Landscaping Tips for Beginners

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Landscaping can work wonders. You probably have a question, how can an inanimate plot of land, planted with plants, strewn with stones and decorative elements, can do something? Very simple. Go to a city park or visit the main attraction of a city. What a pleasant atmosphere there. How does this place make you feel? Most likely very pleasant and warm. Isn’t that a miracle? Place, shapes, colors can convey so many feelings and emotions, tell about their creator, about his life and interests. Famous and sought-after designers are so imbued with the idea that they are able to create truly impressive objects of landscape art..

Landscaping of the site is the creation of beauty and harmony around your home

Tips for beginners

Russian universities train certified design specialists. But design is not science, it is creativity. Creativity, as everyone knows, is unique and unique in its manifestations. In other words, every person who creates landscape objects brings in a drop of his own, unique and one-of-a-kind soul. Only by listening to the clues of their subconsciousness, famous designers created historical architectural compositions that have survived to this day. But they were not immediately recognized, for this time had to pass. Therefore, you do not need to be afraid to take the initiative in arranging your site. Sometimes, the most extraordinary and strange decisions create a unique atmosphere of the territory and reveal the true beauty of the human soul.

It takes a lot of work to create a practical vacation spot for the whole family.

In order to learn the basic lessons of landscape design, preliminary preparation is required. At this stage, you need to take time to study guides, manuals and magazines dedicated to the design of suburban areas and their gardens. Fortunately, the Internet is generous as always. In these books, you will find tips from designers who will share secrets with you, show you the most common mistakes beginners make, and set your aspiration in the right direction..

Always start small and implement your ideas slowly, enjoying the process itself, and not just its result

Of course, nothing can replace live communication with a person. But if you find a proper book written by a competent author, then you will absorb the makings of a true landscape master..

Good garden design has several attention-grabbing compositional centers. It can be anything – a tree, a bush, a pond, or a bench.

Usually, two or three books, read during the week, inspire the newly-made creator to such an extent that he runs at the same hour to the nearest gardening store and buys up everything he thinks he needs. Starting from decorative elements and ending with flowers and trees. It is strictly forbidden to do so. Haste will not lead to success, you will only forget all that little that you have learned. First you need to figure out the order, observing which you will be able to choose the right material for the fence and gazebo. The further choice of elements of small architectural forms, trees, flowers and plants depends on this..

Start your journey to your dream garden with one small flower bed or mixborder

Go out into the garden when you have time and desire, work and do not try to do everything at once and in one day

Basic principles of landscape design

The first step is to analyze the backyard area and figure out the relief of the site. Further arrangement largely depends on this..
Dividing the land into zones. This includes the markup on the plan of the recreation area, garden (vegetable garden) and small architectural forms.
Marking of backyard paths. They should provide ease of movement between zones, taking into account the width of the aisles..
Determination of the general composition of zones and architectural forms. At this stage, the choice of the building material, its color and shape, as well as the determination with the color of the tracks and the material of their manufacture takes place..
Selection of green spaces and flowers. At this stage, varieties of trees (their shapes) and flowers are selected, as well as the territorial location of mixborders, alpine slides.

Consider scaling and rendering with plant growth in mind

An important point in landscape design is the size of the personal plot. The arrangement of flower arrangements, as well as the choice of a place for planting trees, depends on them. In a small area, it becomes necessary to visually enlarge it. This effect can be achieved in different ways. One of them is the correct selection of the color of the fence and the asymmetric planting of conifers along it. Here you need to understand that the square or rectangular shape of the fence creates certain frames. To remove them, the fence is painted in light colors, and trees are planted in groups of 4-5 pieces in a row.

Each element of the garden should organically fit into the overall landscape composition

Trees must be bought at least half a meter above the fence. Due to this, a visual extension is created..

Coniferous hedge

If you want to add depth to your hedge, plant the trees in a checkerboard pattern.

Alpine slides are also arranged, which can be supplemented with multi-colored stones. A good idea to expand the area is to set up a mid-rise slide with a stream. And at the foot of the brook a small pond is dug, along the bank of which you can plant a moisture-loving fern. If we talk about a recreation area behind the house, then such an object is best placed near the fence. A curly ivy carpet is put on the fence. Such a cascade of architectural forms will create the effect of perspective, that is, an external observer, when contemplating this beauty, will feel the depth of space, saturation and volume.

