Garden design through the centuries has developed from man's attempt to establish a satisfying relationship with nature, and from his social customs. Gardens have been molded by his philosophy and living standards as well as by the climate and character of the land in which he lived. Fads and fancies have influenced the design at times, but such innovations have not survived unless they were based on firm concepts.
Ruskin wrote: "Architecture is the art which so arranges a structure that a view of it brings a sense of pleasure, power and mental health to all who see it." Good landscape planning must stand the same test.
History
Three great historical forces have influenced garden design: the Chinese, Persian and Greco-Roman.
Chinese art was based on the premise that man was part of nature and that his peace depended on his orderly adjustment to her moods. Inspiration came from the power of her storms, mountains and waterfalls. This art developed over centuries, traveled to Japan and began to influence European gardens about 200 years ago.
Though few of us appreciate "Japanese" gardens in entirety, there is a lot of this simplicity in modern gardens where nature is represented by strategically placed individual plants rather than elaborate horticultural displays. It is applicable to Canada, where many find satisfaction in association with nature.
The Persians had to struggle against the wind and sand of the desert. They found paradise in an intimate walled garden, full of useful, edible plants, where water and shade provided relaxation at midday. They fitted nature to meet their needs. Inspiration came from the artist's conception of an engineer's efficiency. The style spread to Spain and thence to California. It is a strong influence in modern gardens because it is so practical for people who have only a small area.
Western Civilization springing from Greece and Rome, was very different.
Man set out to understand and conquer nature at the risk of destroying her and himself. The climax of this regimentation of nature was reached in the classical gardens of the renaissance period in Italy and France. These were built to impress the masses with the power of authority rather than for their relaxation.
Reaction to the classic formality started in England. The pendulum swung back and forth through various short-lived fads culminating in the English park style of the late-eighteenth century. In the end, the Chinese love of nature and the British love of growing things won over the Greco-Roman influence.
The industrial age of the nineteenth century subjected nature to materialism. It created a new wealthy class of people who could afford cheap labor to look after large private gardens and landscaping with privacy. At the same time, greater travel facilities increased the exchange of ideas and the variety of horticultural materials. Gardens were cared for by skilled gardeners who had little appreciation of architectural design, so that gardens became places to accommodate plants rather than people.
In North America, so far as climate would allow, garden design was copied from our various countries of origin until the 20th century. The results varied from the unplanned gardens of those who liked to grow flowers as a hobby to the large private estates planned by professional landscape architects and cared for by trained gardeners.
Starting with the depression years of the 1930's, the number of large private estates gradually declined until today very few of them remain.
Probably the greatest step forward in gardening on this continent during the last century was the creation of Central Park in New York City by Frederick Law Olmstead. This was the first of the large public parks planned for human relaxation rather than to impress.
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