FENG SHUI CONCEPTS

Growing Prosperity Feng Shui for Gardens

 

By Jenny T. Liu, M.A.

 

Spring arrives as Mother Earth renews herself with a show of fresh buds and colorful blossoms. Beckoning your attention to the outdoors, she reminds you of your ability to tap into the power of nature through the gardens that surround your home. When you tend to your garden, Mother Earth returns the favor with abundance.

Every tree, flower, or vegetable you plant not only provides oxygen and nourishment; it will clean the air, soothe the eyes, attract birds, bees, and butterflies, and calm busy minds. Most of all, your garden directly connects you to nature’s infinite wisdom.

In feng shui, the outdoor environment is important as it of-ten affects the energies inside your home. Imagine your body as the house and your clothes as the garden. Just as the colors, textures, quality, and style of your clothes inevitably affects your self-image, health, productivity, confidence, and well-being, so does the landscape around your house.

According to feng shui theories, plants can be categorized under the Five Elements based on their growing season: shape, color, flower, fruit, smell, use, and symbolism. When possible, landscape with plants, statues, and fountains that promote you, based on your birth chart or on the annual Nine Star energies.

Though money cannot grow on trees, many plants and trees are symbolic of prosperity. Fruit trees such as the pomegranate are associated to fertility, mandarin tangerine trees are symbolic of abundance, and kumquats are seen as golden ingots.

Because the plants represent growth, an auspicious fruit tree can be planted in your wealth, marriage, or scholarship direction to bring energies of good fortune into fruition.

Plants can also be used to correct poor geographic conditions. Trees, shrubs, and hedges create “green” structures that balance negative land contours. For example, if your backyard slopes down, causing energy or money to drain away, you can plant a hedge along the back border, or two large trees in the two back corners as a buffer to prevent energy loss and keep wealth energy in. Roots also serve as anchors to prevent landslide, further stabilizing your home’s energy.

There are some plants that are considered negative, such as prickly plants with thorns or needles. Generally, they should not be planted where they can cause harm or injury. However, in some cases, they can serve a positive purpose. If your home is exposed to animals, or you have a dark alley way behind your house and there is the potential for robbery or vandalism, you can plant cactus or thorny bushes as a means of protection for the house.

It is vitally important to maintain healthy plants. Dead, dying, or diseased plants should be removed to avoid spreading decay and the perception of illness. If you must remove large trees, it is a good idea to check the annual Nine Star Chart to make sure the groundbreaking is taking place in a stable direction. Determine an auspicious date for removing trees and perform a blessing ceremony for especially old ones.

Large trees, ivy, and vines can block life-promoting sunlight from entering windows and potentially cause damage to the house’s structure and foundation. Walls covered with thick vines are prone to pests, and a perpetually dark or “yin” house can cause depression, low energy, and have a negative impact on the residents’ health.

Fountains, ponds, and pools should be placed and designed to create positive feng shui. Pay attention to the water feature’s orientation in relationship to the house, its material, size, and the subject matter of any sculpture that is part of the fountain.

Even the water flow is important to consider. Some fountains have water flowing downwards, some have water that sprays upwards, and some just bubble. Each of these will affect the frequency of your yard differently.

For example . . . an upward spouting fountain is energizing and stimulating, while a bubbling fountain is soothing and garners energy. Your birth chart will determine the type of water activity, orientation, and the style of fountain that benefits you and your family the most.

If you do not have a garden, bring nature’s balancing energies into your home by framing inspiring views of a garden with strategically-placed statues that have special meaning or symbolism. Popular statuary includes lions for power, deer to attract helpful people, turtles for longevity, elephants for protection, and meditating deities for spirituality.

Lastly, you can create outdoor rooms with furniture and canopies to activate energy in these sectors and to create comfortable outdoor gathering places, allowing you to easily enjoy all that nature has to offer.

Master Jenny Liu holds a BA in Environmental Design from UC Berkeley and an MA in Architecture from UCLA. She is an expert in feng shui who shares her knowledge through seminars, periodicals, and the internet. For more information please see Liu-FengShui.com, or call Jenny at (626) 272-4901.