Landscape garden design: how to design your site?

On the eve of spring for summer residents with experience and beginners, the problems of preparing a summer house and a plot for the warm season are becoming topical. Some people think about how to wind the house after the winter, others - when to start preparing seedlings. But absolutely everyone is wondering - how to arrange your site. This question is not at all idle.

On the one hand, the aesthetic component is important, because the cottage is a place of rest. On the other hand, the design of the garden requires proper placement on the site of plants. Light-loving - in the sun, shade-loving - in the shade of trees or buildings. Then the flowers will delight their lush decoration, and from the beds you can gather a good harvest. Knowing the basics of landscape design helps to decide on many issues.

Garden decoration is a long and laborious process.Requires a serious approach and sequence of actions. They always start by choosing a place for him on the site. The correct solution will provide beauty, ease of care and fruiting plants. Considered: the light, the quality of the soil, the neighborhood with buildings and much more.

More difficult is the situation when the site has just been acquired from other owners, and it must be fully adapted to suit your tastes and needs.

The most difficult task in terms of time and financial investments is “bare” land, on which not a single object has been erected. However, there is a plus. Such a site is a blank sheet for a designer, and any fantasy can be realized on it.

Regardless of the complexity of the project - whether the suburban area is filled from scratch or is it a redesign, the layout should take into account the features, advantages and disadvantages of the land plot.

Obviously, in the area of ​​6-8 acres not particularly clears.

It can be square, rectangular, narrow and long, triangular or L-shaped. The design of each of them involves masking the flaws, taking advantage of irregular shapes.

For example, the L-shaped plot is successfully divided into two halves. A large rectangular part is divided into sectors: a section of the correct universal form for major works and buildings, and the speaker will serve as a place for arranging a recreation area.

The topography of the surface - lowland or elevation, plane or slope - play a crucial role. The conditions for the growth of plantings of different varieties and species vary dramatically with height differences. Those of them that feel great on an elevation of hilly terrain, grow poorly in lowlands and vice versa.

Influences the fertility of plants soil type.A good land should be “fat”, moderately moist, moderately loose. If there is a lot of sand, clay, limestone in it, the soil needs fertilizer.

The value is the climate zone on which the site is located, as it is located relative to the cardinal points. This affects the way in which bushes and trees are placed, which will cover more fragile plants from the winds from the north or from the scorching sun from the south.

Personal preferences are important, but there are certain health, fire and building regulations that require strict compliance. Without them, even the most beautiful design project will not receive approval in the relevant instances.

The norms regulate not only the placement of residential and business facilities, but also the location of bushes, trees in relation to underground utilities. Their distance from buildings, paths and buildings. Some of the items are advisory in nature, but many are mandatory.

The diagram shows all the main and additional objects in the relationship, including communications.

Solving problems as they are received is a bad principle when it comes to financial costs. The visual and practical part of the design project for the garden must be completed by the beginning of the summer season, since the cold and heavy rainfall are not the best allies for any work in the open air.

Perhaps this is the most pleasant stage of design. When the project is ready, permission has been obtained, everything you need is purchased, it remains to begin to bring beauty to your site. It is more pleasant to admire from the gazebo the flowering creation of your hands.

Splitting the garden into sectors is a fundamental moment. The fertility of the grown crops depends on the successful choice of the place for the beds.Accordingly, economic efficiency increases, because vegetables and fruits from the country house are stored for almost the whole year. And it's just nice when the chores in the garden bring good results.

The three whales on which fruitful gardening is built are the topography of the land, the composition of the soil, and its moisture.

Not all elevation changes, slopes are suitable for vegetable growing, growing fruit crops and cultivating flowers. You should not break a garden or vegetable garden in the lowlands, ravines, especially narrow and extended. The temperature in them is always lower due to stagnation of cold air, and the soil is too wet. In this area, the plants will die from frost or rot.

Every 100 meters up gives a decrease in the average annual temperature by half a degree or degree. This seems to be an insignificant difference, but for some plants it can become disastrous in the very first frost.

