The anti-authoritarian garden

LET IT GROW

And from this realization comes the second step: granting plants the freedom to settle wherever they like and where their favorite spots are. There, they will grow, in the truest sense of the word, in keeping with their location. And by specifically selecting plants that embody dynamism as their potential, you can initiate this process, allowing the "anti-authoritarian garden" to develop from within. This reflects the Daoist philosophical attitude of effortlessness, "Wu Wei": Essential things happen of their own accord, and much has already been accomplished if we don't stand in their way. Let's try to incorporate this into our lives, starting with the garden. Just as it says in the Daodejing: "Do nothing – and yet nothing remains undone."

WATER – THE ELIXIR OF LIFE

The climate has changed a lot in recent decades. There are large areas in Germany where there is significantly less precipitation overall, but sometimes even heavier rainfall for short periods. And in other regions, especially in the Alpine foothills, it rains even more than before. Water is the elixir of life. It is too precious for us to be careless with it. But nothing works without water, and in the garden this primarily affects our plants. To what extent can we reduce water consumption through sensible garden design and the use of plants? If we are to create forward-looking gardens, we must address the issue of water. This directly affects consumption, but also the resulting costs. Daily watering will soon be a thing of the past. And water is too valuable to simply use for watering a lawn.

Furthermore, every gardener knows that watering garden plants can be a constant source of stress and time-consuming. This starts with intensive trough planting and ends with even organizing vacation plans to ensure that the garden's blooms don't suffer any damage. This is hardly easy care. However, there are plenty of plants that are adapted to extreme conditions such as drought. Plants that grow healthily, without much fuss and with little water, even in adverse locations, offer us sensible prospects: These are usually uncomplicated, natural species. They maintain themselves well without much effort and often spread spontaneously.

ORGANIC GARDENING

Gardens designed with ecological principles in mind fulfill a wide variety of functions, which will likely become even more important in the future. Private spaces are increasingly becoming habitats and retreats for flora and fauna, as well as for us. Through proper design, plant selection, and the creation of garden structures, gardeners make an active contribution to species conservation.

A lively and dynamic use of plants requires a cycle. The plants we deal with in this book only function within this network: suitable location – flowers – insects – pollination – seed production – spread by birds and other animals. And it quickly becomes clear what a win-win situation this creates: As garden owners, we enjoy a wide variety of flowers and a wide range of insects, such as wild bees and butterflies, which collect nectar and pollen. As they search for food, the flowers are pollinated unnoticed, and when the weather is right, these flowers produce seeds – and in abundance. Animals are also welcome to nibble on them, as these seeds serve as food. They carry the seeds away, accidentally drop them, or hide them. They won't remember all of them, and so plants later reappear in unexpected places in the garden. Some species of ants, for example, have developed a passion for collecting seeds and spread them. Most often, however, they carry them back to their nests, where they serve as food.

However, the majority of all tiny seeds are dispersed by wind or simply fall directly from the ripe seed heads. Therefore, seed-dispersing species are often found within a manageable radius of the parent plant.