1950s Home Gardens

Up-to-Date

• The 1950s was about "modernism"--abandoning the fussy, labor-intensive landscapes of the pre-war years in favor new garden ideas like the patio, backyard pool and fire pit. These innovations came from the West Coast and were depicted in lifestyle magazines like "Sunset."

Bigger and Better

• Consumerism took hold of the public in the 1950s, sparking an affection for the new and flashy. Big showy hybrid tea roses like the bi-colored Garden Party, bright pink Tiffany and and scarlet Chrysler Imperial, introduced in 1952, took center stage in gardens. Nurseries, like manufacturers, began introducing new and improved models every year.

Lawns

• In the 1950s lawns dominated home landscapes, often surrounded with beds of annuals. Lawn care products appeared in the marketplace and consumers used newly developed chemicals to control pests and weeds. The first lawn spreader was invented, as was the first patented strain of Kentucky bluegrass.