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The last time I was in Cannes, Nice and Monte Carlo I had a chance to observe the vegetation along these coastal areas. Over the centuries of using all the timber, trees in the course of living and building in ever increasing steepness on the sides of the cliffs the trees were never replaced. This area has hot and dry summers with abundant rains in the winter and any original woodland along those shorelines have now been replaced with densely packed degraded vegetation called “maquis” which consists of evergreen trees with coriaceous leaves, shrubs and bushes including climbing plants such as clematis, black bryony, sarsaparilla, evergreen rose and one can see that many of the branches are all entwined creating a mass of maquis which is very impenetrable.
There is a tremendous beauty in all this scraggy, scrubby coastal growth but the real beauty of that area and many similar areas are in the courtyards of the many homes that dominate the hillside and Cliffside of these places.
I love the lush élan that many home owners of these places have created in their little courtyards which afford them the privacy, joy, color and lushness of their gardening efforts.
You too can create the same Mediterranean courtyard effect quite easily by using some of these tried and true ancient techniques. City dwellers and townhouse dwellers with small enclosed private areas can easily take a lesson from our Mediterranean neighbors.
Often the outside of their courtyards have wrought iron hangers studding their walls and these hangers are filled with pots of riotous colors of yellows, pinks and reds inviting you in. Entering their courtyard you are often greeted by a bench or two painted in vivid reds and blues, perhaps a couple of chairs also brightly painted, a small table and surrounding all of this are ceramic and stone pots of filled with succulents, flowering plants, hanging plants, creeping plants and perhaps in the corner a small tree may be planted that perhaps delivers oranges, tangelos or lemons.
I have observed several courtyards that had metal rings attached to the walls to hold ceramic or terracotta pots filled with more colorful plants as they rested against the pink, white or ochre colored stucco walls creating statements that can easily be duplicated in your world.
When a courtyard had stairs going up to the second story of the house one can be assured that along the stairway will be placed colorful pots of flowers. Many times the courtyard has just a flagstone floor or even a graveled one.
I can always recognize most of these plants. There is always some Lantana, Bougainvillea, Nerium oleander, Anagallis monellii, and many more.
These courtyards are living, breathing spaces where the containers are often moved as their flowers or fruits fade. The fragrance is abundant in their courtyards and the owners know when to put the faded ones in the back and move the currently blossoming plants to center stage.
Now that I have painted a colorful picture of courtyards take a look at the one you have and let your imagination run wild. Roam through thrift shops looking for old containers, especially terracotta ones, or wrought iron hangers and holders that can be used. Check with gardening friends and see if they are discarding any terracotta pots. Use your imagination and see what you can create in a small space.
“Tread the Earth Lightly” and in the meantime… May your day be filled with…
Peace, Light and Love,
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Author Bio Box: Arlene Wright Correll
 For more gardening or cooking information click http://www.learn-america.com/
To see Arlene’s Gardens and to read her gardening diaries and to take a walk through her pictorial garden or click on Arlene’s Books where you can download or buy her gardening & cook books, including her new book, “The ABC’s of Wine and Beer Making”. Many of her articles written for Greenthumbarticles have paintings she has created of the subject and they can be seen at her “How to Do It” site. Remember to check out her artwork, especially of her fruits and vegetables. Many of her paintings are sold internationally and many of her works of art have been reproduced on note cards, post cards and other functional items and you can get Giclee prints of her artwork starting as low as $11.89 Arlene says, “All my royalties from the sale of my books, art, etc. go to the St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital and I thank you for visiting my sites.”
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