Home garden landscaping designs and maintenance tips

garden landscaping designs

Gardening is one of the best ways of spending your leisure time usefully. Not only that it interests the person who loves gardening but also proves to be a great deal of help to the environment. When there is an increase in the number of plants in the surrounding, there is bound to be less amount of pollution. Another advantage of having a garden at home is that it adds beauty to the house as well as acts as a source of food.

Starting a home garden

The first thing that is required to be done before starting a garden at home is to plan the type of garden you are about to set. There are a variety of options from which you can choose your garden. You can set either a garden with full of vegetables, flowers or fruits or a combination of the three. After deciding on the type of garden, think of the best plants that you find are suitable for your house. It is best to start with plants that are easy to grow and maintain. Some other factors that play an important role in starting a garden at home is the right time to start with and the suitable location for the plants to grow.

After having decided on the above factors, the next thing you have to gather is the home garden equipment required for the maintenance of your garden. There are quite a number of tools and equipment for the garden which are required for the different processes in the garden like digging, watering, measuring and cutting. These tools help you make the gardening work faster and easier.

The next step is to make up the gardening area for perfect use. Removing the weeds is a must before starting a garden as they may consume the nutrients you provide to your flowering plants of other productive plants. The soil must then be turned over by repeated digging using a shovel as it makes the soil softer and more fertile. To make the turning over of the soil easy, you can also add water and then start.

The final step is to plant the shrubs or herbs in the well prepared soil. For beginners, it is advised not to begin with planting seeds as it is a very delicate process and requires more effort and practice. Instead of seeds, you can plant cuttings that are available at every nursery. The soil around the plant must be moistened by pouring enough of water so that there is proper stability. Also get to know about the various methods of gardening which includes organic home gardening.

Home garden design and landscaping ideas

Berms: Berms can provide a mysterious look to your garden. Berm is actually a mound of earth that has sloping sides and is located in the areas of similar elevation. They add a better look to a landscape that is flat. Over the slopes are grown plants which so that there is an extra beauty to the garden and also prevents soil erosion. They also create additional depth to the soil in unfavorable subsurface soil conditions. The ideal height of the berms ranges from 18 to 24 inches.

Patios: They are generally located outside the house and designed along with a landscape. They can be built either of stone, concrete, brick, tile or gravel. Patios look good when constructed with flagstones, provided it is well placed so that there is an option of growing plants between the stones.

Overhead Structures, pergolas and arbors: They are one of the best methods of home garden landscaping built for providing an inviting look to the garden and extend the space of living. Most overhead structures are built of wood as they are easy to cut and shape. For further decoration of the structure, climbers and creepers can be grown over it.

Tips for a healthy garden

Watering

It usually misconstrued that the plants in the garden must be watered daily. But looking at the conditions of the weather, it must be decided whether to water the plants daily. It the climate is cool and moist, there is a least requirement of watering them everyday. When the plants are over watered, the growth of the roots is affected, thus affecting the plant as a whole. The grass during the season of growth needs to be watered once in three days and it needs to frequently be watered during the peak of summer. The time that is best to water the plants is early in the morning as the plants that are left wet during the night are likely to develop fungus and other diseases.

Fertilizing

It is important to provide the plants with proper fertilizers so that they remain healthy for a longer period. Some examples of fertilizers are nitrogen fertilizer, phosphorous fertilizer and potassium fertilizer which help to retain the healthy green color of the plants, increased growth of the roots and fighting diseases respectively. Some of the cases where fertilizers are required are septoria leaf spot, brown patch, powdery mildew, dollar spot and blight.

Raking

It is the process of the removal of the dead and fallen leaves off the ground as they serve as a major deterrent in the plant growth. This may further help in the prevention of diseases and provide a great deal of light to the plant.

Mulching

Mulching is the process of fully covering up the soil with organic materials. This is one of the best methods of organic home gardening. It reduces the evaporation of water from the soil and protects it from the sun, wind and frost. It increases the crop production and eliminated most weeds.