How to Design and Create a Backyard Serenity Garden

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By Cyn Vela
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Design and create your own backyard serenity garden

People who design and create serenity gardens for a living are experiencing a boom in business. As the world becomes more hurried and hectic, home owners are seeking ways to decompress, relax, and reconnect with the mind and spirit. A serenity garden will have deeper meaning, however, if you design and create your own serenity garden rather than hiring someone to do it for you.

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

Land
Plants
Focal point of your choice
Seating for one or two
Shovel
Paper and pencil

Step 1

Spend some time in your yard the week before you design your serenity garden. Go outside at various times of the day, noting which areas of your yard get the most sun, shade, and quiet. A place that's shaded in early morning might be unbearably hot for the rest of the day, so it's important to take note of all locations of the yard at various hours.
Step 2

Decide on which area of your yard is most comfortable and peaceful to you, for most of the hours of the day and evening.
Step 3

Use paper and pencil to sketch out a general idea of the design of your serenity garden. Sketch its shape and the places where you'll want to place plants. When determining its shape, draw out a design that brings peace to your spirit. This will be sharp lines for some, and gentle curves for others. Because this area will be a place for you to seek and find peace in your own back yard, it's important to design a shape that makes you feel at ease.
Step 4

Decide on the types of plants you'd like to plant when you create your serenity garden. See link in "Resources" below, to visit the site of a well-known nursery. There, you can get ideas about the type of plants you want to use, order a free catalog, or place your order.
Step 5

When choosing your plants, keep in mind the amount of space you have cleared. If you have a large back yard, you can feature a blossoming or fruit tree. Some might find peace in planting flowering plants, while the mess of dropped petals might be stressful for others. Consider planting fragrant herb plants, known for their curative properties, such as lavender and rosemary. These can also be used to make calming, healing teas.
Step 6

Clear the land with purpose. Make your work symbolic: as you remove weeds and stones from the ground, you are also removing the weedy overgrowth and hard stones from your mind and spirit.
Step 7

Plant your plants in a visually appealing way. This will be different for everyone. Some prefer order and symmetry, while others prefer randomness. Do keep in mind, however, that smaller plants should be placed in front of larger plants, so that they can be seen.
Step 8

Place a focal point in the center of the serenity garden. This is the core of the garden, and should resonate with the core of your spirit. Consider things like garden statues, water features, large stones, or bird baths.
Step 9

Place a seating area --a bench, stool, or stump-- in the serenity garden you have designed. Your serenity garden will be a place where you retreat to escape the modern world, to reconnect with your Self. This seating area should be comfortable, so that you can spend long periods of time here. Decide if you want this to sit a single person, or if you'd like to have seating for two so that you can share your serenity garden and new-found inner peace with a loved one.

Comments

flameofire said

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on 11/20/2009 Nice article wish you luck.

jfjones said

on 8/20/2009 Very well written.

jillmaria said

on 8/19/2009 I plant aromatic herbs and butterfly wildflowers in my serenity garden - just lovely. Thanks for the article!!

momose said

on 8/18/2009 A backyard serenity garden works wonders for rejuvenating the spirit. I particularly like your idea on #6 for the symbolism! My Koi pond is the center of my serene back yard. The sounds of water greatly add to the peaceful atmosphere. ***** and congratulations for this eHow of the day!