How to Jazz Up Your Front & Backyard According to Your Life Style by Terry Clark - HTML preview

If your terrace is sunken in design, you will need a retaining wall in order to address the strong possibility of soil erosion. The soil is dug to five inches below the depth you wish to place the terrace. Use either gravel or sand as a significant base.

 

A terrace that is raised is generally not truly raised but is built right at the level of the residential dwelling and the outer portion of it is raised. In this instance the terrace also requires a retaining wall.  Draining is effected by a centralized drainage system or by means of piping underneath the ground that is built through the terrace’s retaining wall structure.

 

 

#40. Add Water for Tranquillity

 

Many persons who are experts in garden design realize that there are many water features that can be placed within the garden setting to make the effect all the more attractive and restful. A popular water feature is the garden waterfall. The waterfall can make your garden all the more appealing. Along with a waterfall unusual plants can be added to the garden arrangement as well as the inclusion of out-of-the ordinary fish. These touches can provide a great deal of interest within your backyard garden-setting.

 

If the idea of a waterfall in your garden sounds intriguing then you will need to plan with discernment. If you wish to install the waterfall yourself it is highly important you are knowledgeable about elements of design and also have a good grasp of science as it relates to the set up of the waterfall system. Also make it your learning objective to find what is essential in the support of vegetation and the fish you wish to include within the water aspect of your garden.

 

After researching over the Internet about waterfalls and construction, decide if it is possible to tackle the project on your own or if skilled workers will be needed. Part of the waterfall must include a pond; these are available in fibreglass. If money is of no particular concern and you are worried about your skills as it pertains to the waterfall you may be best advised to go ahead and hire outside labor as already suggested.  Whatever your decision the project of incorporating water into your garden starts with digging.

 

A pump will be needed for the waterfall as well as some type of filtration system so the water remains clean. Also the filtration system is needed if you are going to add fish to the pond. By keeping the water clear, your guests to the area will be able to see the fish.

 

When constructing the waterfall a great deal of thought must be given as to rocks around the waterfall setting. In order to get design ideas it is a good suggestion to peruse landscaping periodicals or pictures on the Internet or in a book. Rocks situated right around the waterfall will make a dramatic impact.

 

After the waterfall is set up just as you wish with respect to design and proper placement, the next step is the installation of a filter, pump and hose. Also before you even begin waterfall placement it is important there is some sort of accessible electrical supply or service to the area of the waterfall. You definitely will need electricity or your waterfall will cease to be operational.

 

 

#41. Add a Garden Pond

 

Constructing a pond is a terrific way to add an additional dimension to backyard landscaping. Further you can place foliage around the manmade pond in order to replicate the way a pond is found within nature.   Before construction, you will need to consider placement of the small body of water. The best place is a shady area. The suggestion then is to place your pond underneath a mature tree so that the temperature of the water will remain cool. Also a shady spot keeps the pond safer for your fish.

 

Some wonder if the placement in a shadier location is advisable due to the cleaning up of leaves and branches that will naturally be blown down or fall from the tree. However it is still a preferable location since you don’t want to place the pond in the sun. The water will tend to evaporate and get a great deal warmer if the sunlight is not diffused by shade trees so in this regard, you will just need to make it a habit of maintaining it regularly; cleaning out leaves and twigs.

 

Next determine the size of the pond. Some of this determination will naturally be based on how large you expect the fish to become. In other words, if your fish get sizable your pond should be a bit larger than the size of the fish at maturity. However some kinds of fish do not grow large if kept in a small pond.

 

Another consideration is the design or shape of the pond. When contacting someone to build the pond they can accommodate you by placing the size and design which you most prefer into the ground. However, you must be certain to get the design and size right before placement is made since modifications cannot be made afterwards. If you are uncertain as to what you want the recommendation is to opt for a more provincial design-style, as you certainly cannot go wrong with the selection. Also ensure you select the right supplies in the beginning in order to maintain your pond properly as well as keep your fish from dying. If you use your pond as part of a garden arrangement then you will also need to find plants that appreciate shady locations; and do not require a great deal of time as far as care.

 

Once pond installation is complete you will need an aerator and filter in order to keep the water clean. The aerator and filter will keep your fish healthy and make your pond easier to maintain. Since the water will be circulating through the use of an aerator there is less likelihood unwanted plant life will grow.

