Decorating your Garden
Exterior December 9th, 2009
Do not forget if you want to create a flower garden in the yard, planting crops, too big and strong. Such as palm, banana fan or other types. These trees serve to reinforce the soil structure in your garden. And the land became more solid and stronger. Flowers produce beautiful results. But do not forget with the leaves and stones. In garden design, leaves and stones are used to enliven the park with a difference. The leaves also provide color and a more diverse pattern. Not all green leaves, there are a variety of colors available. Do not limit your creations on the landscape only, but also combine with hardscape (walls, fences, gazebo). A good garden not only looks beautiful from the inside, but beautiful from all sides. Both from the outside, inside or above. Hardscape also is one component that must be considered in designing the park. Example: Use the walls and fences as a boundary or a frame garden design, painting with paint or create a wall with natural stone which supports the concept of the park.
The use of water can be one alternative to beautify the park. Pattern of water in the garden is not only unsightly, but will result in hanger and a soft voice. Manufacturing is easier than what is imagined and not cost much. Materials provided plastic tubes, pumps, flexible tubing and inexpensive fountain. The selection of flowers in your garden should be adjusted also with season flowers sprout from it. The flowers of certain types, may only be grown in certain months, but in other developing tidk. This will affect the beauty of your garden. Besides being monotonous, the park became more beautiful look. In determining the color and style, not only seen from how good the color and style, but how perpaduannya the whole park. It is also about the characteristics of growth.
Whether in their growth will be straight, curved to the side or vine. What about the growth of their branches. One of the troublesome enough activity in the maintenance of farming, such as weeding, mowing the lawn which was long, and others. To reduce the activity, choose the type of grass with low growth. That way you also do not need to interfere with the growth that can damage other plants. Shrubs can also be used as an alternative. So it is with stones. The latter is that you be smart in deciding which type of flowers will be planted in the garden where they grow. The need for lighting, water, and the type of fertilizer is needed are the things most important to take into account before determining your interest
The Ideal Garden Shrub
Gardening December 8th, 2009
Is this the perfect shrub for your garden?
It will thrive in any type of soil and can tolerate dry or waterlogged conditions. This shrub looks good all year round with superb flowers throughout the spring and summer, striking foliage in the autumn and attractive stems in the winter months. It will establish itself and grow quickly once planted, but stops growing at the right height and spread. As a result it never needs pruning and doesn’t take over the garden. This shrub won’t cost you the earth and it’s easy to propagate.
That’s about it except to say that its foliage produces a wonderful scent, especially on warm summer evenings when you are sitting on your patio watching the pigs fly home to roost.
I guess that the last bit sort of gives the game away. There is no ideal shrub, at least not as just described above but, let’s face it, if it existed, gardens would be full of them and life would be boring!
Accepting that we cannot have the shrub described, how about considering the following favourites of mine that tick some, if not all, of the boxes.
1. Choisya ternata “Sundance”. Every garden should have one of these. It doesn’t get too big, provides brilliant vibrant green/yellow, evergreen foliage and for me, its best quality, is the wonderful “lemony” scent it gives off. Plant it near where you sit.
2. Cornus or Dogwood. Lots of different varieties with beautiful coloured stems. Great to plant a few along a garage wall or fence which are then hidden by the foliage in the summer but then provide a backcloth to show off the stems in the winter. Dogwoods can get a bit carried away so it is important to prune them hard in early spring.
3. Euonymus alatus. There are lots of different types of Euonymus, most are planted for their evergreen, ground covering abilities – see them around your local car park. The Euonymus alatus or spindle tree is grown for its spectacular red, autumn foliage. I would say it is just about the brightest plant you will see in gardens at this time of year. If you like autumn colours, it’s a must have.
4. Fatsia japonica. If you want something a bit tropical looking and/or have a shady spot to fill, a Fatsia japonica with its large glossy leaves is ideal. Sometimes known as a castor oil plant, a Fatsia looks great all year round, grows at a reasonable rate and doesn’t get too big.
5. Leycesteria formosa or Pheasant Berry is a bit different. The chances are your neighbours won’t have this and I’m not sure why it is not more popular. It has attractive arching stems, long lasting flower tassels and foliage that colours well in autumn and hangs around well into winter. On big specimens the stems are bamboo-like, yet it’s not as aggressive and it flowers.
6. Finally one for the winter – Mahonia. There are lots of different varieties with big Holly-like leaves. The Mahonia is another one to fill a shady corner and provide greenery all year round. The big advantage of Mahonia though is the smell of its yellow flowers in the middle of winter – a truly wonderful perfume that ought to be bottled and sold at Marks and Sparks to buy for grannies and aunties.
