Читать книгу Landscaping For Dummies - Lance Walheim - Страница 48

The patio, deck, walkways, fences, trellises, and other hardscape elements of your landscape are just as important as the plants. Whether you’re shopping for store-bought or creating your own, make your hardscape elements as attractive as your planting beds. Part 2 spells out what you need to know to incorporate hardscape into your landscaping plan.

Here we discuss a few general points for you to remember when you’re looking to add hardscape to your plan:

 Think how the hardscape looks through the different seasons. If you live in a cooler climate, you’ll be looking at these items unadorned in the off season, when leaves have fallen and plants are dormant. You can soften them in all seasons by planting woody shrubs, vines, ornamental grasses, and trees nearby. A deck or patio without plants may look fine in summer surrounded by lawn grass, but in winter, it can look pretty bleak without a few natural plant forms to anchor it to the earth.If you live in a milder climate, winter is still a more subdued time of year. Inject color where you can, whether with cushions or pillows on your outdoor seating or on your the deck, patio, or front porch with pots of annuals (calendulas, pansies, primroses, and snapdragons are a few bright and cheery options).

 Be prepared for sticker shock when you’re shopping for hardscape and the related materials. Bricks, arbors, benches, fences, and all those other extras can be a much bigger investment than the plants. Considering how valuable they are in transforming an average garden into a great one, though, hardscape is well worth the investment. Search out the most beautiful arbor in the world, and you’ll love your garden forever. Skimp on the deck, and you’ll rue your miserly impulse for years.

 Make sure you maintain your hardscape. You’ve been thinking about caring for all the plants, but hardscape also requires regular attention. Sweep and yank out encroaching weeds in season. Paint or stain, perhaps annually. Invest in quality materials and build well.