Four ‘scapes’ of gardening

 

By Harriet Phelps

Designing your outdoor space goes beyond making it look and feel nice. There are actually four ’scapes in gardening.

Landscaping. We know what landscape means: the tools needed to design an attractive outdoor space. Think of it as arranging your living room. Think about how you will use the space. Do I need a play area, seating area, garden area, barbeque area, or a just-to-enjoy area?

Divide the area into quadrants and determine what is needed to achieve what you want. Landscaping is taken in steps and budget. There is always a plan. We want landscape to express our interests and creativity. There are eight basics of design:

• Unity
• Balance
• Contrast and harmony
• Color
• Transition (gradual change)
• Line (depth and distance)
• Proportion
• Repetition (three to five elements)

Xeriscaping. Xeri is a Greek word for dry. It is landscaping that uses the minimum of supplemental water and is colorful and enjoyable. It does not mean dry, barren, or no maintenance. We live in a xeriscape – the desert. The concept was developed in Denver, Colorado, in response to water shortage and susceptibility to drought. There are seven principles:

• Sound planning and design
• Limitation of turf
• Use of water efficient plants
• Efficient irrigation
• Soil amendments
• Use of mulches
• Appropriate landscape maintenance

Beautiful landscapes are created by using native and desert adapted plants. Native plants are better adapted to the climate area and results in success without excessive watering, fertilizers or pesticides. These plants provide beneficial habitat for wildlife of the area. Another consideration is to know the expectation of your HOA.

Agriscaping means creatively and elegantly integrating elements of productive agriculture by means of growing edible foods or useful plants to reduce useless consumption, landfill, waste, and water usage. The concept was developed here in Arizona to understand and utilize planting of edible crops amongst the ornamental plants in your yard. Here in Zone 9 we have two growing seasons, spring and fall.

Es-scaping means going into your yard and enjoying the fruits of your labor. During the hot months that we are entering now, we enjoy our gardens early in the morning or after sunset. We marvel at the plantings and how much has changed with our efforts. We are excited to bring in our garden produce for a meal and the wonderful flavor that fresh brings. We do not have irrigation in our yard, which adds the additional benefit of meditative watering and just enjoying the task. Escape to your yard and enjoy!

Harriet Phelps is a Maricopa master gardener for Pinal County.
Office 520-374-6263
www.MAC-Pinal-MasterGardener.org

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This column appears in the June issue of InMaricopa.