Lexington, KY - Texture refers to the visual and tactile quality of a surface. It appeals to our senses, attracts our attention, and makes us want to reach out and touch. Differing textures provide variety, interest and contrast in the garden.
Texture can refer to leaf size, with the big, bold leaves of hosta at one end of the scale and the delicate, fine leaves of ferns at the other end. Leaves tend to be classified as coarse, medium and fine. Texture can also refer to how something might feel. The bark of shagbark hickory, bur oak and walnut would feel rough, while the bark of a beech would feel smooth. Lamb's ear and clematis seed heads are soft and fuzzy in contrast with leaves, such as holly, that are sharp and shiny. Grasses have fine spikes while yucca, iris and daylilies have coarse spikes.
Branching also has texture. Knockout roses have a jungle of branches, growing every which way, resulting in a coarse texture. Flowering dogwoods, with their elegant horizontal branching, have a finer texture.
You can create pleasing garden vignettes by combining a few plants of varying textures. A hosta with large, crinkled, variegated leaves might be planted behind the smooth compound leaves of a hellebore (Lenten rose). Add the very fine foliage of a netted chain fern and you've created a spot where the eye will linger in interest and appreciation.
We can miss a plant's finer points when confronted with, for example, a mass of hostas or a field of ferns because the eye tends to scan the scene rather than focus on the details. The hosta leaf looks bolder against the delicacy of a fern, and the graceful fern frond is all the more delightful because of the contrast. The dramatic form of the hellebore leaf will not be lost on the viewer.
As lovely as it is to create a garden composition on this smaller scale, it is also important to be aware of how texture affects the entire garden.
In last month's column we talked about symmetrical and asymmetrical balance. We determined that, to achieve asymmetrical balance, assessing the "visual weight" of various plants is important. You may recall that, while size is an obviously important component of this assessment, a plant that is smaller but more interesting might have as much weight as a larger, more visually mundane, plant. Texture is also an important consideration. If we were to compare two green-leaved plants of identical overall size, the plant with the larger leaves would have more visual weight.
When considering your overall garden plan, texture should balance on either side of the axis, a line straight down the middle of your yard. You don't want to have all fine textured plants on one side and plants with a coarse texture on the other.
Another important aspect to consider: texture affects one's perception of the size and shape of a garden. My backyard, which is rather long and narrow, is a good example. I would like the shape of the yard to look wider and shorter. To this end, I have employed various design features, including the planting of some tall, coarse leaved plants at the back, like big bluestem grass, joe pye weed and bottlebrush buckeye. Even from a distance, the individual leaves of these plants are visible, so they step forward visually. This has the effect of making the garden appear shorter and wider. Perhaps you can imagine how different the effect would be if I had planted a lot of large leaved plants at the front of the yard and plants of finer texture at the back. Can you see in your mind's eye that my yard would seem even longer and narrower?
A quick tip: like anything else, you don't want to overdo the texture aspect of your design. Too much texture variation, like too much color variation, can be tiresome rather than pleasing. Consider leaf size. When you think about it, a lot of plants have leaves of a medium texture. If, say, 75 percent of your garden plants have medium textured leaves and the rest have fine or course texture, and you place that 25 percent carefully, then you've got a garden where the variation in leaf size really pops.
Texture doesn't just apply to plants. Think about the various surfaces that could be used for a pathway. Concrete can have a smooth finish or it can have a rougher exposed aggregate or stamped surface. Pavers are hard while materials like play chips and pine straw provide a soft walking surface. Crushed limestone has a fine texture; stepping stones are coarse in comparison.
Combining contrasting textures can be very gratifying. A pathway of coarse stepping stones set in fine crushed limestone. A rough dry stone wall providing a backdrop for a smooth, glazed planting urn. Shiny holly leaves against a cut timber fence.
You might take a look at all of the textures in your existing garden. What's missing? A few simple changes could make all the difference.