Test yourself to see how many of these landscape terms you are familiar with. Keep a record of the number of terms you don’t know and find out at the end how much of an expert you are!
- Arcade: a series of consecutive arches, including tree-lined walkways.
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- Baluster: a series of supporting vertical rail posts that form a balustrade, or the building's roofline surrounding the border of a staircase or porch.
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- Belvedere: a roofed open gallery, such as a gazebo, that commands a good view of the surrounding countryside.
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- Cascade: water falls arranged in stages of succession, either through a rock formation or over a series of steps. .
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- Espalier: a series of fruit trees that form a hedge in gardening landscaping.
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- Façade: the front of a building given special architectural treatment.
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- Festoon: a painted mural of leaves and ribbons that are separated between two points.
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- Folly: a garden building aimed at “fooling” the eye.
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- Glade: the open and grassy area, often surrounded by woods.
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- Grotto: an underground passage decorated with crystals, broken pieces of shells and mirror, and incorporates running water in pools and streams in order to promote a mysterious effect.
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- Guglio: an obelisk, often topped by a pyramid, which acts as a fountain.
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- Ha-ha: a sunk-in fence, or a ditch with identical sloping and vertical sides, often built into a retaining wall. The ha-ha serves as a barrier for sheep, cattle, and deer in order to allow an unbroken view of the surrounding landscape .
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- Herm: a statuesque head of a Grecian god, often placed on a square stone pillar.
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- Hermitage: a garden building intended as a hermit's living quarters. It serves to raise the appreciation for contemplation within the context of a natural setting.
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- Knot: a small, rectangular garden, created during Tudor times, which consists of intricate, geometric, knotted and sprawled out dwarf plants, including box and rosemary.
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- Loggia: an upper-level gallery and arcade located on the rooftop of a building.
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- Obelisk: an uppermost, four-sided, and tapered stone wall pillar within a pyramid, often inscribed or plain. Obelisks are located at the centre of a pool, near the crown of a hill or terrace walk.
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- Orangery: a building with multiple windows, often built with the intention of housing potted orange plants during the winter months.
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- Parapet: a protective wall or railing surrounding the edge of a walkway, embankment or rooftop.
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- Parterre: flower garden beds and paths designated to form a pattern similar to the design of an indoor Persian carpet.
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- Patte d'oie: radiating garden avenues, particularly named after a goose's foot.
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- Quincunx: the arrangement of five objects, including trees to form a rectangle. Each object is placed at the four corners with one remaining at the centre of the pattern.
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- Quoin: a series of consecutive stones laid at the exterior corns and angles of a building, and consists of contrasting material of that wall.
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- Rotunda: a circular or domed-shaped building or hall.
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- Rustication: the rough finish, either naturally or artificially created on blocks of masonry.
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- Theatre: a series of tiers or terraces along a hillside, which resembles the formation of outdoor seating in a classical theatre.
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- Tonsure: the shape of evergreen clippings.
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- Topiary: a garden trimmed and hedged into specific geometric or animistic formations.
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- Tufa: calcareous and siliceous deposits of fresh water sources, including rock composed of volcanic ash.
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- Vista: an extended view into the countryside.
How Many Didn’t you know?
More than 20: need further study
15-19: Average Knowledge
10-14: Good Landscape Knowledge
Less than 10: Expert….We’re not Worthy!
The Oxford College of Garden Design offers several short 4 week Design, Horticultural and Gardening courses as well as our Professional On-line Postgraduate Diploma Level Course
