Landscaping the backyard: the layout of the site + some design techniques
Who decided that a vegetable garden can not become the main decoration of the suburban area? A decorative garden can please not only a rich harvest, but also to make original decoration of the site. To implement this idea, it is sufficient to consider the design of the garden where the vegetable beds will look no less picturesque than the colorful flower beds. And how to do it correctly, we want to tell you today.
The contents
Basic tips for planning a vegetable garden
Modern landscape design concerns not only the arrangement of recreation areas and gardens in the area. Landscape architects have developed a number of guidelines to help design a vegetable garden with your own hands will be able to plan and equip any gardener.
- Zoning of the site. Thinking through the construction site, which has not yet produced buildings at the design stage it is necessary to provide accommodation for all necessary areas: ceremonial, recreational, commercial.
- Lighting the surface of a garden site. The area under vegetable beds should be covered from all sides. Vegetable crops are mostly sun-loving and exacting to soil. Placing the garden in a Sunny site with fertile soil, you simplify a job on observance of special conditions for planting and crop rotation crops.
- Limited landings. If you don’t set yourself a goal to provide a stock of jams and pickles with their own crops all family and friends, it is better to limit the area of the landings. Three or four carefully cultivated garden beds will look more attractive and will bring more good than a dozen well-groomed.
- The unusual shape and location of beds. Smashing vegetable beds it is important to consider the aesthetic appearance of a plant to vegetable composition, and the needs of the plants themselves. Intricate designs and patterns made of slightly raised beds in the shape of trapezoids, triangles and waves are not always suitable for growing water-loving crops. The water at these beds dry out faster, resulting in uneven plant growth.
- The ratio of the width of raised beds and walkways between them. Traditionally, many of us break the beds with a width of 1-1,2 m. Foreign gardeners are of the opinion that the width of the beds should not exceed 70 cm And this makes sense: in such a bed is easier to maintain, maintaining the attractive appearance of the landing and thereby increasing the yield.
Improvement areas can be focused on development of the ornamental garden, which is also an important component of garden aesthetics
Example of a French garden. The width of the passage between the low beds should be at least 40 cm, and between high – 70 inches
Methods of arrangement of decorative garden
Method #1 — framing for raised beds
Each of us wants to make his garden look attractive not only in summer, when it is decorated with a colorful hat foliage, flowers and fruit, but in spring and autumn, when the garden is bare.
Neatly decorated surface, framed by a decorative protective sides look equally beautiful and well-groomed at any time of the year
Using the Board, you can slightly raise the beds, constructing low walls, which will be a spectacular addition to the landscape paintings.
If the landscaped garden includes elements with sleek curves, circles and curved lines, figured for framing vegetable beds can be made from ready-made modules.
For this purpose you can use wooden stumps of small diameter placed on the end face clinker bricks or even plastic bottles
Paths between the beds also desirable to draw, laying the wood they cut down, or strewn them with a layer of fine gravel or granite screenings. To do this, read the article «How to make tracks in the country with his own hands: zoning regulations by the + 3 of the master class«.
Method #2 — garden in containers
Planting trees in containers allows you to implement not only an aesthetic function. A significant advantage of such containers is their mobility. Containers with established plants, you can always move, decorating the empty space on the site.
Boxes with herbs and juicy fresh greens can be a Supplement when you make a barbecue, patio and terraces
As containers you can use any containers: clay and plastic pots, baskets, barrels, old dishes. Restrictions in the choice of containers for plants no the only condition is that they must be in harmony with other decorative elements.
For planting in containers are well suited compact early maturing varieties of cherry tomatoes, ornamental peppers and eggplant.
In the container of large volume can be planted several crops, creating original color combinations. For example: the soft-green leaves of lettuce well red chard leaves
Add some color to the vegetable composition may be, podsolic them are annuals: marigolds, calendula, majors.
Method #3 — the flower and vegetable beds
With this method of arrangement of plants are planted in small groups that form a variegated multi-level Islands. For example: in front along the curb are planted greens, the average layer compositions fill medium pepper plants or tomatoes, as background planted corn or sunflowers, the stems of which ubivaet green beans.
Traditional beds can and does replace the original flower beds, decorated with floral compositions of decorative vegetables and flowers
The design of the site in English and French style
Landscape design of suburban areas often occurs on the basis of one of two styles: French or English. The first is based the combination of geometric shapes. All the green areas on site and decorative elements form a single carefully designed pattern.
As one of the examples of the French style of the propose project area, which includes the diagonal layout of the vegetable beds.
The Central point of the composition – yard, which, like the rays of the sun, differ planting with herbs, flowers and vegetables
To overlook and admire this garden better with the hills: from the Windows or balconies. For the decoration of beds are more suitable for compact varieties of plants that do not grow, thereby violating the strict aesthetics of the French style.
Compact vegetable garden planting cabbage, cucumbers and tomatoes flank the walkway, lined with slabs and bricks
Design garden in landscape style implies more natural. Therefore, the choice of plants to fill the flower beds and garden beds is much wider. For preparation of the compositions you can use any decorative vegetables, combining them with planting of greenery and flowers. In the midst of the season, a carefully planned and neatly presented garden is reminiscent of a small Park with flowers, which perform the role of elegant planting ornamental cabbage, zucchini and lettuce.
Finally, we offer you to watch a video with an example of a decorative vegetable garden: