Nature, always bountiful, was mankind's first garden. Archeological evidence shows that, as far back as the paléolithic era, men and women called on their surroundings to glean food. Came the middle age, gardens not only provided nourishment but became dispensary as well, as medicinal herbs were the only mean to ease pains and cure diseases. The 17th century saw the birth of the best know landscape designer of all time, Le Notre, who gave the world the magnificent gardens of Versaille. The majority of us won't have neither space nor time to recreate such beauties, but only a few hours a week of backyard landscaping can still do wonders. First, one must plan, dividing the available space to make room for a nice herb and vegetable garden, always good to have close to the house; for some hedge landscaping, that will create relief and privacy; and maybe look around for a creative backyard deck design to complete the whole. Leafing through some free gardening magazine will help, and thanks to the internet, one can now shop at bustan in toronto, and get plenty of ideas without even leaving home. And to save ourselves time and efforts, softwares such as landscape in 3-d will let us visualize the finish product before we even start digging. So let's go for it... and keep in mind that a well conceived frontyard landscaping will add value to our property.
