The stuff OF DREAMS LEE-ANN LEARNS SOME INTERESTING GARDEN WISDOM

Common sense tells me that nobody really knows how to design a dream garden, or at least not without a budget equivalent to that of the international space programme. But there are a few tricks which – while not resulting in the realisation of the dream – might at least offer a few dramatic improvements.

One tidbit I liked immediately was about finding your garden’s “power spot”, defined as any place on your property that seems more interesting than any other place. No, this does not apply to the fridge or the wine cupboard.

To determine where it is, just walk around and look at the different areas from an unaccustomed direction and with a fresh eye. I accidentally found a power spot the other day when I happened to glance at the space behind a low wall that borders the lawn. It was just a curved, unformed area leading off between a few shrubs, but for some reason, it generated a sense of exploration and intrigue.

The advice in the email suggested that once you’ve found a power spot, you should clear around it, make a path to it and illuminate it. Simple. I yanked out a few big weeds (clearing), dragged half a dozen pavers over there (making a path) and stuck a few solar lights alongside it (illuminating).

Then I set a gnarly old concrete olive jar pot to one side of the path and suddenly there was a whole new space to admire. It had taken about half an hour and now I go there just about every day to look at it.

Next I read a tip about colour. I’d venture to suggest that more nonsense gets written about colour than any other element of the house and garden, but sometimes the nonsense is entertaining, if nothing else. This piece started with an explanation of how the colours behave.

For example:

• Orange radiates fun

• Red is the colour of excitement and power

• Yellow is the happy colour (not in my garden it’s not!)

• Green is the colour of peace and renewal, and is the most restful colour to the eye

• Blue lends depth and stability

• Purple connotes higher wisdom and is associated with originality

• White is the colour of light and serenity.

The rest of the advice was too esoteric to be useful: “play with colour tones and you will find the same form repeated with subtle differences makes an impact without dominating”. Really? I far preferred the tip that advised following your personal taste when selecting plants and ornaments.

“If you have a significant personal item, give it a place of prominence,” instructed the designer. I couldn’t agree more. And even if your favourite thing is an oversized garden gnome, give it a bench or a plinth to sit on and plant something you love alongside it.

Then hard on the heels of several airy-fairy tips I’ve chosen not to bore you with, came this really interesting information on proportion.

The golden proportion, represented by the Greek letter Phi, is the mathematical ratio 1:1.618. And no, it’s not just a set of numbers. It’s found in the proportions of the human body, in the ratio between the forearm and the hand, in the arrangement of petals on a rose, in the pattern of a sunflower’s seed head and in the spiral shape of a nautilus shell. So outdoor spaces that use this ratio naturally have a sense of harmony.

A terrace or courtyard with the short and long sides in the proportion of Phi – say, 3.65 metres by 5.91 metres – will feel comfortable.

But please, don’t anybody check my maths!

Whether your favourite item is a stone statue or a plaster gnome, give it a position of prominence.

Find and celebrate power spots in the garden. You’ll recognise them because they’re simply more interesting than other places.

There’s more to proportion than meets the eye and once you understand it, you’ll find it easier to create spaces that work.

Plenty of nonsense is written about colour, but most would agree orange radiates fun.