Retail Space Per Capita

I notice a contrast of space when I go to the U.S.  The footprint of malls seems to be much larger than in Canada.  There's more parking lot, loading docks, grass around the boulevards, etc.   Robin Lewis of Forbes/Retail wrote in 2014 that America was on the edge of the Great Retail Demassification.   There is 46 square feet of retail space per capita in the U.S. In the UK there is 9 square feet of retail space per capita. A Financial Post article says that there are 2,370 square feet for every 100 people in the U.S. compared to 1,453 square feet per person in Canada. This leads into the largest malls in the world:  the largest is in China - the New South China Mall is 6.46 million sq. ft. In comparison the West Edmonton Mall is 3.77 million sq. ft It makes me wonder what is the garden space per person in countries around the world.

Verbing and Nouning

There is the verb 'to noun', so that means there is the word 'nouning'.  I found the term verbal noun - a noun that is morphologically related to a verb and similar to it in meaning - an example is:  Brisk walking is good exercise. I wonder if there is something that can't be 'nouned'.  What isn't a person, place, thing, quality or idea? So back to our lead line today - this is a picture of a primula dell at Winterthur last spring - a small valley, usually among trees.  This one was magnificently planted in candelabra primulas.  One of the benefits of Winterthur is that it is magnificently planted - one of the legacies of Henry Francis du Pont.  May 15th is primula day at Winterthur.  This is the view you would experience.

Niagara's Crab Apple Allee - Spring and Winter

I found some old pictures from 2006.  That was the year I decided to take a picture a day as a project.  By the end of the year, I decided to become a photographer, and within the next year had transitioned from my Management Consulting work, and was taking photography courses at Ryerson and online. It's a few years later, and I am enjoying gardening and photography as my major activities.  I still do some contract consulting work for the income.  

So, I found a 2006 image of the Niagara Crab Apple Allee, and want to show you the spring and winter comparison. It's that such a show when they are in bloom!  

Something I noticed was the difference in where I took the picture from then.  I missed out on capturing the infinity view.  This past winter you can see how extensive the Allee is and how far that view goes.  The giant urns - and they are giant - draw your eye all the way through the garden, and right to the end.  It is a masterful technique that we can consider using in our own little gardens - placing pots at regular intervals to draw the eye through the garden scape.