Feng Shui Landscaping

Balance is important for all facets of life – believe it or not, balance is also important for your living arrangement. The ancient Chinese art of feng shui is all about achieving balance through placement. The theory is, with the proper placement of objects around your home, you will find inner peace and wellbeing – a short order for a lifetime of fulfillment. Through balance in your home, balance can be achieved in your life. This is feng shui…a chance for enlightenment, tranquility and peace.

Your home and garden area should include elements of rock, trees and water – three life-sustaining natural materials. Give your yard some life with small shrubbery offset by larger trees, a small stream or natural fountain, and rock beds to border your garden or pathway.

Feng Shui Landscape Tips
Design your feng shui landscape around nature. Pathways and streams in nature are not straight, so it is best to design them with as much "flow" or arbitrariness as possible. The placement of trees and shrubs is equally important in feng shui. Place trees away from entrances, but also in areas where the leaves will not block out the light. Keep the idea of balance in the front of your mind and let nature rule your design rather than you trying to rule nature.

Keep your shrubbery groomed and use it to block out unwanted wind currents. Rock, water and trees should be placed relatively close to one another to achieve a sense of harmony in your design. Anything that looks or feels out of order probably is. Is that tree too close to the doorway? Is that pathway full of obstruction? Can you explore your yard each day?

Feng shui is about how you feel in your environment, so achieving a tranquil, natural looking environment with some sense of aesthetic balance will serve as a place of therapy when you need to unwind or enjoy company.

Design your garden in layers. The horizontal/vertical/straight/flat ideas of Western man do not apply in feng shui. Rather, your garden (and all aspects of your landscape) should be meandering and curvy. Do not create a design that is so random it looks sloppy, but keep in mind the principles of balance to give your home and garden a sense of belonging with the rock beds, pond and trees around it.

Gardening and Achieving Harmony
Your garden is an analogy for life: every part of it (and – again – this can be said for all aspects of your overall design) has meaning for the soul: wealth, reputation, inner peace and love. You can see how disorder in one aspect of your life can affect another part. It is all connected. This is what feng shui really is – achieving harmony between things that seem otherwise unconnected. Your garden (a living and growing entity) is the same. It needs balance. And through placement, you can feel the energy of the environment around you, which is, after all, connected to you as well.

Elements of balance in color, placement, size, shape and point of view are important in feng shui. One element always relates to another – one causes another, one is affected by another. Like in your own personal life, striving for harmony and balance is the key to good health. The home you live in and the land you live on is connected to you. Feng shui landscaping will help you achieve peace of mind and balance.

Want more good luck? Try feng shui! Need more advice? Head over to our Landscaping forum!