Garden Art

Sculpture, Toledo Botanic Garden

Snow and sleet cover the garden today. Jonquils and crocus that were in early bloom yesterday are hidden under the frozen crust. Since it's too cold and miserable to be outdoors, I'm working on some of my upcoming programs for spring. The photos that follow are winter photos from my Art in the Garden program.

It's easier to see the form and design of a garden in winter. The gray day with snow makes the world seem almost black and white, except for that one blue form in the center.

The hedge and the loops overhead, with the topknots, are all continuous hedge.

The blue bench looks across the way at the hedge, above. While it looks like 2 different structures, the hedge is trimmed flat on top with limbs above in arches, and atop those, a fringe of smaller branches and leaves.

Sculpture at Toledo Botanic Garden.

Espaliered fruit trees on a wall.

The flowing lines along the wall of the espaliered fruit trees are more visible when dusted with snow. In summer you see the wall behind, the green leaves and a bit of the trunks of the trees, but it's in winter when the scene is simplified to just the shapes and lines.

Too much winter, too much black and white, while interesting from a point of design, always leaves me yearning for green, for color, for a warmer season. The garden is more than lines of design, there must be fun in the garden, inspiration, color, too. And gardens shouldn't be too serious.

The snow will melt, flowers will once again appear and the garden will come to life with an entirely new season.