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One of my favorite patterns in my antique china
collection is Blue Willow. This garden is especially stunning if you live in a white house with blue shutters or trims, or a blue house with white. A white fence adds to the appeal. The design and colors make your property look bigger and it seems to flow nicely from house to yard. If you design this in your backyard, place a few matching pieces, plants, or paint your front door in blue or white to tie it all in. My home is white with this shade of deep blue for shutters and aluminum porch and patio awnings. I have a big white fence to decorate. Perfect. Place this
Chinese serenity garden away
from foot traffic, pets, and put it in a quiet space so that you can
relax, reflect or meditate. It should feel welcoming and soothing, and
become a place you will spend a lot of time in. It's not just for
decoration. Try to make it your own, and fill it with what you love. You
can create a full garden or several nooks within your current landscape
using this design. Must-haves: Paint inexpensive metal bird baths, benches, chimes, bird cages and bird feeders in shiny blue, bronze, copper, black, yellow or red. If you're lucky enough to have an arbor or pergola - plant wisteria in blue or white to cover the structure, or plant honeysuckle or trumpet vines. These will perfume your garden, and the perfume is stronger at night. You can use the Moonlight Garden design for ideas on white plants that seem to glow in the evening and have a deep fragrance, by visiting this page. It's best to grow these vines in pots to easily control their shape and growth. They are aggressive spreaders in the open ground. A large pot on either side of an arch or pergola is ornamental, and spotlights the base of the structure. Tie the plant as it climbs up. Choose a color to match your main color in the garden, or choose one in one of your accent colors. I have several of these mature vines, and they will happily grow in pots as small as 12 inches in diameter. If you don't have an arbor or pergola, use large pots with trellises inserted. I have great success with these. I just clip vines to the trellis as it grows. It finds it's way to climb and cover the trellis. If you have an unattractive or lonely fence. cover it with flowering vines. Place a few large pots in front of the fence, and insert a large trellis inside the pot or in the ground behind the pot, and against the fence. Both methods work beautifully for me. Use all one type of vine, or mix it up, leaving about 3 ft. of space between the pots. I grow honeysuckle and clematis in every other pot along my fence line. My accents are climbing rose shrubs. Try it - it's beautiful and easy to care for because you have confined the roots. Trim as needed to keep it short, or let it trail along the top of the fence if you can use clips or just tie it where you want it to be. Trim out the vines that bush outward to keep it along the fence and not sticking out. To decorate tabletops, use inexpensive pottery, heavy glass ornamental pieces, or flea market teapots on top of a stack of blue, yellow or red cake plates. There are many beautiful designs in plates made of melamine. They're high quality and appear to be made of china. I also use plain white tableware. White rice bowls, square white plates, and a white vase or planter. On or near the table for that midnight snack in the garden.
Intersperse foliage plants that give an air of serenity and Asian feel. Bamboos, palms, Yucca, ferns, ivies and jades in pots work well if kept out of full sun and watered regularly. Water plants that can grow in the soil (most grasses and bog plants) work well. You can cheat and find high quality silk shrubs or trees that withstand the weather. An instant decor item while you wait for your landscape to fill out or to change it up now and then with a new focal point. Shots of accent color for the blue and white should be in the deep or bright blue shades, dark purples, plums, and medium to dark yellows. Asian, Japanese, Thai, Buddhist decor and accessories Suggested Blue and White Perennial ornamental plants and accessories Choose large blooming flowers for impact, but add a few little clusters of flowing or hanging blooms and ground covers. Add grasses for a feeling of wind movement. Add chimes, water features like fountains and birdbaths, a Buddha or two, pagoda, dragon or Asian lanterns, and Asian style benches or stools and quiet seating areas. Fill some old blue/blue and white teapots and some flea market Asian style containers with cut flowers from the garden to decorate your retreat. - place a few stones or pebbles in the vases to keep them from tipping over. Do not place the cut flowers in the sun. Hang an Zen style rain chain from a branch in your garden. Brightly colored bird cages, crane, heron or peacock metal garden statues. Bluebirds and Birds of Paradise are another nature theme, along with carp and koi designs, if you have a water feature. A popular Asian garden theme is pottery depicting birds on a cherry blossom branch or dragons. Fill plastic or metal vases with cut flowers and foliage from the garden as a focal point where you're growing these plants. On the ground or on a table. For shots of color here and there, choose red Chinese accessories, or a few small pieces in dark yellow. You can easily find a treasure trove of beautiful decor and symbols by doing a search for "feng shui" decor. More garden tips Choose plants based on
color, shape, season of bloom and height. Perennials and Bulbs. Plant them and forget them, they will return, and perhaps multiply every year. Use plants in any
combination and with a few flowers that share the same accent colors. Research the plant's hardiness zone and bloom time, if you wish to have flowers blooming in rotation spring to fall. You can grow any
plant, no matter what zone hardiness, if you grow them in pots, and bring
them in for wintering over or if the weather is too hot for the plants you
love to thrive. Many desert-type plants and succulents, like Yucca and Agave can be grown in pots in your garden will also grow as lovely houseplants with the right light and care, and be ready to go back outside in spring. The Yucca plant shown in the photo below is evergreen (at least in zone 6. Check your zone for others). Some plants are traditionally used in Asian and Zen gardens, like Chrysanthemums, peonies, ornamental plum and cherry trees. You can build your garden around those as the focal point. Dwarf pomegranates and other fruits look pretty in the garden among the flowers and foliage, and can be grown in pots to save space. These look beautiful on the patio, terrace or courtyard. The Blues Here are a few blue flowering perennials and blue-shaded foliage plants that give an Asian feel to your gardens Feel free to plug annuals into your design to fill in gaps or add shots of new color to the summer landscape if there's a time that nothing is blooming.
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