Against the background of a perfectly mowed lawn, a path of concrete slabs looks good, the space around which is covered with small pebbles

The article mentions small architectural forms. On the Internet, they can also be found under the abbreviated name MAF. For a person unfamiliar with this concept, the following are the main elements of the LFA involved in landscape design.

Terraces, verandas and gazebos.
Trellis, pergolas and arches.
Garden fences, mixborders, fountains and sculptures.
Reservoirs, streams and bridges across them.
Other decorations ranging from free-standing flower vases to garden gnomes.

Wooden bridge over a “dry” stream

Beautiful decoration of a blank fence

In addition, every person living in the city, the LFA meets every day. These are bus stops, telephone booths, city and park benches and many other elements..

Terraces, gazebos and pergolas

These structures play the same role in the landscape design of a land plot. They are built to create a recreation area, do your favorite things and just have a pleasant pastime. Their distinctive features are the location relative to the country house, as well as the design.

Outdoor terrace with gazebo and barbecue area

Pergola came to our country from abroad. Italy is its historical homeland. The structure of this facility is simple: four or six support beams are topped with horizontal roof dividers. Most often it is made of wood, less often of metal..

Corner pergola made of wood with a sofa for secluded relaxation

It is undesirable to use metal, as it heats up strongly in the sun and can ruin the plants that entwine its elements.

Climbing plants are used to create shade of the space under the pergola. It is preferable to choose densely creeping grapes. It grows without flowering, but it has a non-uniform leaf shade (from dark green to burgundy and even red). The space under the pergola is equipped with rain-resistant garden furniture. Also, in some cases, you can place a pool under it. This solution is convenient in very hot climatic regions..

Climbing plants can hide anything, anywhere

On the open terrace, it is practical to use rattan furniture with removable cushions

The resting place can be arranged both on a paved stone platform and on a wooden platform.

The device of the terrace implies its location near the house, or rather, it is attached to it. The main difference between such a structure and a veranda is open placement. That is, there is no canopy or one wall. This characterizes the building as a purely summer holiday option. If it is planned to use the terrace in winter, then it is made with sliding glass doors, which is very convenient. But then it will no longer be a terrace, but a combined veranda.

An original terrace with a seating area inside

Closed gazebo for winter recreation

The device of the gazebo implies the presence of garden furniture, a fireplace and a barbecue.

When installing the gazebo, it is necessary to pay attention to the presence of the leeward side. If there is one, then one wall must be made deaf, or loaches should be planted.

The blank wall of the gazebo is placed from the leeward sorona

Seven Tips for Beginners

When organizing a general landscape style, all zones should overlap with each other. Smooth lines of paths and tree crowns are complemented by rectangular shapes of a gazebo or other buildings.
For a relatively small area, use methods to visually increase the space.
Installing flowerpots in several levels will save space, as well as simplify the daily care of flowers and plants.
If the home plot is located on a slope, which implies a large amount of land work, you can use this in favor of design. Arrange decorative retaining walls using natural stone. Also in this case, alpine slides, a pool or a pond are arranged at the lowest elevations of the earth..
With especially large differences in ground level, it is necessary to organize a site in several levels, separated from each other by retaining walls. From the point of view of landscape design, on such sites it turns out to arrange extraordinary and very beautiful architectural compositions. The only drawback is a decent cash investment..
On large land holdings, the possibility of installing a fountain and large flower arrangements opens up. If finances do not allow you to purchase a fountain, then you can make decorative elements such as boats, mills, or multi-level flower arrangements with your own hands. Also, an excellent solution would be to organize a large alpine slide..
Before choosing one or another design option, you need to reconsider different combinations and combinations of architectural elements. For a visual presentation of compositional solutions, use computer programs that allow you to combine LFAs and pre-evaluate your performance. The advantage of this software is the presence of prompts and ready-made images and solutions.

Stones of various sizes and shapes create the effect of a mountain landscape

The color in the landscape is the most important rule for creating the desired effect. The main one is always green, but blotches of other shades give greater expressiveness.