Tuesday's Terrace: an Iowan 'hygge'

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In his parents' back garden, Austin made the area more inviting by removing turf, creating circular gravel paths, and installing night lighting and a wood stove (on the right). River birches (Betula nigra) provide welcome relief from the harsh Midwest summer skies, and their rustling canopy animates the garden. A hammock is an open invitation for an afternoon siesta, preferably with a book open on one's chest. Plantings are kept deliberately simple and restricted to perennials (Allium 'Millenium', Calamintha nepeta, sedums) and grasses (Calamagrostis x acutiflora 'Karl Foerster') that are reliable performers. What Austin has achieved is the feeling of hygge, an ambiguous Scandinavian concept of coziness. ~ Eric