For the majority of plantations, the best option is not very flat, but also not quite flat plot with orientation to the south-west and south-east.The lower part of this area will be more wet, shady and cool. It is more suitable for shade-loving and requiring a lot of moisture plants.

As it rises, the earth will become drier and the temperature will be higher. The top will warm up in the sun faster and more efficiently. Increasingly, it is convenient to plant vegetable and berry crops in accordance with their needs in the sun and water.

In the north-west of the country, the slope with the south side is considered the most suitable for fruit orchards, taking more to the west than to the east. On the Ural and Siberian slopes, on the contrary, you need to choose the eastern side to protect against the harsh climate. Southern, mountainous areas in any area have the same problem - lack of moisture. Optimum flat area or gentle slope with irrigation system.

The choice of a suitable environment for the development of the root system of plants is a job for a specialist.

Fortunately gardeners, soil type is not a sentence.Fertilizing, plowing or forming a new layer of black soil today are affordable services that are often used by owners of private gardens.

Good soil is permeable to water and air - has a loose structure. For cultivation of crops are suitable: low podzolic, loamy, sandy, gray compounds of the earth. Gardens are also easily created in the forest-steppe, with brown, chestnut and black composition.

The presence of groundwater has a direct effect on it. Usually they feed the plants, but when too close to the root system they cool the soil, saturate it with sulphates and create unfavorable conditions for growth. The groundwater distance from the root system should be at least 2 meters..

The distance from the surface of the earth is viewed from the species, plant variety and stock. For example, for apple trees on a dwarf rootstock - 1-1.2 m, and for another stock it takes at least one and a half meters.

If you already have a country house and greenery, to redesign the garden you need to choose places based on the relationship of objects and plants. For example, for light-loving plants it is important to breed a front garden in front of the house. And behind the dwelling, in the shadow of the walls, shade-loving cultures will feel good.

Also in front of the house you can plant low shrubs, focusing on the height of the window frames. Bushes and trees can be placed around the perimeter, vegetables - in the center of the site. Vegetables such as pumpkin, zucchini, cabbage love to change from time to time the place of "residence" on the beds.

Designing a garden begins with a drawing, and design starts with an idea. The first impulse - I want pink bushes with peonies, and to be beautiful, you need to display in a specific form - in the form of a landscape project. There are no immutable rules on the design of the site.

Flexible design allows you to adapt style directions to the wishes of garden owners andfeatures of the site. However, there are recommendations that experts in the field of landscape design recommend to adhere to.

Take into account the size and shape of the site. Using the methods of zoning - arches, paths, height differences, green hedges - you can correct the irregular shape of the site, create a more harmonious landscape.

It is worth choosing plants not only according to personal preferences, but also because of their ability to take root in specific living conditions. Here the relief, humidity, type of soil, and average annual air temperature play their part.

It is also important to consider how unpretentious the cultivated crops, because the garden and the garden, as a rule, are located outside the city. That is, there is no way to care for plants every day.

Correctly combine plant varieties. It is important to take into account with which colors a particular type of green is combined.. What kind of flowers can help in the protection of vegetable crops, if they are planted along the beds at the dacha, and which, conversely, will attract pests to them. What are able to create a symbiosis or will impede the full growth of each other.

There are several options to make the garden beautiful.

• Focus on greens, not flowers.
• The combination of colors on the principle of complementarity.
• Selection of color zones.
• Garden decoration in the same range, but in different shades.

• Take into account the architectural style of buildings on the site. Ornamental gardening can not be a separate phenomenon on the site. It should be a harmonious background for a residential home and recreation area.

• Draw a plan and stick to it. The visual scheme of planting greatly simplifies the task of decorating the garden. It should be noted the location of all parts of the lawn, bushes, trees, beds, arches, fences, beds.

As for the styles themselves, the design of the garden offers quite a variety of solutions.

All of them are subordinate to two main areas:

• regular garden;
• landscape.

Regular or formal design regulates the classic styles. It is dominated by symmetrical shapes, balance and strict geometry. They even subordinate architecture. The crowns of trees and bushes are clipped, the presence of lawns and plots of stone is welcome.

