Walkways can be constructed of almost anything - reclaimed brick, broken paving stones, concrete set with pebble mosaics, blue stone, or decomposed granite.
By Tom Woodham 
A garden without a path is like a book without a plot. The non-path garden is there, it exists, but like a disorganized, rambling novel, it is not inviting to other people. Pathways bring order to the scene and make the landscape enticing. When guests enter a huge ballroom full of gorgeous but unfamiliar faces, you — as a good host — make it your responsibility to swoop down and steer the new arrivals around until they are comfortable. A garden path works in much the same way: It allows your guests to get their bearings.
Good arteries offer an interesting dichotomy. In addition to bringing order, they also allow mystery. A path can disappear slowly around a wide curve or suddenly at a sharp corner. It may lead to a dark tunnel through a great amorphous hedge or into an imposing arbor. A walk with a big mirror set at the far end looks like it leads into infinity. A great route is both adventurous and useful. Seize the opportunity to direct where your guests will walk. By carefully laying out your personal Shangri-la, you can maximize your visitors' enjoyment.
As in a good book, a well-plotted path allows you to develop your characters. An evocative passage to your peony planting will give you time to tell the stories about how each old beauty was acquired. Paths also invite exploration of alluring scenes. It is worth the saunter down the entire garden to look at big pink saucer magnolias in full bloom against the emerging deep-purple leaves of the copper beech. Ephemeral moments are as heartwarming and rewarding to the landscape-shaping process as a glance across a crowded airline terminal is to a brand-new romance.
At times — to negate the effects of verdant villains, for instance — you may want to detour a visitor's stroll with carefully placed obstacles. When pigweed takes over the potager, simply block that passage with an antique wheelbarrow planted with something pretty. When June's gorgeous roses succumb to August's black spot, put a huge pot sporting a rambunctious evergreen right in the way. Ugliness is best ignored and avoided, right?
Walkways may be constructed of almost anything. I have used reclaimed brick and broken paving stones. The English often employ concrete set with pebble mosaics. Blue stone is considered a status symbol anywhere. Santa Monica designer Nancy Goslee Power favors decomposed granite, referred to as "DG" in horti-chat circles. And Hamptons artist Bob Dash uses wood chips. Incline towards what is local, and it will likely be very suitable and probably more affordable.
Varying styles of paths have evolved in different types of landscapes. In contemplative Japanese gardens, paths will often make sudden right-angle turns, allowing the visitor to ponder the revelation of new vistas. Ancient Persian paradise gardens had walks built over rippling water channels that cooled guests enduring the hot, arid atmosphere. In very formal French gardens, where long, straight paths seem to stretch forever, a round bed or a splashing fountain is often plopped in the middle of a grand promenade. This prompts strollers to walk around the "impediment" and allows a feeling of respite from the trek towards the far-off, final destination. Any of these examples may be adapted to your own plan, but it's best to include designs that complement your garden's style.
When a passage needs to ascend or descend a gentle slope, please cut wide, gentle, terrace-like changes in elevation. Guests may then easily manage the walk and safely pause to look around. On the other hand, a steep hill requires a proper set of stairs. I will never forget the time my six-year-old son gave an impromptu, charmingly misguided garden tour to a VIP who had suddenly stopped by — uninvited.
When they reached the top end of the sunken garden, the doyenne looked at my boy and snorted, "Well! How on earth do we get down there?" His answer was, "This is my favorite part. I just roll down the hill as fast as I can! Watch!" She was not amused.
A path can be as casual as a meandering lane mown through a meadow. Such an effect reduces lawn service costs and is much more inviting than the golf course look. You can even have a virtual path, a mere suggestion of "the way," with an allée of trees leading into the distance. A double row of big pots also works.
The cleverest riff on a path I ever saw was created by Rosemary Verey at her famous Barnsley House garden. One year, the wide, Cotswold stone path leading across the garden to her library door was completely planted with jillions of flowering succulents. You could not help but pause when you reached it, wondering what to do. But Rosemary, bless her for teaching us all how to break the rules, was quick to solve that problem. She would roar — and she could roar: "DON'T YOU DARE WALK ON MY PATH!"
A garden without a path is confusing and, ultimately, disappointing. Guests can't figure out where to walk, and they most likely feel like they "saw the garden" as they parked their cars. No matter how perfect the evening, no matter how glorious the spectacle, most guests will emerge from their vehicles and head straight for the front door. They will totally ignore your pleas for a teensy amble, saying as they disappear inside forever: "Just let me park my purse... get a drink... pet the dog... say 'hello' to the others... can't ruin my Jimmy Choos..." ad infinitum until, alas, the good light — and the unique moment — are gone.
But a good path is friendly, a seductive siren. It is an invitation impossible to ignore. The allure means that you may cease your beseeching and, instead, allow for any number of situations to unfold for you and your guests. And only you, the plotter, have any inkling of how it will all end.
