| See a Bold Border in the Round Summer, winter, and spring virtual tours of a crescent-shaped bed that showcases trees and shrubs In "A Bold Border of Trees and Shrubs" in the May/June issue of Fine Gardening (#85), author Mike Donnally talks about how he designed a large crescent-shaped bed to showcase a collection of Japanese maples and other plants. This panoramic view of the border conveys the massive scale of the project and the sense of closure the border created. This is how the border looked in mid-March with winter protection around many of the plants. In winter, the evergreens provide structure and a background for the branching forms of the deciduous plants. Click on the images below to launch the QuickTime VR of the border. Requires the QuickTime plug-in. Download it for free from Apple.  With the onset of spring, the border takes on a completely different look. The colorful-leaved Japanese maples stand out and are complemented by their evergreen neighbors and accented by a few rich-colored azaleas. There's also more of a sense of enclosure within the crescent-shaped border.  In summer, the border's strongly structural evergreens are accented by the highly textured foliage of the Japanese maples. The mood is one of serenity, with the yellow bench offering a pleasant perch for enjoying the scene.
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