
Rainy day view onto a soggy deck, originally uploaded by pawightm.
Outdoor rooms have become such a trend in the past few years, and why not! We spend so much time in the garden, and for good reason - it’s so relaxing. It just makes sense that after spending so much time pulling weeds and tending to the soil to keep our gardens looking beautiful, we should get the most out our gardens and all our hard work by creating a tranquil outdoor living space. Work hard all Spring and then take the Summer off and enjoy!

Munch, munch. Hungry caterpillar — I don’t know what he’ll grow up to be but I wish he’d change his diet, originally uploaded by pawightm.
We may not like it when garden bugs like this caterpillar eat away at our prize plants but when captured on film (or I guess now-a-days it’s all digital), these pests become a marvel of nature. Good luck with the desired change in diet! I imagine these crawlers have been munching on garden goodies for thousands of years!
Paleis Het Loo is a palace in Apeldoorn, Netherlands. The Dutch Baroque building was built between 1684 and 1686 with the garden design by Claude Desgotz.

Palace Het Loo Apeldoorn, originally uploaded by SeeHolland.
The famous Dutch Baroque Garden at Het Loo Paleis follows the Baroque general formula established by André Le Nôtre: perfect symmetry, axial layout with radiating gravel walks, parterres with fountains, basins and statues.

the Netherlands - Apeldoorn, Palace Het Loo, originally uploaded by vtveen.
The main garden, with conservative rectangular beds instead of more elaborately shaped ones, is an enclosed space surrounded by raised walks, as a Renaissance garden might be, tucked into the woods for private enjoyment.
At its far end a shaded crosswalk of trees disguised the central vista. The orange trees set out in wooden boxes and wintered in an Orangery, which were a feature of all gardens, did double duty for the House of Orange-Nassau.

Paleis Het Loo Gardens, originally uploaded by Breigh.com.
In 1960 Queen Wilhelmina declared that when she died the palace would go to the State. It did in 1962, when Wilhelmina died at Het Loo Palace. After a thorough restoration it now houses a national museum and library devoted to the House of Orange-Nassau in Dutch history. The lost gardens of Het Loo were fully restored starting in 1970, in time to celebrate its tricentennial in 1984. Its new brickwork, trelliswork and ornaments are as raw as they must have been in 1684 and will mellow with time.

Het Loo, originally uploaded by ~Janneke.

From Garden Tour, originally uploaded by dnn_rchmnd.
I think I recognize this extensively landscaped backyard from a feature in Gardens West magazine a few years ago. If I’m correct the garden is somewhere around the West Coast of BC and features several Wooden bridges and stone paths woven designed around a large multi-level water garden. As indicated by the photo title, it was part of Garden Tour a few years back, likely around the same time it was featured in a garden magazine.

Bellagio’s Botanical Gardens, originally uploaded by WenDem.
Well known in Las Vegas for their Casino, the Bellagio Hotel also features a Conservatory and Botanical Garden that is changed 5 times a year to reflect the seasons (Winter, Chinese New Year, Spring, Summer and Fall). The hanging watering cans and floating flowers are interesting - but check out the red ladybug made out of flowers! I expect this Las Vegas Botanical Garden is not the most traditional on the planet.

DSC_0227.JPG, originally uploaded by tranism.
If I’ve got it right this is a picture from “The Japanese Garden” - a public garden park in Van Nuys, California. I believe that is the Tea House you can see in the background across the extensive water portion of the gardens. I especially like the small islands. Very Zen.