First Draft: Jake Parrillo's 10 Great Garden Rules - January 2025

Over the years, I've written and linked to various 'garden rules' and 'garden mistakes' lists.  And, I've made a bunch of those mistakes. And, learned from the 'rules'.  But, over the holidays, I was talking to my oldest sister and my brother-in-law about gardening.  They're taking on a new, exciting project and are in the midst of planning a clean-sheet garden at their lake house in Michigan.  The conversation drifted towards them asking for advice on where to start.  And, that made me think about what I would tell other gardeners. 

I went home and ended up writing a Google Doc that included some advice, links and thoughts.  After editing a little bit, it ended up taking the shape of being a list of rules (or advice) that I've seemingly adopted for my own garden.  I thought it was worth sharing as (in this case, like many others here on the blog), I've adopted Paul Graham's advice and wrote things out.  The act of *writing this list* taught me something about the list.  And, forced me to really get to know my ideas and advice. 

Is this a perfect list?  No.  Is it a unique list?  Not likely.  But, (For NOW!), this is my list.  Let's call this a "First Draft".  V1.  Alpha.  I've pasted the list below.  I'll write a separate post showing the 12 "Great Garden Plants" from the same Google Doc in a separate post.  Here is what I've learned and my 10 Great Garden Rules.

Jake Parrillo's 10 Great Garden Rules - V1 - January 2026

1. Use big (larger than you think) sweeping curves in your beds. Fewer, bigger curves. Big curves, not little ones in the bed. This is a common mistake and shows the difference between a professionally designed garden and a diy one. Read this post on beds. And this post on ‘good lines make good designs’. Photos below illustrate my own experience. On left is ‘smaller, multiple little curves. Looks like amateur hour. Right is larger, fewer curves. Without planting anything, it looks like a professionally designed garden.  Also, use the 'lazy method' to expand your beds if you have time.  



2. Conifers should come first. Go buy them before you buy anything else this year. I wish I knew this when I started. They’re expensive, but if you plant them first, you can buy small ones and they’ll grow.

3. Learn of and use the idea of “Hide and reveal”. Read this post about how it is used in Japanese Gardens.  Here's a post about my own journey to creating a 'nook'. 

4. Never buy just one of anything. Plant in masses (Buy at least 3 of anything). And repeat the same plants over-and-over.  Russell Page, one of the great twentieth-century landscape designers said it well: “the most striking and satisfying visual pleasure comes from the repetition or the massing of one simple element. Imagine the Parthenon with each column a different kind of marble!” Read this “The Power of Repetition”.

5. Follow the Ralph Snodsmith rule: "It’s better to plant a 50-cent plant in a $5 hole, than a $5 plant in a 50-cent hole." Dig good holes. Every time.

6. Resist the lure of big box nursery. Especially out-of-the-box in Spring. They'll have stuff that seems like a good idea.  It most likely isn't.  But, don't be afraid of buying *some stuff* there. Annuals and Bedding plants. Ajuga. Conifers - especially small ones if you follow rule #2 above.

7. Focus-on/Upgrade to a four-season garden. Especially in Winter. Easy swap is starting hostas. (I'm a hosta gardener, so this took me a while to understand.). Hostas 'disappear' in Winter.  There's nothing there for the eye to see in dormancy.  Ferns and other foliage plants don't.   Same with espalier with trees.  They are great when they are leaf'd out during their summer growth season.  But, they SHINE in Winter.   The other way to add four-season interest is by creating some 'garden personality'.  Make your garden unique.  And give it some personality. 

8. Don't prune anything for a while. Trees, especially.  My instincts were to 'limb up' trees to get them to grow taller and focus their energy upwards.  Don't do it.  Wait a few years.  That hacks off important parts of the canopy that are needed to capture energy to...wait for it...drive that growth.  And, when you do prune, do it in late Winter when it is still dormant.

9. Fall in love with textures. If you have shade like I do, you'll end up being a foliage gardener.  I've learned that good gardens with shade mean layering textures.  If you don't know about a stumpery, start reading about them.  Plant one. 

10.  Get to know what makes a garden "legible." Start by going to public gardens.  And take some photos.  Steal their ideas.  They are pros and know what works.  Public gardens can teach you A LOT about "Garden Legibility".  Get to know those concepts and the components that make up the whole.  

And lastly, while not a 'rule', it is important to listen to Martha Stewart on being happy:

Martha Stewart:  "If you want to be happy for the rest of your life, make a garden."