Verticality In The Garden

Vertical elements are absolutely essential in most garden areas and situations. Notice the use of the word "elements." These upright elements in the garden can be plants or objects. Their intended function is the same; to engage they eye, lead the eye through the composition and lend a sense of scale to the garden space itself. The use of vertical elements can be on a 20 acre estate or in a small container. The concept is the same. Above is a grouping of upright cacti at the Getty Museum in Los Angeles. When a narrow, vertical element is repeated strongly, it can be a very powerful design effect. This effect is also used in architecture. However, out in the garden, it can be cacti as seen above (not for us in WI!) or perhaps ornamental grasses like the narrow and upright 'Karl Foerster' feather reed grass (Calamagrostis x acutiflora 'Karl Foerster'). Below are some four-sided vining structures repeated throughout a border at the Denver Botanic Garden. Note that these elements, while not uniformly spaced, are all the same style and color. Their white color balances a combination that goes through many seasonal color changes and could seem quite "hodge podgey" without these "anchors." Uniform spacing of repeated vertical elements is not essential but has more relevancy in a garden setting more formal than seen below.Conifers and evergreens are logical living elements for a vertical effect. Regardless of your climate, there are suitable species and/or varieties that lend themselves to this use. Now, these "exclamation points" as they are frequently called, don't necessarily have to be uniform or extremely narrow. The selection of their form, while perhaps important to the overall design effect, may not be as vital as choosing their locations. Vertical elements can be situated to be focal points; drawing the eye immediately to that location, or can be used as repeated elements to help unify and define a space. The selection of appropriate conifers and evergreens should of course take in to account the cultural requirements of the plant itself but should also be considered for their value as neighbors to other plantings and their overall impact as a vertical plant. Maintenance is also a consideration, particularly if their is much pruning/shearing/control, etc. as seen below with these woodies at the Huntington Library, Art Collections and Botanical Garden (Los Angeles). Other examples of evergreens used for an upright effect are upright cypress trees used in Pasadena and the repeated use of Japanese cedar (Cryptomeria sp.) at the Brooklyn Botanic Garden in a formal garden expanse.
As we consider our landscapes and gardens, we tend to look at open space at ground level for gaps that need filling or perhaps the desire to add a certain color and texture. There is nothing wrong with this approach but we need to consider the obvious and that's the fact that we garden in three dimensions. While plants will certainly gain in height, we need to carefully look for additional opportunities to supply specific upright elements for that strong vertical in any space. While plants can accomplish this goal as seen above, non-living elements can have a similar effect. Non-living elements can also contribute other features to the garden like color, texture, sound, etc. Below is a beautifully stacked, boulder pyramid at Northwind Perennial Farm near Lake Geneva, WI. This is the centerpiece, or focal point, of Roy Diblik's "Know Maintenance" display garden. Plantings around this pyramid represent different maintenance levels with the intent of displaying and promoting appropriate perennials based on the available time for maintenance by the home gardener. The pyramid is a strong vertical element in this large garden. Further below is a large fountain at the Chicago Botanic Garden. This water feature is sited so it is the distant focal point as seen from many of the shoreline gardens. While it is a strong vertical element (at 50'+), it also lends sound and movement to the garden as well. At RBG, we use lots of painted obelisks (similar to what is seen above at the Denver Botanic Garden) and have been using upright, cylindrical planters over the past couple of years. This year included 24" diameter, inverted culvert pipes as vertical planters in our maroon/red theme. The two pictures at the bottom show our use of 8", painted PVC planters that are a combination of living and non-living elements in this vertical contribution. The plant trailing out is the aluminum plant (Dichondra argentea 'Silver Falls') and by the end of the season of trailing, made those uprights transition from red to pure silver. In summary, include vertical elements in the garden for both form and function.