I think the universe is trying to tell me something - it seems that everywhere I turn I hear or read the words 'sense of place" / "spirit of place" /"genius loci" ! (All interchangeable) It is one of those intangible concepts that I confess I am struggling to really come to grips with within the context of an urban setting. I can see how you can relate a garden to a rural setting (well sometimes) but the changes that have been wrought to the urban environment and the motley mix of surrounding garden styles - woodland next door - cottage garden over the road - dead grass and self seeded privet in another - oak tree one side - sugar gum the other - it's a real hotchpotch - frankly it leaves me scratching my head. I would be most interested to know how other gardeners have managed to reconcile these things and managed to identify their "spirit of place". I do draw inspiration from designers such as Fiona Brockhoff, Gordon Ford and Phillip Johnson -for me, they seem to be able to embody the whole concept in their designs. I am really attracted to that idea - I think it would make a garden "read" well in the same way a great painting "reads" well even though you don't always know why. So any suggestions or ideas from fellow gardeners would be most welcome because the "genius loci" of my little patch is clearly eluding me!
What plants really thrive in your area? Are there any older gardens to give you a clue ? What gives your location a patch of difference__if really stuck ask your visitors what they notice
Thanks Helen – yes l have noticed a lot of ornamental pears and crepe myrtles do well in nearby gardens- have planted one pear and a few crepe myrtles – perhaps when they get a bit more size they will start to relate to the neighbourhood .
Try your local history. You may well find something which brings the place to life and which makes you see it quite differently.
We were told a lot about the dark art of finding genus loci when I was studying Landscape Architecture. I think relative to a small suburban garden the genus loci or sense of place could be found in response to the architectural style/period of the dwelling and adopt a garden style in response to the architecture. Or you really can never go too wrong planting natives (particularly endemic species of the area) to wrangle the genus loci.
Thank you for the ideas. Like your description of it as a “dark art”! Have been revisiting my copy of Paul Urquart’s book “The new native garden – designing with Australian plants”. He has some good suggestions about using bridging plants and finding native species that relate to the exotics. He uses the example of lilly-pillies with camellias – more harmonious leaf combination. So will keep thinking and playing with ideas.