With urbanization and technology, finding the time to foster an intimate relationship with nature and its healing properties can be challenging. Some people may argue that there are public parks in their local area, but not everyone has time to take a trip to visit them.
If you want to cultivate a soothing and natural environment that is closer to home, then knowing how to create good feng shui for your garden would be beneficial. China’s ancient and trusted art of feng shui creates a beautiful space filled with good energy through thoughtful and balanced arrangement.
If you live in the concrete jungle of a city like New York, it’s quite rare to find homes with a garden, least of all a spacious one. However, if you own one and are looking to improve it, finding a feng shui consultant in New York City will give you helpful insights from a professional, as each garden has its own unique needs.
If you’re looking to apply some feng shui to your garden, below are four simple tips to help you get started.
Take Out the Clutter and Make Space
Feng shui is all about arranging a space in a way that provides the best flow of chi, which can be translated into “life energy.” The flow of chi is as essential as breathing air, and it welcomes different types of positive energy into our homes. That being said, the first thing to remember before arranging things in a space is to, well, actually make space.
You’ll want to make sure that you’ve thoroughly decluttered your garden. Things like scattered gardening equipment or dried leaves covering the ground can be intrusive and unwelcoming. If there are shrubs and tree branches that are blocking or touching your house, it’s best to trim them down. Much like unclogging a drain, taking clutter away allows chi to flow freely, which is essential to actually being able to enjoy a space.
Harmonize Shapes and Colors
An emphasis on balance and harmony is another key characteristic of feng shui. It hinges on the concept of yin and yang, yin referring to softer energy and yang referring to harder energy. Everything is associated with a yin or yang energy: for example, things with rounder shapes and curves usually carry yin energy, while things with angular shapes and hard lines tend to reflect yang energy.
To put it simply, balancing the yin and yang of your garden means knowing how to pair certain opposites together without one overpowering the other. These could be pairs like low and high, wet and dry, and straight and curved, among others.
Colors also have their own designated energies, which is helpful to know when selecting plants and objects. Yin colors come in shades like blue, black, purple, and white, which can be used as calming accents. If you want to include colors that bring a more active energy to parts of your garden, yang colors in warmer shades like orange, red, and yellow are good choices as well.
Certain parts of a garden are more suited to possess yin energy than others. Elements like pathways should be more circular in direction and rounded with gentle curves, which allows chi to flow better.
Use Elemental Power
Using elemental energy also brings balance to your space. This involves incorporating the five integral elements in Chinese culture: earth, wood, fire, metal, and water.
Earth is associated with stability, so things like boulders, stone statues, or clay pots would help represent this element in your garden. Wood signifies growth and life, so incorporating shrubs, flowers, trees, and other types of plants should represent this element sufficiently.
Fire is connected to energy and warmth, which you can include through shades of red or glowing garden lanterns. Water represents tranquility and prosperity, and it’s a particularly important element in any garden. Adding objects with flowing water like fountains can better encourage the flow of chi.
Lastly, there is metal, which brings clarity and can be represented with shades of white or by placing metal objects like wind chimes.
Plant with Care
You don’t need expensive plants, trees, or flowers for your garden to have good feng shui. Positive energy comes from how well your plants are thriving in their environment, which means it’s more than enough to select greenery that grows best in your particular location. Tender love and care is the best way to promote a lush and gorgeous garden with flowing chi, so make sure to understand the needs of your plants, from sunlight exposure to watering.
Not everyone is fortunate enough to own a garden. Those who do, however, know that it allows them to take part in a therapeutic creation process, one where they’re directly responsible for nurturing life and energy. In the hustle and bustle of everyday life, a garden can be a calming space that reminds us of nature’s positive impact on our well-being.
