Recommendation points
- The identity of the Chinese garden
- Feng Shui Teaching – The Ultimate Guide to Action
- Types of Chinese gardens
- The main stages of creating a Chinese garden and the main stylistic techniques
- Center selection and planning
- Color palette
- Track arrangement
- Gates and fences
- Variety of small forms
- The ponds of the Chinese garden
- Chinese gazebo – style icon
- Chinese Garden Plants
This article will consider one of the brightest and most distinctive areas of ethnic style – the Chinese garden. The device of such a garden on the site is an exciting activity that can show not only the design talent of the owners, but also their rich inner world.
The identity of the Chinese garden
The Chinese style is quite distinctive and stands out among the ethnic gardens. On the one hand, its structure obeys stylistic methods common to ethnic groups, and on the other hand, it quite noticeably contradicts the basic concept of style – closeness to nature, maximum naturalness. In a Chinese garden, it is very difficult to trace where the natural ends, and the artificial, invented, man-made comes into its own.
Feng Shui Teaching – The Ultimate Guide to Action
Feng Shui is the ideological foundation of the Chinese garden. The main postulates of feng shui that have found their application in landscape design are:
- Harmony between all elements of the garden (as a reflection of the universe, the harmony of the five elements). This applies to everything – the proportions of water and land, free and occupied space, landscape features.
- Clear selection of the center, the main dominant point.
- The importance of every plant, every element of garden design.
Everything that will be done, built, planted, dug up in the Chinese garden must be permeated with Qi energy, and the task of the site owner is to direct this energy in the right direction..
Types of Chinese gardens
Historically, there have been three types of Chinese gardens:
- Imperial, stunning in their luxury and sophistication.
- Monastic or natural, maximally embedded in the natural landscape.
- The Gardens Beyond the Wall are private gardens. These gardens are the prototypes of the modern Chinese style..
By emotional impact, the following are distinguished:
Laughing gardens, symbolizing fullness, brightness and joy of life. The device uses flowering plants, bright colors that can create a mood of joy and fullness of life.
Menacing gardens, symbolizing the destructive power of the elements. Used randomly scribbled boulders, twisted, moss and lichen-covered trees with dark foliage.
Idyllic gardens that restore peace and harmony.
A very interesting solution can be the arrangement of all three emotional gardens on one site. At the same time, it is important to ensure the compositional completeness of the idea..
The main stages of creating a Chinese garden and the main stylistic techniques
When arranging the Chinese style, it is very important to remember the main rule of creating ethnic gardens – all elements of landscape design and architecture must correspond to the chosen style. Everything, up to the outbuildings and the entrance lobby, should be stylized in the Chinese style and architecture..
Center selection and planning
For the construction of a Chinese garden, areas of hilly relief are best. A completely flat area will have to be “revived” by adding artificial hills, hills and slides.
When arranging Chinese gardens, designers often use the “Bagua octagon” – this is a division of the site into 9 sectors, based on the knowledge of feng shui about the concentration of energy.
At the initial stage, you need to choose the center of the composition. As a rule, this is an elevated place, from which the most beautiful view and maximum view opens up. How the central composition will look is not so important, the main thing is that from it you can admire the landscapes opening up for a long time, and the center of the composition itself can be viewed from anywhere in the garden.
The Chinese style (unlike most ethnic ones) is characterized by axial planning and clear, correct lines and angles of the boundaries of the site.
Color palette
When decorating a Chinese-style garden, color is of great importance, as the Chinese philosophy endows colors with healing properties. That is why architecture and small forms shine with brightness and variety of colors:
- Purple and white – calm.
- Dark red and bright yellow – joy and vitality.
- Blue and black – relaxation and healing.
The same can be said about the natural palette: brightly flowering plants and ornamental shrubs add their colors to the fabulous canvas of a Chinese garden..
Most ethnic styles are characterized by their color, the use of which in the design of landscape design helps to make it recognizable. For a Chinese garden, this is a combination of yellow, red, green and brown.
Track arrangement
The paths and paths of the Chinese garden can scatter around the entire site with fancy patterns, beckon, zigzag, lengthening the path, giving a person the opportunity to enjoy communication with beauty for as long as possible. Behind their sharp turns, unexpected surprises should be hidden – a flowering bush, a sculpture, a group of stones.
For the construction of paths, you can use gravel, white and yellow sand, natural stone slabs. An excellent technique for styling is the device of a winding pebble path. By selecting it by color, you can lay out various patterns, for example, in the form of waves or diverging spheres.
Gates and fences
The invariable rule of style is that the garden should not have a clear visual border, it is necessary to create a feeling of its infinity. That is why the fence must be carefully masked..
It should look either like a stone composition, behind which the garden simply continues, or like a screen entwined with plants, separating another zone. Perhaps the device of a fence-screen on which the shadow from the branches of a bizarrely curved tree is projected.
You can use the stylization of a fence under the wall of a supposedly located nearby temple, behind which the garden continues.
The entrance group of the Chinese garden is quite standard: the characteristic gates painted in red or brown will immediately create the desired atmosphere.
Variety of small forms
It is the small forms, garden furniture and household items that help to give the ethnic style site recognizability and the necessary flavor. Chinese style lends itself easily to such stylization..
