Gardens without plants?

Recent trends in garden design indicate that plants are increasingly regarded as being of lesser importance than built features and hard surfacing. What implications does this have for our urban environment? What can be done to ensure that our gardens remain green? This month we asked both Michael Green and Geoff Olive for their opinions on this issue.

Michael Green:
The move towards gardens that feature fewer plants is undeniably a trend, as evidenced in garden shows and the media, particularly the glossy magazines. It is not however a trend that I would regard with any anxiety. Gardens which feature plants are made by gardeners who enjoy plants and I don’t believe we are in any danger of running out of such people.
Part of the interest in gardens with fewer plants is undoubtedly fuelled by trends in urban development and lifestyle choices. Higher density living and busier lives tends to encourage gardens with more built elements and fewer plants. Such gardens are easier to maintain, are more appropriate to certain lifestyles than a traditional garden, and are more accommodating of high density living.
The attraction of built gardens is however much more than a reaction to urban development trends and new lifestyle choices. Design of our immediate environment reflects something of the way in which we see ourselves and the values to which we aspire. Gardens with a strong built element are generally more extroverted and expressive than the traditional garden. They strive towards an immediately apparent individualism and the best of them demonstrate an understanding of garden history and the place of shape, form, colour and texture in the garden. History abounds with examples of gardens which valued built elements as much as plants. It is apparent in many Renaissance gardens, Islamic gardens, Modernism and even some aspects of the English garden tradition.
City gardens are also generally reflective of architectural trends. Contemporary urban architecture with its accent upon bold shapes, colours and textures is not generally complimented by a densely planted garden. Instead, it favours the use of similar shapes, patterns and textures in the garden and the use of a sparer, more dramatic style of planting. Hence the popularity of yuccas, palm and mondo grass to name but a few of the staples of this style of gardening.
One of the problems of contemporary design is the victory of style over substance in garden design. The backyard blitz school of garden design would have us believe that we can throw together a variety of elements and plants chosen from some standard patterns and immediately create a garden "effect". In my experience the impact and appeal of such gardens is short lived and encourages constant make-overs in gardens as image conscious owners attempt to keep up with the latest trend.
Personally I am more interested in good design rather than whether or not a garden contains a certain quota of plants. In this regard it is interesting to note that a planted garden can be much more forgiving than a built one. Plants have a certain capacity to absorb a designer’s mistakes where built elements in the garden are unforgiving in their demonstration of the shortcomings of the design. Unfortunately we see far too many poor copies of a glossy magazine feature where a poor understanding of the original design intent or an inability to use built materials skilfully shows up the limitations of the design.
Some people find the extreme, plant-free designs boring and inhuman. Can we influence people to use more plants in their gardens? Probably not. It is unlikely that these choices are made through lack of information about how to use plants wisely, and to fight against it is like trying to push water uphill. People make a conscious choice to have a built garden and the trend is here to stay in some urban areas. If people are really interested in the cultivation of plants, they won't choose to live in these environments.
In response to the concern about low plant usage in landscape design, MIFGS and Flemings have changed their brief for the 2002 Melbourne International Flower and Garden Show design competition. With the theme "Living Masterpieces", designs will be required to have a minimum of 40% plant life. This is encouraging designers to use plants almost in a painterly way - almost like nineteenth century Impressionism. This is an interesting and positive way to bring plants back into landscape design.
About Michael Green: Michael is a landscape architect and lectures in design and graphics at Burnley College. He conducts an ongoing experiment in his own suburban garden attempting to find the right balance between garden structures and plants. To date he has had little success in resolving this dilemma but it does keep him active and the neighbours guessing.

Geoff Olive:
This design trend is something that has emerged from the move towards higher density urban living. It is really a town planning issue rather than a design issue and in some areas it is a disaster. Where there are housing developments with houses cheek by jowl, there is almost nothing left for gardens. In these situations it is critical that people stop and really assess their environment. Small spaces can still be green spaces.
Unfortunately many people do not have a clue about what plant choices are available to them. Many people imagine that growing a tree in a small space is not feasible because when they think of a tree they think of a Tasmanian Blue Gum rather than a Flowering Cherry. There are small trees that grow to less than 5m tall, or even multi-stemmed shrubs pruned as trees, that can provide form and shade protection with excellent results. It is all about achieving the appropriate scale in the vegetation to match the size of the garden space.
People need to be given some directions about plant choices. Some of the public utilities such as Melbourne Water offer low-cost mulch to the public, but they should combine this with suggestions for easy care, water-saving plants that can give a good result. There are some excellent planting examples in the Melbourne Botanic Gardens where succulents and native plants such as paper daisies have been used to illustrate the pleasing combination of textures, forms, shapes and colour combinations that are readily achievable. Giving people examples of what they can do is valuable.
Plants need not be difficult. I think it is unfortunate that gardening is often portrayed by the media as a chore akin to washing the car, rather than the "great escape" it can offer. Good plant choices and garden designs that offer suitable and appealing plant structure (as opposed to the obligatory "Backyard Blitz"-style built feature) can result in a garden that is just as easy to care for as the more uninspiring options, such as ivy and gazanias, but is much more environmentally and emotionally pleasing.
About Geoff Olive: Geoff has retired from his position as full-time lecturer in residential design at Burnley College, but continues to lecture on a part-time basis. His plans to establish a B&B in the near future will undoubtedly include a plant-filled garden.