Sometimes a regular garden is called traditional. Common accessories: fountains, columns, vases, sculptures. Classic curb, forging, benches with backs, natural stone decorations are used. The location of the accessories is central or strictly mirror.

Landscape style in the first place puts naturalness. It allows you to use all the features of the relief, it is easier to perform without the participation of the designer. It is important to pay attention to a balanced combination of colors, to keep the garden well-kept.

The peculiarity of such a garden is an imitation of nature, but more accurate, orderly. Instead of columns, trees grow, asymmetry is more relevant than specularity, fountains replace natural reservoirs. Forest style is close to the landscape, with a predominance of wild plants and trees.

• English. Distinctive features: lush greenery, lawn, landscaped front garden, beautiful wicket, winding paths and rolling hills.
• French. Also, Provençal style is often attributed to it. The highlight of this garden can be breeding fragrant herbs. In the summer they look beautiful on the beds and spread the aroma, and in the winter they perfectly complement homemade dishes. In addition to them, it is important to use natural jewelry, an abundance of small flowers and decor. Purple and pink shades are a must.

• Mauritanian. Its basis is the presence of a central element. In the middle of the plot there is a fountain, a pond or a recreation area with a gazebo, and a green composition of all shades is built around it. Open land should not be left.Where there are no plantings, the paths are laid out in stone or tile.
• Japanese. A great rarity in the design of the garden is the use of traditional Japanese architecture, perennial flowering trees (deciduous), decoration with pebbles, moss and stones, aqueducts and ponds with fish.

• Chinese. Despite belonging to the Asian region of this and previous styles, they have their own characteristics. So, Chinese is characterized by a complex landscape solution, which implies versatility. The garden should be decorated so that it looks different from different points of view.
• Country or Rustic style is one of the most simple in execution, because in its essence it is as close to nature as possible. Nature acts as a decoration around a beautiful house, and at the same time allows you to organize space with maximum benefit. Fruit trees, dense plantings of flowers and cultures, faience sculptures, wicker and wooden ornaments are elements peculiar to country style.

• Italian style. Its main feature is the presence of a patio, hidden from the eyes in the depths of the site.
• Modern. Asymmetry, contrasting colors, the use of non-trivial architectural forms from different materials, night lighting.

• Eclecticism. Competent combination of several styles.

Types of gardens - categorization is quite complicated and different from styles. Here we are talking not about the appearance and design, but about the compliance of the style with the functions of the garden. Modern garden has several types of functions.

Relaxation function - the garden is used only for recreation, trips out of town for family or friendly barbecue, tanning and fishing.

Aesthetic function - necessary for the development of harmony with nature. This is a social function, introducing a person to work and functioning in a garden partnership.

Economic function - allows you to use the land as a source of food for the whole family.

According to what functions the garden should perform, it can be of the following types:

• decorative;
• fruit;
• vegetable;
• mixed.

This garden is intended only for recreation. The ratio of zones differs from the traditional one: about 50%, rather than 70%, is allocated to green areas. Mostly in it is a recreation area.It combines two functions - relaxation and satisfaction of aesthetic needs. Mostly trees, flowering bushes and flowers are bred in such a garden.

One of the best examples is the heather garden. Heather is an unpretentious plant, numbering several dozen varieties, perfectly combined with each other and with other flowers. It does not require special care, it blooms beautifully and for a long time, is perennial and takes root on the most barren soils.. A distinctive feature of this plant - a stunning aroma.

If not all garden owners are ready to stand with a spade above the garden, then many would like to have fruit trees on the plot. Caring for them is simple, the main thing is to fertilize the soil, water it in time in dry weather and protect the tree from parasites.

In many regions of the country, the climate is suitable for growing pears, apples, plums, cherries. In the southern regions, the list is updated with apricots, peaches, walnuts and other heat-loving fruits. Harvest fruit trees begin to give from 2-3 years of age.

A very common option among those who like to stock up on vitamins for the winter and not against the care of the beds.You can grow a lot: potatoes, carrots, cabbage, including cauliflower and broccoli, greens.

