Tag Archives: garden

Men (Blokes) and Feng Shui Gardening

By Ross Lamond

Recently I’ve been talking to various people about Chi Gardening and a discussion with two blokes come to mind. Both were successful, you know the big house, boat and maybe millionaire tag and both were interested in nature and their need to connect to it.

To them connecting to nature removed them from the stresses of everyday life. One of the blokes made his money buying and doing up houses and was very concerned with good presentation. He would establish free flowing, neat and healthy gardens and modeled his homes to reflect similar characteristics and was aware of good balance throughout. The product had to have that feel good image about it.

He was inadvertently practicing Feng Shui and it did him well. Both men suggested to me there was something far more meaningful in their need to reaffirm connection to nature. One suggested it may go back to when we had no alternative but to live off the land. Way back in time to when there were no cities and towns and we were basically nomadic. Living off the land was a life or death thing, food, shelter and protection from predators forming the basic needs for survival. Maybe Darwinian traits designed to expose those weaker or unable to cope with the environmental stresses of the day. The land was their saviour and they had respect for it, and the land deeply ingrained into their persona.

Subsequently urbanisation over the centuries has displaced many and those living in cities having their genetic imprints modified to living by organisation of materials and others. Maybe the world is now poorer for encouraging that trait. We’ve become consumers of what’s produced from the land and not having a need to maintain connection to it and with nature. That assumption may explain why some social groupings have no interest in gardens and prefer the confines of towns and cities.

Yet genetically modified imprints are still strong enough within many of us to enjoy nature and natural surroundings and we do so in the knowledge that our survival isn’t dependent on it as before. Could it be males seek reconnection to nature more so than females because the instinctive bond may have been stronger in males? But this point had better be left for discussion elsewhere.

If the male bonding thing is the case, Harmonious Chi Gardening can be a man’s thing as much as a woman’s thing. The bloke visiting the garden for re-connection to nature and using gardening as a new found skill to harmonise with their surroundings. Maybe growing herbs, fruit or vegetables or providing a lawn area for the kids, maybe a place for a seat and sitting down with a cool drink. Creating places of visual appeal, functional use and enjoyment could be good therapy for true blokes.

Hopefully if Harmonious Chi Gardening offers a bloke a role in the garden it will do so because they want to connect with nature and reaffirm some instinctive urge to reach out and touch the earth. They are spiritually awakened by the association.

About the Author: I hope you enjoyed reading my article as much as I enjoyed pondering over and writing it. For more related topics and complete eBook Publications, please visit my website Feng Shui Garden – a Modern and Unique Concept to Feng Shui in the Garden and Harmonious Chi (Qi) Within Our Lives. Drop by and pick up your Free Feng Shui Ebooks Sample today!! Regards, Ross Lamond

Source: www.isnare.com

Permanent Link: http://www.isnare.com/?aid=633419&ca=Gardening

Follow this link: Men (Blokes) and Feng Shui Gardening

Feng Shui And Bonsai Power

By Brian Worley

Why not create a corner of your garden or home to express peace and harmony by combining two ancient arts forms. Feng shui and bonsai.

Feng shui is an ancient Chinese practice as old as Chinese culture itself (believed to utilize the Laws of both heaven and earth to help one improve life by receiving positive “spiritual energy” that is part of every living thing.

Feng shui literally means “wind and water,” but this is merely shorthand for an environmental policy of “hindering the wind and hoarding the waters.”

The elements, water, rain, wind, fog and sun were believed to be the energy of heaven and earth. Therefore Feng shui is frequently translated simply as “energy flow.

Most of today’s feng shui schools teach that it is the practice of arranging objects (such as the placement of furniture) to help people achieve harmony with their environment.

By manipulating our position in our environment we can control the electro-magnetic energies that surround us

Taking all that into consideration, the origins of bonsai can also be found in the classical Chinese gardens over two thousand years ago.

These creations of carefully pruned trees and rocks are small-scale rendition of the natural landscape.

Their artistic composition captures the spirit of nature and distinguishes them from potted plants. They are often referred to as living sculptures or as three-dimensional poetry.

