Modern Garden Plans for the Southeastern U.S.

Hardscape

• The hardscape in your garden creates its "bones" and its basic architecture. Lay out paths and patios first, before you consider what plants you want to grow around these structures. In the Southeastern states, you might want to have a patio for cooler days on the southeast corner of your house, where you can bask in the morning sun. A fire pit would be a nice feature in this location, for cool nights. If you have some large shade trees to the west of your house, a shady sitting area can be built there as a refuge on hot summer days. A good paving choice for the Southeast is flagstones, which look good with most landscapes. A garden for older people should have smooth, poured concrete paths, so as to be accessible to wheel chairs.

Shade

• In the Southeastern states, inhabitants treasure their shade. If you have mature shade trees, plan your garden sitting areas around them. If not, plant deciduous hardwoods to the west and east of your house, to shade it during the hottest parts of the summer, when the sun passes directly overhead, or build a structure to add shade, such as a large pergola. Seating areas in shady parts of your garden can be enhanced with hostas, ferns, hellebores (Lenten roses), columbines and bleeding hearts. Many bulbs will bloom in shady spots, before the trees leaf out, such as daffodils, crocuses and bluebells.

Water

• All gardens benefit from the sound and sight of water, particularly on hot summer days, as the sound running water can make you feel cooler. A modern garden might contain a simply-shaped koi pond, with water lilies bursting onto the surface. If you do not have room for a pond, you can still have a jar fountain. These are vases with water trickling out of the top and down the sides. They are compact enough for the smallest gardens, and they are surprisingly enchanting. Their clean lines make them fit well into the modern garden. If a jar fountain is not right for you, try using a small wall fountain, as these also do not take up much room.

Lighting

• Modern gardens are often sites for entertaining at night. To that end, the designer needs to add some unobtrusive lighting. Nowadays, designers mount efficient LED (light-emitting diode) lights into paving and walls, so that guests can see the paths clearly as they walk in the garden at night. Think about adding a fire pit to a garden spot that sees the most entertaining.

Plants

• The best part about planning a Southeastern garden is choosing the plants. Gardeners in the Southeastern US can grow a great many wonderful flowering plants and shrubs. Some of the easiest and most satisfying are hydrangeas, roses, peonies, daylilies, clematis, honeysuckle and irises, as well as the aforementioned shade plants. These perennials and shrubs will bloom year after year with little maintenance, and they can be divided, to increase the planted area. Repeating the same types of plants, in large drifts, unifies the garden. Add a few zinnia and cosmos seedlings from a garden center, and you will have flowers all summer long.