rams: As Little Design as Possible

This month I thought I would try something a little more formal: a turret. You typically see these in the shapes of kidney beans, somewhere in the corner of a front yard towards the road or sidewalk. I decided to go with a circle that has repeating patterns within. It doesn’t have a focal point, per se, but the small Amelanchier tree (the ‘X’ in the drawing below) acts like an anchor for the garden through its size alone. Otherwise, it will look the same, regardless of what direction you view it from.

There are also few perennials used (this was deliberate, though). Despite the short plant list, there is one flower in bloom throughout the growing season, with a bit of overlap. Colours are complementary (purple/pink/white), and the heights of all the perennials are roughly the same (again, on purpose). I wanted it to feel like a lost island in the middle of an ocean. The Sporobolus grass ties everything together and is the main component apart from the Amelanchier tree. Between those two plants, you end up with an open, yet full, garden space.

Ingredients:

Seasons:

Overview

Spring

Spring is all about the Amelanchier canadensis tree and bulbs. The Amelanchier has small, delicate white flowers, but packs a punch as they open before the leaves start to emerge. The Allium sp. and Crocus sp. add some colour and set the stage for the perennials that come later.

Summer

Summer flows in waves. While the Sporobolus heterolepis wakes up and starts growing in earnest with the warmer weather, the Allium sp. will give way to Salvia nemorosa ‘May Night’. This, in turn, will fade as the Sporobolus heterolepis and the Aster novae-angliae ‘Vibrant Dome’ reach their peak.

Fall

Fall will not have anything new flowering, but will instead have a tremendous amount of colour as the plants begin to wind down for winter. Amalanchier canadensis leaves have a beautiful yellow to red colour, while Sporobolus heterolepis changes to an orange / red. Aster novae-angliae ‘Vibrant Dome’ may hold on to its flowers well into October if you have a warm fall, or it may stop towards the end of September. Lots to enjoy!