Subscribe to our newsletter. The third in a series on successful planning and garden design strategies for the novice. Perennial gardeners enjoy the luxury of dividing and rearranging established plantings with a frequency similar to rearranging furniture. Trees and shrubs are much more difficult to move once established, and because of this their placement within the landscape must be precise.
Variety is good, but so is repetition.
Repeating the same plant in different areas of the landscape lends continuity to the site. Don't overdo specimen or 'accent' plantings. Allow a choice few to 'reign' within specific areas of the landscape. Exceptions to this one specimen per area rule can be made if a specimen has seasonal interest that does not compete with neighboring specimens. For instance, a deciduous tree with glorious autumn color might not compete with an early spring-blooming Japanese Magnolia.