Katherine Whiteside is author of The Way We Garden Now (Clarkson Potter, 2007). http://www.veranda.com/outdoor-garden/plotting-garden-paths-0608
A garden without a path is like a book without a plot. The non-path garden is there, it exists, but like a disorganized, rambling novel, it is not inviting to other people. Pathways bring order to the scene and make the landscape enticing. When guests enter a huge ballroom full of gorgeous but unfamiliar faces, you — as a good host — make it your responsibility to swoop down and steer the new arrivals around until they are comfortable. A garden path works in much the same way: It allows your guests to get their bearings. Good arteries offer an interesting dichotomy. In addition to bringing order, they also allow mystery. A path can disappear slowly around a wide curve or suddenly at a sharp corner. It may lead to a dark tunnel through a great amorphous hedge or into an imposing arbor. A walk with a big mirror set at the far end looks like it leads into infinity. A great route is both adventurous and useful. Seize the opportunity to direct where your guests will walk. By carefully laying out your personal Shangri-la, you can maximize your visitors' enjoyment.
As in a good book, a well-plotted path allows you to develop your characters. An evocative passage to your peony planting will give you time to tell the stories about how each old beauty was acquired. Paths also invite exploration of alluring scenes. It is worth the saunter down the entire garden to look at big pink saucer magnolias in full bloom against the emerging deep-purple leaves of the copper beech. Ephemeral moments are as heartwarming and rewarding to the landscape-shaping process as a glance across a crowded airline terminal is to a brand-new romance.
At times — to negate the effects of verdant villains, for instance — you may want to detour a visitor's stroll with carefully placed obstacles. When pigweed takes over the potager, simply block that passage with an antique wheelbarrow planted with something pretty. When June's gorgeous roses succumb to August's black spot, put a huge pot sporting a rambunctious evergreen right in the way. Ugliness is best ignored and avoided, right?
Walkways may be constructed of almost anything. I have used reclaimed brick and broken paving stones. The English often employ concrete set with pebble mosaics. Blue stone is considered a status symbol anywhere. Santa Monica designer Nancy Goslee Power favors decomposed granite, referred to as "DG" in horti-chat circles. And Hamptons artist Bob Dash uses wood chips. Incline towards what is local, and it will likely be very suitable and probably more affordable.
Varying styles of paths have evolved in different types of landscapes. In contemplative Japanese gardens, paths will often make sudden right-angle turns, allowing the visitor to ponder the revelation of new vistas. Ancient Persian paradise gardens had walks built over rippling water channels that cooled guests enduring the hot, arid atmosphere. In very formal French gardens, where long, straight paths seem to stretch forever, a round bed or a splashing fountain is often plopped in the middle of a grand promenade. This prompts strollers to walk around the "impediment" and allows a feeling of respite from the trek towards the far-off, final destination. Any of these examples may be adapted to your own plan, but it's best to include designs that complement your garden's style.
When a passage needs to ascend or descend a gentle slope, please cut wide, gentle, terrace-like changes in elevation. Guests may then easily manage the walk and safely pause to look around. On the other hand, a steep hill requires a proper set of stairs. I will never forget the time my six-year-old son gave an impromptu, charmingly misguided garden tour to a VIP who had suddenly stopped by — uninvited.
When they reached the top end of the sunken garden, the doyenne looked at my boy and snorted, "Well! How on earth do we get down there?" His answer was, "This is my favorite part. I just roll down the hill as fast as I can! Watch!" She was not amused.
A path can be as casual as a meandering lane mown through a meadow. Such an effect reduces lawn service costs and is much more inviting than the golf course look. You can even have a virtual path, a mere suggestion of "the way," with an allée of trees leading into the distance. A double row of big pots also works.
The cleverest riff on a path I ever saw was created by Rosemary Verey at her famous Barnsley House garden. One year, the wide, Cotswold stone path leading across the garden to her library door was completely planted with jillions of flowering succulents. You could not help but pause when you reached it, wondering what to do. But Rosemary, bless her for teaching us all how to break the rules, was quick to solve that problem. She would roar — and she could roar: "DON'T YOU DARE WALK ON MY PATH!"
A garden without a path is confusing and, ultimately, disappointing. Guests can't figure out where to walk, and they most likely feel like they "saw the garden" as they parked their cars. No matter how perfect the evening, no matter how glorious the spectacle, most guests will emerge from their vehicles and head straight for the front door. They will totally ignore your pleas for a teensy amble, saying as they disappear inside forever: "Just let me park my purse... get a drink... pet the dog... say 'hello' to the others... can't ruin my Jimmy Choos..." ad infinitum until, alas, the good light — and the unique moment — are gone.
But a good path is friendly, a seductive siren. It is an invitation impossible to ignore. The allure means that you may cease your beseeching and, instead, allow for any number of situations to unfold for you and your guests. And only you, the plotter, have any inkling of how it will all end.
Katherine Whiteside is author of The Way We Garden Now (Clarkson Potter, 2007). http://www.veranda.com/outdoor-garden/plotting-garden-paths-0608
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