I totally getcha Fern! I've been really struggling with this myself. Over the last 2 or 3 years i've been just trying to figure out what will grow so i haven't got too many plants of each type and I tend not to buy more than one unless I know its going to survive. I've always been attracted by gardens with swaths of one type or color of plant, yet i love having all sorts of specimens. :^(

This year i've been trying to divide up some clumps and create swaths...not really having much luck! I guess it will take time...I think if you have at least one unifying element in your beds it will look attractive and doesn't neccesarily have to be either all the same plant or color...maybe some anchor shrubs with similar form or foiliage colour, or shastas and rudbeckias together enmasse because their blossoms are similar. Personally I find any garden that's healthy and full looking is attractive no matter how mixed.

i'm no designer that's for sure just thought i'd let you know you're not the only one with this on their mind!
Did you notice any type of theme in this garden?

Toots

There were 2 themes but they were linked in the middle by a birdbath and the plants around it [sedum autumn joy, thyme as a ground cover, a large climbing rose behind the birdbath and some dianthus] those plants were echoed on either side and then the two sides were quite different. One looked very cottage garden with more roses, clematis, phlox, some delphiniums, more dianthus and some really nice shrubs. The other side merged into an almost rock garden with hens and chicks - some native australian rock plants that need to come in in the winter and a few larger shrubs. The weird thing is that until I thought about it to answer this - and reviewed my camera pics I didn't notice the differences - I mean they were there but not glaring. Anyway it was nice

Fern

Hmmm...maybe its the 'echoing' of the sedum, thyme and dianthus that ties it all up and keeps it sane. I hear (ahem, read I mean) that term a lot in magazines and have also been trying to apply it to my garden. Its seems to be a subtle thing, but when I notice it I think ya, that totally works. How about a picture?

Toots

Hi Fern,

An interesting concept, using the same plants over throughout the yard would certainly bring it together. Having said that, however, I have to say I am a "variety of plants" person rather than a "repeated plants" person.

I do repeat plants sometimes (everyone does) but itÂs more of "I need something tall, narrow and takes full sun in this spot" strategy. For example, there is a columnar aspen behind the gazebo and another one on the opposite side more in front of the gazebo, just because I wanted a fast growing columnar tree and my choices were limited.

I have a very small backyard as well, maybe 25 by 42 feet, plus a sort of wasted "L" shaped corner that a gazebo sits in with a bit of wasted green space behind.

My brotherÂs back yard sort of looks like his own mini park within the city, trees and shrubs in every corner. I wanted that same sort of look, but itÂs much harder to do in a small yard, so I had to rely on columnar type trees such as cedars, large shrubs, columnar aspens, dwarf apple trees (which get a major trimming each spring), trellises with vines, etc. If itÂs one thing IÂm guilty of is wanting too many plants and continually reading up on plants and thinking "I want to try that".

The one thing I might repeat throughout the yard is annuals. Example, I have three small flower beds in the back yard and I use a few of the same shade of marigold in each. When I do plant, I might put three marigolds together in a triangle shape so that when they are full grown it gives a bigger mound of color.

I guess I am guilty of planting too much in too little space. It works though, if you are willing to prune stuff annually, or remove things when they get crowded. ItÂs always in change and it really depends on how well the plants perform. Some you will have huge expectations and they might not grow as expected. I guess if you were to repeat the same plants through the yard, you probably would want to stick with really hardy or tried and true varieties. Ones that you know not only how hardy but how they will look when mature.

Regardless of how you plant your yard, I like to think that any plant in any spot is beautiful (within reason) and you really canÂt go wrong.

ItÂs fun planning where to put plants, watching them grow, whether it's that tomato plant that was just a seedling and is now huge with fruit, or seeing that big tree and thinking, "I brought it home in the car when it was a small two foot thing".

Regards,
Glenn