Stones are widely used in landscape design for the construction of a Chinese garden. Feng Shui philosophy gives them a great philosophical meaning – they symbolize the balance of opposite elements. Stones are considered living things. The more unusual the natural form of the stone, the more voids in it, the better.
Stones can be placed either individually or create various groups.
The necessary color and mood will be created by bright Chinese lanterns and umbrellas placed and hung around the garden.
The main Chinese symbols are hieroglyphs, but one should be very careful about their use. Firstly, it is worth remembering that they can contain a certain meaning, and secondly, a garden overloaded with them will look trite and vulgar.
The same can be said for Chinese-style garden sculptures. They should organically fit into the overall composition without disturbing the harmony of space..
Recently, topiary has become very popular – sculptures from decoratively trimmed trees and shrubs. They are increasingly being used by designers for ethnic styles. Such a figurine in a Chinese garden will perfectly revive the overall picture and create the appropriate mood..
A very interesting technique that will make the style recognizable is the so-called garden “moon” windows. They are arranged in such a way that through them you can admire a beautiful landscape or composition.
Bridges made of natural materials are recognizable and distinctive elements of the Chinese style. Humpback bridges most often serve for their intended purpose – to cross water streams, canals, ponds. For a Chinese garden, either stone, artificially aged, or wooden bridges painted with bright paint are best suited..
The ponds of the Chinese garden
Without a doubt, the artificial pond will not only decorate the site in the Chinese style, but can also become the center of the entire composition. Loose outlines, a fuzzy coastline, an abundance of coastal vegetation are the hallmarks of a Chinese pond. The grotto looks very interesting on the shore or on a small island in the middle.
The Chinese pond must be “alive”. The inhabitants of the pond can be koi carps and any other bright fish, silver carp.
The device of a lotus reservoir can be a fascinating activity..
Chinese gazebo – style icon
The gazebo is not the main stylistic element in any ethnic garden, only in Chinese it is the center of the composition, which puts the final point in creating the style. It is usually located next to a pond, light lace outlines and a characteristic roof make it recognizable.
You can make a Chinese gazebo with your own hands from wood and paint it in colors typical for China – brown, yellow, green or red.
Chinese Garden Plants
The brighter and richer the color palette of Chinese garden plants, the better. However, it is impossible to forget that everything in it has its own meaning and significance:
- Conifers planted on the site will symbolize longevity. It can be pines, cedars, fir, juniper..
- Fruit trees will bring happiness and procreation. Perfectly fit into the garden design of apple, cherry, plum.
- The color and mood will be created by flowering shrubs with multi-colored foliage – forsythia, euonymus, meadowsweet.
- Climbing roses, honeysuckle and other climbing flowering plants are suitable for decorating trellises, fences, arches..
Mandatory plants in the Chinese garden are noble peonies, chrysanthemums, lilies. But small-flowering, variegated and field plants, so often used in ethnic gardens in Europe, it is better not to plant. They can create stylistic dissonance..
Another feature that distinguishes the Chinese garden from some European ethnic gardens is that in the absence of classic, mowed lawns and well-defined flower beds, all plants must be trimmed, the presence of weeds and carelessness is unacceptable.
After completing work on the creation of Chinese-style ethnic landscape design, all that remains is to carefully care for the plants. And also remember that the garden is a place of rest, restoring peace in the soul and harmony with the outside world, so all troubles and troubles should be left outside its gates.
Chinese style in landscape design is truly fascinating. The way it incorporates natural elements with a deep philosophical understanding is unmatched. I wonder how this wisdom has been passed down through generations, and what techniques and principles are used in creating these harmonious spaces. Additionally, I would be interested to know if there are any specific plants or symbols commonly used in Chinese-style gardens that hold significant meaning.
I’m curious about the influence of Chinese style in landscape design. How has this wisdom accumulated over thousands of years shaped the principles and techniques used in Chinese landscape design? What guidance or lessons can be drawn from this enduring tradition?
How has Chinese style in landscape design evolved over the millennia and what wisdom can be drawn from it?
Chinese style in landscape design has evolved over the millennia, influenced by various philosophical and cultural movements. Traditional Chinese gardens often include elements such as stones, water features, and plants arranged in a harmonious manner to create a sense of tranquility and balance.
One of the key principles of Chinese landscape design is the concept of yin and yang, symbolizing the balance between contrasting elements such as light and dark, soft and hard, or empty and solid. This principle is reflected in the arrangement of different elements within the garden, creating a sense of harmony and unity.
Another important aspect of Chinese landscape design is the incorporation of symbolic meanings and cultural references. Elements such as rocks, trees, and water features are carefully selected and arranged to convey specific meanings or evoke certain emotions, providing a deeper connection to nature and the surrounding environment.
Overall, the evolution of Chinese landscape design demonstrates a deep appreciation for nature, a focus on balance and harmony, and a commitment to preserving cultural traditions. By drawing wisdom from Chinese landscape design, we can learn the importance of cultivating a deep connection to nature, embracing harmony and balance in our surroundings, and incorporating meaningful symbolism into our own designs.