The creation of a picturesque bed depends on the form and disposition of the setting. The position of the garden often determines the form of the garden. Usually the term “bed” is applied to a specific compartment for the growing of flowers. Depending on the desired effect, these can be in foam, or offset with gravel for example.
A lovely look to consider is placing a flower bed in the foreground with a wall fountain in the background!
Always keep in mind that the form of the bed is dependent on the décor you use with it. The overall look can be harmed when adding eccentric character to the bed. Remember to use good taste when planning the accents to your bed.
There are shapes that are simply undesirable and should be avoided. These include stars, cresents, and anything with acute angles. The artificial shape makes them a poor choice. The character of your flower bed should be one that draws the eye to the flowers and not the shape of the bed.
These unsual shapes also create issues with upkeep. You have to work harder and longer to ensure the edges stay trimmed and the boundaries remain present, causing much more work.
For example, the boundary length of a five-pointed star, compares with that of a circle of the same diameter is five to three. A circle, it is well known, encloses the largest amount of space in relation to its circumference, and is therefore the figure which has the smallest length of boundary. The octagon, hexagon, and pentagon come next in economy of boundary, and the square and rectangle follow.
The edging work beyond natural occurring shapes is simply too much. This does not mean you have to confine your beds to a circle, but variety is important. We would suggest not over indulging in the use of unnatural forms, but leaving them for small flower spaces.
Of the forms of bed in general use, and admissible on practical and artistic grounds, here are some examples, omitting the circle, square, and rectangle as sufficiently indicated by their names. These are often omitted due to their unsymmetrical nature.
Often the shape of the flower beds should have some relation to the shape of the grass outlines, especially is the bed comes close to these outlines.
Remember, besides creating an artistic bed, it is important to create harmony. A square flower bed will not harmonize with an oval grass plot. Therefore if the plot is a square shape, the beds would be most beautiful to the eye in a square shape as well.
