Biophilically Designed Gardens

The gardens that have the most positive effects on our minds and our bodies actively apply important principles of biophilic design. We have discussed biophilic design in detail in here (and search in our search bar for Biophilic Design)

Biophilic design informed gardens:

• Incorporate natural materials into anything built—which means that furniture is wooden, steppingstones are wood or stone, etc. Bonus points accrue when these natural materials develop a patina over time, as copper fittings on a shed or on wind chimes do, for instance.  When given the choice:  warmer finishes on that wood (for example, oak) are best psychologically.
• Provide spaces with prospect and refuge. That means there are at least some seats for visitors (or that viewers can imagine themselves in) that seem very safe (because nothing can approach them from the rear, our primordial brains still prevail when we might relax) that provide a view out over the nearby area.  This might be a seat in front of a bush or a tree trunk that’s on a slight rise, for instance, or a high-backed chair toward one side of a field, as another example.  A view from a tree house wins the most points for prospect and refuge but not all gardens can include a tree house.
• Feature forms in 3-dimensions (for example, in furniture) and patterns in 2-dimensions (such as upholstery fabrics on that furniture) with more curving, organic lines than straight ones.
• Include water features.
• Allow gently curving, non-straight-line, travel through the space (this is known technically as having “deflected vistas”).
• Seem to have some sort of plan, any sort of organization, as opposed to appearing chaotic and confusing.