GT Week 4: Your Tasks

This week we focus on identifying and selecting plants for texture. We're more than 1/2 way through. As I am making this up as we go, do let me know if there's anything we've missed or need to address. I feel like I'm floundering with the GT thing, though I am making great strides in planning my fantasy garden.

What you should have done by now:

determined the purpose of your garden/landscape and how much time, work and money you're willing to put into it.

identified what plants and hardscaping you will keep and what will go and what you may be able to modify (e.g., painting fences, pruning shrubs).

started a gardening notebook of the plants you will be keeping with pictures of them and instructions for care).

figured out what garden rooms you want to include.

thought about how you will move from one area to the other. What materials will you use? Will the paths be along a line of sight or hidden? Or both?

recognized any "vistas" and thought about how to include them in your landscape design.

drawn a plan of the new garden and/or landscape. The walls and borders or background should be mapped out (if necessary).

thought about the style of your garden.

identified the plants you would like to include.

flagged "speciman" or focal point plants. Started on a planting plan to "feature" them. (This planting plan is not necessarily placed in the garden anywhere, yet.)

So, moving on to this week's tasks.

Bones:

Tidy up. Get rid of the weeds, the litter, etc. (I still have plastic bag ghosts attatched to my trees!)

Take care of whatever repairs you need to do or call in the help.

Breath:

Establish a nursery for plants you intend to keep, but move to a different location. This may involve some research. Don't put a shade lover into a sunny spot.

Heart:

Continue with your colour planning.

Identify what you need to do for more contrast with texture.

See this post.)

Head:

Begin a shopping list. Get prices.

Decide on the total scope of work you want to do, break it up into yearly plans. (Four years for a large garden is recommended.)

Do a garden collage.

This last thing is inspired a bit by scb's newly discovered affection for glue sticks, but I did read it in a landscape planning book, so I'll pass it along.
1. Take a picture of your current landscape.
2. Modify it if you need to to delete plants you no longer want or which will be relocated.
3. Take pictures of the plants you do want and re-size them to be more or less in scale with your photograph. (Use a photocopier or software.)
4. Arrange the pictures of your plants on your photograph in a pleasing way.
5. Bring this with you when you shop for plants.