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Inspiration From Nature
For most of my adult life the forests and the sea have always called me. Perhaps that is why I enjoy gardening -- it is one more reason to be outside. Hiking in the forest or exploring a beach help give me inspiration to bring the beauty of the natural world into my gardens. The destination is not the reason I hike; rather it is discovering all the wonders of the flora and fauna along the way. As I tickle the moss and photograph the ferns, I hope for a glimpse of our sometimes elusive banana slug cleaning up the forest floor. Up in the mountains, pristine alpine meadows give me much inspiration during their brief but beautiful period of bloom. Or by the sea, where plants adapt to the extremes of drought wind and salt air, Nature's designs bring many ideas for the garden.
Take this scene of the waterfall. Although my garden doesn't have a cliff for a seventy-five foot waterfall to cascade down, I can still take ideas from it and incorporate them into my garden. Since the land is sloped I can sculpt it to mimic this scene to a scale that will fit in the garden. If I didn't want a pond I could make a rock wall and encourage moss and ferns to grow on or between the rocks. Another idea I could take from this scene is a shallow cave carved out with ferns growing inside. A pebble lined open area could be made to mimic the beach of a river. The rocks would be dripping with moss and ferns and other shade tolerant plants carefully chosen to keep the natural rain forest look.
I can build a pond and have the water cascade down over a shallow cave into a pool of water. The waterfall wouldn't have to be spilling large amounts of water over the cave to achieve this tranquil scene. In fact too much water flowing could be too loud and costly and require a more expensive pump. Keeping it in scale to the garden, you can build your pond to be a tranquil place similiar to the ones you find are in nature.
So look to nature for inspiration, and you can bring the tranquility of nature to your garden.
Debra Teachout-Teashon
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