 

 

#42. A Wildflower Garden for Backyard Charm

 

A wildflower garden for many is idyllic as it is reminiscent of traipsing through wooded environments or countryside. Many individuals may be interested in setting up a wildflower environment right in their backyard. Growing a wildflower garden in your back yard is a charming concept. Many gardeners attest each wildflower comes with its own characteristics. Whatever the wildflower receives in a more natural environment is what it seeks to grow well anywhere else. When the wildflower is taken away from its natural setting it generally does not survive for too long. 

 

Thus, in order to manufacture a wildflower garden it is necessary the gardener effect a gardening arrangement that mimics nature or the conditions where the particular flower survives best. For instance, if you were to notice a wildflower in a wooded location you may make note of the condition of the soil, the precise spot as well as the flowers or environment around it. In noticing these particulars you are put in a position to provide the best of care for the wildflowers you select.

 

If you notice two wildflowers of differing species within the same general area you are advised to replicate this pattern as to growth within your own backyard garden. If a wildflower is in a field or meadow then it will do best in a grassy area within your backyard arrangement where it is given plenty of room. Considering the freedom of most wildflowers as to growth it is best to emulate this freedom again within your backyard setting.

 

You can actually journey into a wooded setting and find your own wildflowers such as Columbine. Make certain when you uproot the flower that you allow some of the soil it was implanted in to surround its root system.  This soil you’ve removed with the flower should surround the flower when you plant it along with naturally new soil.

 

Prior to finding wildflowers in natural settings prepare a flower bed.  This is necessary for obvious reasons since you would not want time to elapse before repositioning the flowers in their new soil. You will wish to emulate the soil composition of the woods which is rich with natural nutrients such as decomposing leaves.

 

Drainage underneath your flowerbed needs to be efficient. Naturally you do not want your wildflowers planted in soil that is full of standing water. Some persons believe that the soil for wildflowers is filled with water, however consider the soil in a wooded setting and such is not the case. You can always dig deep and place some pebbles toward the bottom of where you have dug. On top of the rock place soil from the woods you visited and then after this layer place other prepared nutrient rich soil. Lastly, you may buy wildflower seed and throw the seeds in different areas of your yard as well for an easier gardening option.

 

 

#43. A Vertical Garden will Maintain Privacy

 

A good many individuals have not considered when seeking privacy from nosy neighbours, a highway or other public area, the use of a vertical-style garden. The vertical garden is basically an assembly of plants or flora which by use of a trellis grow in an upward direction. You can use the idea of a vertical-style garden within a terrace area, near an outdoor porch or even next to a deck. Many privacy-seekers find the vertical idea a good one.

 

The initial course of action is to measure the spot where you wish to attain privacy. Also think about how you wish the vertical garden to appear. Are you wishing the garden to become part of your landscaping arrangement? In other words, do you want a garden that will last throughout the years? Or, do you just wish to employ its use for one growing period? Also with respect to the preceding you will accordingly need to think about:  a) the period you wish to affect growth of plants; b) the preferred plant dimensions as it pertains to overall width and height; and c) lastly; would you like to use the area during the colder months? 

 

If you want an application for a very brief period, it is best to go with annual climbing vines. You can plant an annual such as the morning glory from a seed during the months of spring after there is no chance of frost. The resulting vine will grow quickly and continue flourishing into the months of autumn. Plus you ought to gain a great deal of color from this vine as it is known well for its varied hues of color.

 

Virginia creeper is the recommendation if you require a plant with more permanency. The Virginia creeper is a perennial and generally is a worthy selection in the way of a permanent vine. It provides the gardener with leaves that are darkish green, turning to gorgeous shades of reddish orange later on during the fall months. Further, the vine has small greenish flowers followed by deep purple berries. Birds like the berries and will cling to your vine when winter arrives. It climbs your trellis and in effect you need not worry about tying it down or cutting it to any degree in order to motivate its directional growth.

 

 

#44. A Tomato Trellis Can Add Charm

 

Many people enjoy the wonderful pastime of growing tomatoes along with other vegetable crops in their gardens. In fact, online there is a considerable amount of information provided on the subject so you are not about to run out of information anytime too soon with respect to growing tomatoes.

 

Tomatoes can be added to your backyard arrangement in many locations depending whether you wish to grow them singly, or within your backyard vegetable garden. Some gardeners who lack space will actually provide areas on their terraces to grow them.  However, one application of tomato growing is to use a trellis in order to yield tomatoes in greater abundance and add charm to the location.

