Arbors are defined as simple archways, much less complex than similar landscape carpentry projects such as Pergola’s and Gazebo’s. Arbors are relatively simple constructions – which is very cool because of what a small amount of material and effort they take to construct compared to what they add to an outdoor environment. Pond And Fountain World has a very intense interest in these constructions because we generally offer a full-service package with everything we market – from design to installations. To that end, we are increasing the number of products relating to landscaping carpentry projects within our website.
Arbors can be a virtual gateway to an entirely different landscape element:
(click any image to enlarge)
What a structure such as this accomplishes, with so little energy, is an entire mood-setting change, allowing a break between garden elements. In the picture above, we go from a large, thickly-planted lawn and garden area into the more narrow side yard where first impressions and overall beauty got a chance to develop over a longer period of time.
Below, we have another example of a “mood change”, this time from a very open area for circulating and dining or partying, breaking to a more intimate and far more private area, simply by the use of a separating structural design.
Needless to say, both arbors but especially the second one, will benefit and provide more privacy with the coming growth of planting up and around them. The one directly above was obviously pictured at the very end of the construction project. The plants and setting is very immature at this stage.
As this image from the Portland, Oregon Japanese Garden suggests, over time, the benefits of plantings are something else entirely. They make the entire arbor much more than how it began.
Here is the Springtime look at the same arbor:
(Picture credit for this: (http://travel.webshots.com/)
As we can plainly see, the merits of simple arbors are generous. Small, elegant structures can define a landscape. The Japanese have always excelled at these, providing stunning entrance ways, providing simple yet quite elegant and privacy-inducing formal entries to residences. The clean lines of the best Japanese classical settings date from medieval times, incredibly enough, and have supplied the grist for many designer’s ideas and concepts:
Once again, from this blogger’s travels to the Portland Japanese Garden:
One can easily see why such designs provide the basics for so many more modern projects and installations of landscaping. The straight line was not a secret to the Japanese, even 1,000 years ago:
Arbors are entirely satisfying. Once again, they are rather simple to construct, with designs as numerous as one could want. Pond And Fountain World (click here for access) has a stunning lineup of pre-made arbors coming online soon. We are tremendously excited to share our love for garden structures to coincide with our obvious love of water in landscapes. We feel this is a completely natural cooperative effort. Thank for reading!
), I have ratcheted things up yet another notch, into the purely impractical zones which do not exist anywhere except – well – except in the real world. Let me take a moment to bow solemnly to those Imps who not only design but who also fund these marvelously eccentric and utterly bizarre edifices. (bowing).
