Pattern 14: Materials
We need to pay attention to each material's bulk, solidity, heft, and softness, as well as its light-reflecting quality, for these are the attributes that read most clearly in the garden. Surface patterning and color should really be among our last considerations when we are choosing materials. Whether a garden feels sturdy, solid, and safe, whether there are soft surfaces mixed with hard ones, and how the light is absorbed by surfaces or reflected off them — all affect our felt sense of the garden at its most basic level.
Passing through this garden is a textural adventure! Imagine how sterile it would feel to walk along a wide, paved pathway without the tumble of plants, rather than to pick your way along these pavers.
Copyright ©2007 Timber Press, Inc. Text excerpts from A Pattern Garden copyright © Valerie Easton. Photographs copyright © Jacqueline Koch, except photos on Bridges, Gates, and Shelters pages copyright © Allan Mandell; and photo on Water page copyright © Richard Hartlage. All rights reserved. Posted with permission of the publisher.