Create a colourful garden with feng shui

Use Asian principles of Feng Shui to design garden landscapes. Colour combinations may consist of harmonies or contrast for a beautiful flower bed.

Feng Shui is a Chinese system used to create a harmonious environment. Feng Shui principles can be used inside and outside the home to clear negative energy. Design principles include placement of objects, space and colour. People have an emotional and psychological response to colour in their environment.

Use Feng Shui to select a colour theme for the garden to create a beautiful, harmonious landscape. In the natural world, colours blend in the landscape. Brown pebbles glimmer in the sand. Green plants blend into the woodland. Purple shades highlight mountain slopes. Colour intensity varies with the natural light of the outdoor environment. Colours are more intense in the bright Mediterranean climate.

Natural environment and light should be taken into consideration when choosing garden hues. Formal gardens tend to have dramatic masses of eye popping colour. Masses of marigolds, tulips or petunias catch the eye. In a natural landscape, the flowers blend in more with foliage, adding bright sparks of pop to the landscape.

The Colour Wheel

The colour wheel gives us a visual clue of the harmonies and contrasts between colours. Primary colours are blue, red and yellow. Mixtures of primary colours become the secondary hues of purple, orange and green. These six colours become the basic colour wheel. Colours that are on opposite sides of the colour wheel are called complementary colours, and offer contrasts. Red is opposite to green. Yellow is opposite to purple. Blue is opposite to orange.

Meanwhile, colours adjacent to one another are harmonies. Combinations may consist of harmonies or contrasts. Most people respond positively to colour combinations that either complement each other or contrast with each other.

Suggested Colour Principles for the Garden

The Encyclopedia of Feng Shui by Gill Hale offers guidance to design a harmonious garden using colour principles.

Red

Red is a vibrant colour that dominates the garden when planted in masses. A mass of red colour is exciting rather than restful. Red plants make excellent accent plants that successfully draw the eye to certain areas to focus attention in the garden.

White and Silver

White is always refreshing and clean to look at. White and silver flowers can have a luminous shine in the moonlight. An all white garden can be monotonous, even lifeless. Interesting green foliage adds interest and life to bland whites.

Yellow

Usually associated with spring and fall, yellow is a cheerful colour that signifies change. Bright yellow is a lively, cheerful colour. Pale yellow, mixed with white can have a demoralising effect. Yellow combined with blue or purple is a fresh looking combination.

Green

This is a restful, tranquil colour that predominates Chinese gardens. Green foliage comes in a variety of shapes, sizes and colour striations. Add sparks of accent colour with whites, pinks and reds.

Blue

Tranquil blue is a restful colour that can be gloomy if overused. Blue can be combined with pink, white and silver for sparks of colour.

Purple

Majestic purple is a rich, royal colour that can be both restful and sumptuous. Purple can be mixed with calming soft pinks, whites and blues.

Pink

Gentle pink is a non-threatening hue that draws people in.

Orange

Happy orange is a warm colour that can be difficult to place. Orange is best used with green.

Feng Shui colour suggestions may be used to give your garden the look of peaceful harmony. Enjoy spending time in nature and being in the garden. Your could even finish it off with a hammock stand and enjoy a relaxing lie in the garden as you listen to the birds and sounds of nature.