Preferences can be given to eggplants, pumpkin, zucchini, legumes or berries. Such a garden requires intensive care, but the result justifies the effort.

The most common option among thrifty Russians. It implies the use of the garden plot for the cultivation of flowers, vegetables and fruits.

The choice of flowers and shrubs for landscape design determine the atmosphere and illumination of the territory. With the help of large plants, you can both revive the composition and ruin a beautiful idea. In the choice of varieties are guided by personal preferences and style direction.

For the traditional style is characterized by an abundance of greenery of different varieties: shrub roses, daisies, freesia, dahlias, asters, peonies, hosts, geyhery, phlox.

For forest or country style are suitable different hvoyniki and unpretentious flowers. For example, chamomile, cabbage, sunflowers, meadow plants. Coniferous ornamental trees and shrubs take root and look good.

French Provence is replete with pink, purple and lilac shades, an abundance of small flowers.For decoration, it is important to use lilac around the perimeter, and plant beds of arabis and eustoma, irises, clematis, verbena, heather or forget-me-nots on flowerbeds. Suitable and blue, lilac, purple hydrangea.

Scented herbs as a supplement will be a highlight of the garden - rosemary, basil, mint, sage, marjoram.

For Dutch gardens, daylilies (alstromeria, lilies, agapanthus and others), tulips, peonies, gladioli are used as a filling.

Any garden can be varied with climbing plants: wisteria, sweet peas, bougainvillea, clematis, nasturtium.

Unusual flowers also attract attention: bright alissum, poppies, astilbe, succulents, geyhera. Izeli Fastygiata, Erect barberry, lobelia and marigold are used.

In the recreation area the minimum necessary: ​​a place to accommodate a smokehouse or barbecue, a table, benches or chairs, a gazebo or a shed. For the garden, it is important to use plastic furniture that does not deteriorate in different weather conditions, as well as wooden objects. Homemade furniture made from stumps, planks, pallets, old car tires looks beautiful and original.

A nice cottage bonus is a suspended swing with a back and a hammock.In the presence of free space, it is desirable to equip several such places, since they are in great demand among guests and households.

Garden accessories are also needed. These can be factory-made products from ceramics, gypsum, wood, metal, or “do-it-yourself” items of out-of-date things. For example, a basket for fruit can replace a flowerpot or turn into an original wicker shoe for planting plants, colored tires are ready-made beds, and an old bicycle is an original multi-level stand for containers with flowers.

When combining landscape design styles, it is important to consider the size of the plot. It can be small, medium and large. The value is sometimes determined by eye, more often by geodetic and agronomic instruments.

Middle plots are versatile and the simplest to choose from. It is convenient to place on them buildings and decorative elements without violating sanitary standards, fire safety rules, and without damage to plants.

In large areas, the design is more complex, since there should be no voids, and filling requires more resources and effort.

Small areas suffer from a lack of space for a full-fledged garden. They are often trying to pile up a large number of different plantations, resulting in a botanical jumble.

Some of them help to free up a useful area, and some work only on the visual effect. The first group includes the use of one-and-a-half and two-story buildings, terraces and a stepped landscape design. At the same time, living quarters can be either built on the attic or the second floor, or deepened with the help of cellars and ground floors.

As a visual increase in space, landscape design specialists advise using numerous techniques:

• Avoid straight lines in the layout.. The geometry of the traditional style for the garden is not prohibited in small areas, but you need to understand that the practical usefulness of the land will suffer greatly. The garden will have a predominantly decorative function, rather than supplying its owners with fresh vegetables and fruits.
• Hide the boundaries of the plot. Deaf fence sharply delineates and compresses the boundaries of the garden. You can visually push them apart using a fence with gaps - a classic wooden, chain-link mesh, colored mesh.

• Green lawn. At the entrance to the site, this purely English reception works with a bang. Extensive color spot instead of fading of different colors visually pulls the area of ​​the earth.
• Using a concise palette. The less variegation on the site, the more solid it looks. And the lack of fragmentation is the best way to increase small areas.

