Did you know that landscape garden designs are made up of two discrete elements? That it is these elements, working together, that produce the finished article, that blending of nature and order that we humans like to call a garden? One would have supposed (at least, this one would have supposed) that “landscape gardening”, as a term, applied basically to the arrangement of plants and trees and grass and what not into a vaguely pleasing scheme. Actually, landscape gardening involves a total rearranging and ordering of an outdoors environment, where two distinctly opposed strands bind together to form a coherent whole.

The first strand of landscape garden designs, unsurprisingly, is the plants- the grass, the trees. The non man made organic matter of which many gardens are mostly constituted. Not all, of course – think rock gardens and patios and you’ll realise that some gardens are only very slightly made up of plants. The “soft” elements of a garden, referred to collectively as soft landscaping, are everything that grows in it. A landscape gardener will arrange these elements so as to present a coherent feeling or view, often with several different, seasonal, views incorporated. These elements might not all hail from the same country of origin, or have the same nutritional requirements. Effectively, soft landscape garden designs strive to create an ecosystem that one is not likely to find outside the fences and borders of suburbia – where plants from all sorts of background are drawn together for their beauty, either in terms of colour or shape.  Read more...

There are many great deck ideas and just as many wonderful possible patio designs. However, there are few things to consider when deciding which one to include in your landscape. Hopefully you will enjoy your landscape structure for many years to come. Here are some things to think about.

The first consideration is how high off the ground your structure will be. It may be at or just above ground level where no steps are needed. It may require just a few steps. However, the structure may have to be located off a second story and thus be at a very high elevation.

For those situations where the structure can be designed pretty much at ground level, a deck or patio can both be used. The deck, however, must be constructed in such a way that it is not resting directly on the ground. Typically, patios are chosen.

What if your structure needs a few steps? For situations where anywhere from two to about seven steps would be required to get to the lower level, either patios or decks may be selected. The main thing to remember is that whatever you choose will be off the ground. In the case of a deck, that space beneath the deck floor can be left open or covered with lattice. However, with patios, side walls must be built. This will add on to the cost. In addition, for higher walls, protection against falling off the patio must be considered. This can be achieved by either the installation of railings or having deep planters built in the patio.  Read more...

No matter if they are urban or rural, all gardens benefit from preplanning and design. This doesn’t mean just knowing where you want your garden, but the overall design of the garden. Today, gardening can include everything from vegetables to flowers to lawn care. Carefully planning what you want, and where you want it, beforehand will help you get the most from your garden.

Planning Your Garden

To begin, measure and draw a plan of your yard and/or garden as it is now. Your plan should include the placement of your house, driveways and walkways, property boundaries, trees and shrubs, and utility services. Using graph paper, draw everything as close to scale as possible.

What Is Your Garden’s Purpose?

Make a list of everything you want to have in your garden area that you consider essential. This could include a vegetable plot, fruit trees, or flower borders. Once you have your basic essentials listed, move on to your “wish list.” Your wish list would include items such as a water feature or a potting shed. Put the items in your list in the order of their importance. Now, place a piece of tracing paper over your original garden plan drawing and draw in your essential and wish list items. Divide your garden plan into zones such as public area, surface area, and private areas.  Read more...

Usually, patio styles are built around the existing house and the property grade. Attention should be given to additional outdoor living spots around the patio, and patios really should be made to function on it’s own or along with the other outdoor areas. Utilizing various colors and designs of patio tile will enable patio designs to be unique, regardless of other places around the home or could be built to fit in with a walkway around flower beds or a swimming pool.

 

Since a patio is usually be situated close to the home, the patio styles should either supplement or contrast the current design of the home in style and colour. Most concrete patios are left in the common grey color, but artificial additives could be utilized to be able to change the colour of the cement to essentially any color desired. Numerous different styles for sculpting the sides and surface of fresh concrete are obtainable, to allow a sturdy concrete patio to appear and feel like tiles or stones.

 

Many patio designs integrate concrete for a cost-saving reason as individual stone patios can get costly. Not only is the price of the paving bricks greater than concrete, but installing prices are higher. It is considerably easier to install a concrete slab and form it than it would be to make the underlying gravel and sand perfectly to grade and install stones.  Read more...