 

A good many gardeners provide stakes for their tomatoes. However, there are some very organic-style gardeners out there who believe it is okay to allow the plant grow without the support of stakes or any other kind of support. This means the plant quite literally grows on top of the soil.  Plants which are allowed to grow in this manner grow dimensionally larger. However they are exposed to disease or infested with insects or pests of some form or other. Also if fruit - which is the actual classification of a tomato - touches the soil it usually becomes bad.

 

All of this can occur before the gardener has a chance to pick the fruit from the vine. You can get around the situations of rotting fruit, infestation and disease to some degree by adding a great deal of mulch to the garden. However, even with the preceding application you are going to face the inevitability that your tomatoes to some extent are going to go rotten.

 

One way to keep your tomato plants up off the ground is by employing the use of what is known as the tomato cage. The cage is comprised of wire and can come in the form of a circular pattern or square design. You install the tomato cage when you plant your tomatoes. The cage provides abundant support as the tomato plant becomes larger and full of fruit.  The only drawback to such an application is the plant generally becomes larger than the cage by the middle of the warmer summer months. Here again, the plant begins to bend and starts touching the soil. 

 

Another matter of issue is once the plant becomes rather large the cage can be blown over by a gust of wind or even falls over due to the fact the weight of the plant and fruit is too much for it to support.

 

Growers have found a unique way around the situation by using a trellis as a supporting structure for the tomato plant. The trellis is a good solution since it allows your tomato plant to continue to grow in an upwards direction rather than growing outwards. If you affix the trellis to your home, a shed, a fence or simply two stakes, it can easily hold the tomato plants’ weight to the end of the summer.

 

Also if space is a premium, you can use the trellis idea to grow a greater number of tomato plants within a given area. You can grow tomatoes trellis-style within a two foot square area; whereas if you grow tomato plants the traditional way it requires an area of four square feet. This is due to the fact you naturally need an area to walk and pick fruit from the vine during the growing season. With the concept of the trellis you can easily double the number of tomato plants grown and within a smaller more compact area. Also if your back has a tendency to give out easily you need not worry. The trellis eliminates a great deal of bending. Certainly though you may need to do some reaching — however, this can prove considerably easier than effecting harvest by traditional means. Give the trellis concept of raising tomatoes a try the upside potential is you will get more tomatoes.

 

 

#45. A Solution for Unsightly Weeds

 

In order to transform your backyard into a venue of wonderment one thing is for certain; you will want to keep the weeds out. Since you can’t post a no-trespassing sign for this form of unsightly plant-life a more realistic solution may present in the form of landscape fabric. What exactly is landscape fabric?

 

It is a material especially used in gardens to keep down excessive weed growth, rather in the same way compost does, only it does not rot down like compost. Landscape fabric is a viable solution in keeping the weeds out as you simply place it around all sorts of preferable plant life such as flowers, shrubbery and shade trees. This may easily spare you the drudgery of digging up the weeds with a trowel. The material is actually used to promote the positive plant growth and discourage or put an end to the weeds. 

 

The way the latter is accomplished is that the material effectively blocks out natural light so that weeds do not have a chance to emerge.  The plants you wish to keep around are not blocked since the same material that blocks sunlight from getting to unsightly weeds allows plenty of air and humidity and other forms of moisture to reach the roots of garden plants. This is based on the theory that the plants where growth is encouraged have already emerged and the weeds attempting to make an eventual appearance above ground are still underneath the soil.

 

Before buying landscape fabric you will need to consider a few points.  First off, you need to choose a landscape fabric with plenty of durability that holds up well and is well-suited for its intended application. However, fabric that is a great deal more durable is more expensive and there is a reduction in the amount of moisture and air that can reach your plants.

 

The fabric used needs to be absorbent enough to provide proper moisture and air to flow into the soil. The fabric must be appropriate to its application because if it is not you will have a problem on your hands with the soil becoming infertile or your plants not growing properly. In this regard, the fibers of the fabric should be evenly distributed. Also the areas where there are openings should be small enough that weeds cannot grow through. You can buy landscape fabrics at most garden centers as well as community nurseries.

 

 

Resources

 

 

7250 Landscaping Ideas ~ Designs And Videos: (recommended)

Go to: http://tinyurl.com/kobe2wd

 

Good Luck!

 

Thank You,

Terry Clark