• Green area without lush flowering beds It does not necessarily turn out to be boring. It is necessary to use complex shades, plants of interesting shapes, of different sizes. However, many of them can be useful in the kitchen and in the first-aid kit.
• Alternative option - the choice of one color. For example, the garden looks great, where all the flowers are matched in blue, red or orange.
• Winding paths and paths. The more they wind, the more the garden area seems.

• Distribution of light accents. The reception, alas, is not universal, since daytime artificial lighting will not have any effect, but in the evening it is very effective. Here it is useful to use the architectural lighting of the house, searchlights with beams directed upwards, lawn lamps on legs and in the form of balls.
• Water mirror. Everyone knows the magic effect of reflective surfaces in small rooms. In nature, their role is performed by artificial reservoirs.

• Gardening vertical surfaces. "Pull" the garden can not only be wide, but also in height with the help of arches, nets and climbers. It is beautiful, convenient for zoning and creates additional volume.
• Step decor and terraces. Multi-level placement of decorative elements and terraces for plant breeding works on two fronts at once - a practical increase in area and visual. Plus, it's just beautiful. Actually on inclined sites.
• The use of fractals. Repeating silhouettes and shapes add wholeness and harmony to the composition.

• Stretched silhouettes. Small architectural forms and trees should strive upward so that the view covers more space.
• Focus accents. In a small area of ​​regular shape, it is important not to dwell on its borders. Using decorative elements in the most unexpected places - from fountains to benches - helps to divert attention.

Garden options play an important role. In official documents, they are recorded as an area, which is measured in meters or weave. Novice gardeners is difficult to determine the size required for the suburban area. One it seems that 6 acres is enough, and then you have to choose between cauliflower and the usual variety for winter stocks, because there was not enough space for everything.

Others threaten immediately 20 hectares, so that there is a place for barbecues, and there is enough land for vegetables. This is also a mistake. If you do not place a huge country cottage for the whole family on 20 acres, then you will have to deal with the processing of vegetable crops from dawn to dusk with barbecue in the teeth.

Consider the shape of the plot and use the correct zoning. For this purpose, living hedges of bushes and trees, paths, decorative elements, arches. It is necessary to use the full potential of climbers and perennial plants.

It is rational to divide the land into parts. As practice shows, the “golden formula” is as follows: one-tenth of the plot is allocated to residential premises, one to household outbuildings, one and a half to the recreation area, and the remaining 6-7 to the garden. Total, it turns out about 65-70% of the land for gardening needs.

Keep a distance between objects. It is necessary for sanitary reasons and safety standards. The following two rules follow from here:

• Accounting for sanitary standards - household outlets and animal pens should be located 10-12 meters from the house.
• Accounting building codes. The placement of bushes is allowed at least 1 meter from the adjacent adjacent fence, trees - 2 or 3.
• Take into account the direction of the world and the geography of the region in order to arrange the plants in the way that they feel comfortable in the sunlight and in the shade.
• Ensure safety in the playground and in the recreation area.

The main tricks of lazy gardeners to maintain their beloved garden in excellent condition is the proper preparation of the site for wintering:

• to establish supports for branches that have fallen under the weight of fruits, so that they do not break: during the winter they cannot recover;
• timely harvesting and planting of plants;
• carry out the treatment of plantings from pests;
• feed up phosphate-potash fertilizers perennials before winter.

The pledge of a beautiful design of the garden and the space around the country house or estate is the development of a quality project and the presence of an idea. Also for the formation of beautiful courtyards, it is important to observe the principle of the harmonious combination of objects in the area between themselves and with the surrounding nature.

The following techniques work perfectly for the creation of a beautiful and unique design:

• Use all the features of the "problem" sites with benefit.
• The construction of a balcony or attic on the top floor of the house, a closed veranda or terrace on the bottom.
• The preference of natural materials when choosing accessories and furniture: wood, stone, textiles.
• Unusual DIY accessories - do it yourself.

Use the possibilities of your own imagination or choose the appropriate examples from the Internet. You always have the opportunity to create a unique image of your garden, even without expensive elements, on your own.

Useful tips on creating a garden design are waiting for you in the next video.