Chinese gardens were created in the same way as a combination of landscape and paintings together with poems – this was the so-called “poetic garden.”

The design of Chinese gardens was to provide a spiritual utopia for one to connect with nature, to come back to one’s inner heart, to come back to ancient idealism

Chinese gardens are a spiritual shelter for men, a place they could be far away from their real social lives, and close to the ancient way of life, their true selves, and nature.

By joining the two cultures, Feng shui and bonsai we can create a unique ancient corner of our garden or home to relax from the frustration and stress of our modern western world

The appeal of including bonsai into the Feng shui equation is that it offers something very practical and unique.

In other words, different trees work best with certain styles and can be placed in the position according to the energy flow of that location.

Each location and environment is different too for each bonsai, and have to be considered when choosing where to place you’re Bonsai Tree.

Many garden plants have essential symbolism. Pine trees represent wisdom and bamboo represents strength and upright morality.

Plum trees are also extremely valuable to the Chinese for their beautiful pink and white blooms during winter.

By incorporating Feng Shui and bonsia in a corner of your garden or home you can create a special place to relax and live more harmoniously with nature

The living bonsai will change from season to season and from year to year … and as time goes on it will become more and more beautiful. Enjoy

About the Author: Japanese Bonsai –
For More Information on the Art of
Growing and caring for bonsai.
Go To:- http://www.go-to1.com/bonsai

Source: www.isnare.com

Permanent Link: http://www.isnare.com/?aid=257102&ca=Gardening

Read the original: Feng Shui And Bonsai Power

Feng Shui For The Outdoors

By Karissa Claire Dupree

People landscape and decorate even the outdoor area of their residence for various reasons and purposes. Among the cogent reasons and strong forces that drive the homeowner to improve and landscape the yard is to make the idle area functional and useful. In doing so, certain specific outdoor design concepts and styles are implemented and applied in order to give the backyard its best and elegant look. This endeavor to give the outdoor space such amazing and gorgeous look is performed not only for the purpose of beauty and functionality, but also and most importantly for fortune and good luck. Although there are some non-believers of good luck and fortune coming from the harmony of nature and surrounding, one can always give it try since beside there is nothing to lose but has something to gain should it prove itself to be effective in attracting good vibes and fortunes to one’s life. This is not magic. This is called feng shui.

Doing feng shui for outdoor landscaping and decorations follow certain similar rules as those applied in interior design and decorating. Some of these rules provide that certain areas of your garden or outdoor landscape exude positive energy, good luck, and fortune to every particular aspect of your life. Hence, it is believed by feng shui experts that the southernmost corner of the outdoor space or garden attracts recognition and fame. The southwestern side governs the strong matrimonial bond and its prospects and marital happiness while the westernmost corner gives abundant offspring and fertility. Helpful people and mentors are governed by the northwestern part of the area while the northernmost corner of the garden governs those professionals who are very much concerned with their careers. Family relationships and the well-being of every family member such as their health is found on the easternmost corner of the garden while the southeast should be as green and lush as possible to effectively attract wealth and prosperity. This circular arrangement of plants, objects, and furnishings outdoor is patterned to the feng shui bagua that is believed since the ancient times to have brought great things to those who believe and apply such principles.

From the foregoing discussions, it is apparent that the placing and locations of every object, decoration, plants, and colors as part of the outdoor landscaping and decorating must be in perfect harmony with each other as well as with the wind, water, fire, and earth elements of feng shui. These elements must necessary be complete at the area since each of them feeds the other thus giving way to the perfection of the promise of feng shui, such as, good fortune, strong spirit, happy and prosperous life, both for the person and the family. Although these things remain to be a belief for some, one cannot deny the fact that their popularity and following have reached all corners of the world. Simply put, feng shui would not gain such worldwide popularity if it were not for its remarkable success and truthfulness as regards the effects of harmony of all the elements that attract positive luck and good fortune.

About the Author: Karissa Claire Dupree is a design specialist and enjoys writing about any type of home d