Memorial Day is the day when I, along with many other people in the United States, place flowers on the graves of our ancestors. A memorial garden can be large enough to accommodate hundreds of people, or it can be a small enclosed space, with just enough room for a bench which only seats two.
Memorial gardens can be public gardens or a hidden corner in a private garden.
What all memorial gardens have in common is that they are all outdoor chapels, intended for grieving and prayer. I helped two other Master Gardeners plant shrubs around a memorial in Gold Beach, Oregon. This is a simple, unpretentious memorial for those who have been lost at sea or had their ashes scattered over the ocean. It is located on a low dune, at the edge of the Pacific Ocean. Most Americans are very private about displays of grief and our memorial gardens should reflect this.