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Feng Shui: Wind & Water |
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How Does Your
Garden Flow:
Feng Shui in the Flowers
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by Carole J. Hyder |
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It was about five years ago that my husband discovered a latent talent for gardening. In the 15 to 20 years prior to purchasing our home, the yard had been left to its own devices. A lot of odd plants and a vast assortment of shrub-like things had found a home for themselves during that time. The first four years we lived in our house, we were daunted by the thought of landscaping.
Then one spring, with a chain-saw in one hand and a shovel in the other, my husband said: "I’m going in." That summer he hauled five trailer loads of unidentified growing objects to the dump, found several ley lines on the property, listened to the land, built a simple deck, put up a fence and listened some more. A plan started to emerge, along with his gardening skills. We superimposed the bagua over the back-yard. The pink flowers went where the pink flowers should go (Partnership). The yellow flowers went in the center for Health. Like magic, little by little, the back garden began to take shape.
To qualify as a "Feng Shui garden," there are nine elements that should be present. Over the next two summers, with the help of my expert "supervision," my husband created a such a garden.
Number 1 - establish a theme. In other words, determine your intention for the garden. In our case, we wanted a private meditation space. Others might want an entertainment garden, or a back-yard for children. It’s important to know how you’ll use the area.
Number 2 - an entrance. You want to experience where the garden begins, whether it’s with a gate, an arbor or potted plants on either side of an entrance. After the first gardening summer, our simple deck became more elaborate with rails, a bench, lighting, and an arbor. It’s quite an event to enter our garden now.
Number 3 - a place to sit. You want to have a place from which to assess the greatest expanse of the garden. You could do this with a bench, a rock, a swing. We hung up a hammock from which to overlook our yard.
Number 4 - a curvy path through the garden. It’s important that there be some sense of where to go once you’re in the garden. The path can be made of flagstone, chips, or round pavers. A path may have been worn by the footsteps of others who have walked the land before you.
Number 5 - ornamentals. As word spread through our circle of friends about my husband’s efforts, we acquired gifts in the form of garden plaques, fairy houses, even a gorgeous gazing ball (red, no less!).
Number 6 - a surprise. Having something unexpected in the garden lifts your ch’i when you come upon it. This might be a special statue of a troll or a totem animal peeking out from behind a tree, or a bird-feeder that you see only when you round a corner. It could be a small chair hidden behind some tall shrubs. One birthday, my husband presented me with our garden surprise. At the top of our hill in the back, he built me a small seating area behind a row of lilacs. If you know the way up there, you can see that he expertly positioned stepping stones to this little hide-away. I can sit there and see the entire garden without anyone knowing I’m there. Of course, one or two of our cats always finds me.
Number 7 - a fence. A fence is for boundaries and is symbolic of setting your limits both in the garden and in your life. We had one of those—check.
Number 8 - a mountain in the back. A mountain adds protection and wards off bad luck from catching you off-guard. This mountain can be a hill, tall trees, a fence, a row of shrubs, or anything taller to create a sense of an armchair. Lucky for us, we have a nice hill in the back—check.
Number 9 - water. We decided against a fountain because of the upkeep required. Instead we installed a bird-bath, a dry-rock area on one side of the garden to simulate water, and an awesome sprinkling system that spins water in circular patterns.
A neighbor admitted to me she was surprised we didn’t have a fountain. From her experience, anyone who applied Feng Shui principles to their home always had a fountain! She assumed it would be the same for a garden. I showed her our bird-bath. I showed her our dry-rock area, looking very Zen-like. We even turned on the sprinkler system. It was clear she was still expecting a fountain.
Every year my husband continues to tweak perfection. As we’re approaching spring here in Minnesota, he’s getting ready. The bulb catalogs are showing up in the mail. The local garden club, of which he’s a member, has reconvened. We’re looking forward to eating dinners out on the deck every evening as we’ve done the last five years. It would give us a chance to admire his work and discuss further garden plans. He assures me our yard will be even better this year. The flowers will be bigger and stronger. The bare spots will be filled in. He added some additional lights last fall which will enhance our experience out there in the evenings. The apple tree was pruned appropriately. To me it seems there is nothing more he could do to make our garden more breath-taking. But I was proven wrong. I came home from a meeting the other day to discover that my husband was reading assembly directions to a fountain which he’s planning on installing as soon as the ground is thawed.
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Carole J. Hyder,
Feng Shui consultant, speaker, teacher, author and trainer.
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Carole J. Hyder has accomplished success as a Feng Shui consultant, speaker, teacher, author and trainer.
She has been a Feng Shui consultant since 1992, having studied with Professor Thomas Lin Yun and Roger Green, both master teachers in their respective philosophies of Feng Shui.
She has facilitated hundreds of private residential and commercial consultations in both traditions. She is co-founder and president of the Feng Shui Institute of the Midwest, an organization dedicated to creating standards for practitioners, providing continuing education and community outreach.
Besides being published in countless publications and writing a monthly column for "The Edge," Carole has published two books. Wind and Water: Your Personal Feng Shui Journey is in its fifth edition, has world-wide distribution and has been translated into Spanish and German. Her second book Living Feng Shui: Personal Stories was released in September 2001.
Carole currently spends her time presenting seminars and keynotes. She has developed a six-part training program, Wind and Water School of Feng Shui, which is now licensed by the State of MN.
www.carolehyder.com
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