In garden design lay out keep it simple

16 years ago

If some of you think this is to elementary feel free to move on. Others probably have the need to know. I did at one time.

My latest plan is to incorporate 2 islands around 7 already planted conifers. My whole theme is free flowing with no square corners or formal look.

I always begin with a plan drawn to scale on paper. Nothing fancy, just a general out line of what you want.

Free flow drawings are always hard to lay out because you usually have no square corners to measure off. In my case I used the center points of the already planted conifers for reference points, I then drove a stake at the boundary line. To fine tune the design I used a garden hose to lay the design out on the ground based on where the stakes are. After you are satisfied that you have it right follow the hose with a sod cutter to cut in the permanent boundary. Get a good nights sleep before you begin to remove existing sod remnants. That's always the hard part.

Enclosed are a few photos. Island A is what you are looking at. B comes next. Yes I know the clothes line is still there. I'm still working on that. How do you make a clothes line look like a conifer?

Dave

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Featured Answer

wbgarden

16 years ago

Hi, nice plan..,nice begining.., I still remember my. It was 40 years ago. IÂ¡v had only one thing on my mind to see all my trees in every time all year round from my windows....
Some pictures from this rainy day....
Jan wbgarden

Here is a link that might be useful: Dwarf conifers house and garden

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Comments (32)

greenlarry
16 years ago
Looks a good plan,will certainly make it easier to cut the grass! As for the clothesline you could get a green one or getthat wonderful Australian intention the rotary clothes line. ;)
ken_adrian Adrian MI cold Z5
16 years ago
just super Dave .... great work ...

the only thing i would add ... IF YOU HAVE A RIDING MOWER .... let the grass grow for a week extra .... set the blades a bit lower ... and then make the beds mowable .. nothing worse than going through all of Dave's machinations [ i mean that in a good way].. and ending up with a BEAUTIOUS DESIGN ... that can not be maintained with the mower .... what a potential nightmare.. lol ...

i once made this wondrous.. cut sod 90 degree turn ... just amazing ... but for the fact that the mower couldn't make the turn ...

i tried for years to rework it ... it just got so frustrating.. lol .. live and learn ...

my goal .. on 5 acres is NEVER to have to pull out the weed whip .. nor the push mower ... so all design is based on the turning radii of the rider ...

here's a pic for reference.. ken

two pix.. since they were already in photobucket ... prior to reworking
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after reworking.. by cutting the lawn extra short.. i can then lay the hose right along the height difference.. then.. roundup .. low pressure.. set the nozzle right on the hose.. and spray into the bed... bring in the mulch ... go figure..
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the finished product .... BTW.. the mulch is left 6 to 8 inches back .. because the robins destroy the edge .. filling the rest in within the year ....
{{gwi:648943}}
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Thank you so much for all the input. I've got "a long row to hoe" before the garden in my yard resembles the one in my mind! This garden has descended into nightmare status. I had to hire help with the rocks. They showed up when I was gone and proceeded to slap them down every which way. I had started the first five stones by laying landscape fabric under the stone, tucking it under so it didn't show in front and leaving enough to cover the stones from the inside of the garden. As I added all the layers of "lasagna" ingredients, I tucked and moved the fabric into place for each stone. To our already deep, rich North Dakota topsoil, we've hauled in trailer load after load of old, composted horse manure and straw, emu manure, dirt from the potato farm's cleaning facility, three years of grass clippings and mulched leaves. The soil is deep and rich and alive with earthworms. I finally said "enough" this season and decided to start planting. The neighbors didn't need to look at an empty dirt pile any longer, LOL. Ianna - I agree. Some of the rocks are perched on the tip; the guys that "lined" the garden didn't have a clue as to placing a rock in a natural position. I was shocked to come home and find this job "finished." At least it was a barter-system job and I didn't have to put out cold cash. I am going to line the path, properly, by myself. If it takes the rest of the summer that's fine. Once that is done I'll tackle two or three of the outer border rocks at a time by myself until they are "correct." I can move them with a pry bar and the heavy duty handcart; I just can't lift them. They are all larger than basketballs. I don't use Facebook, but I love the Garden Web forums. I've been lurking for years and drooling over the many gardens. From small to large I find them all so informative and beautiful. LuckyGal - How beautiful; your garden path is exactly what I've envisioned! I think you're right. My area, though large for planting, probably isn't large enough to pull off an "S" curve. I'll play with the garden hose and see what I come up with. What are the dimensions of your garden and the path? Midnight'sMum - Right now the grassed area is between six and seven feet wide; I don't plan for it to be any more narrow than five feet - and probably more like six. I'll keep plodding along and will be asking more questions before it all comes together. Thanks again for all the input. Your help is a blessing.
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jspece
16 years ago
I look forward to the "after" pictures, Dave!
dansgrdn
16 years ago
Nice bed design Dave! Makes me want to get out the garden hose and make a new bed. Now if only I could convince my wife. :) (I better not go there, I 've definately exceeded my quota for garden projects this year.) Thanks for posting the photos, Dan.
wisconsitom
16 years ago
Good message Dave. The only thing I'd add-and Ken alluded to it-is that, rather than removing all the sod, one could spray it with Roundup (Or equivalent glyphosate herbicide) and safely get to where you wanna go. The glyphosate will degrade into harmless substances in the soil and leave no residue to negatively impact your subsequent plantings. Also, for those who do not wish to use any herbicides, the tech of placing black plastic or cardboard over the area works too.

+oM
dcsteg
Original Author
16 years ago
Ken, I am still laughing about the riding mower and the "wondrous 90 degree sod cut".

I am glad we are not all perfect. If so we would have nothing to laugh at. Every once in a while I have to ask my self why did I do that what were you thinking.

As for me my plan is reclaim my back yard with conifer beds with grass walk ways in between.

I will remember to stay away from the 90 degree corners.

Thanks again for your humor.

Dave
ken_adrian Adrian MI cold Z5
16 years ago
ahh .. but dave needs gravel .... lol .. couldnt lay that down neatly over rotting grass ... eh dave ...

i actually use CREDIT EXTRA ... generic roundup extra .. 2.5 gal of 41% for $65 bucks.. vs 128$ for roundup .. not a hard decision ...

ken
Luv My Conifers
16 years ago
Awesome pics guys! I think I am going to have to come up with a design like that soon... My hubby is getting SO tired of cutting around all of "MY" conifer circles. haha
botann
16 years ago
The shape of the lawn should be considered before the shape of the beds. Shape, not size. The size of the lawn in relation to the beds is determined by how much space you want to plant trees, shrubs, and groundcovers in. I think of the shape of a lawn as water.
I don't have a riding lawnmower yet, but I plan as if I had one.

{{gwi:829090}}

I removed the bamboo on the right this summer.
Pamchesbay
16 years ago
Dave: Thanks for posting your plan and photos. I'm working on a master plan for the land and it's driving me crazy. You all give me hope (and ideas).

What you need for your clothes line is parachute rigging line - it's very strong (500+ lbs), comes in several colors including olive green, foliage green, desert camo, and black (probably more), and lasts a long, long time. You can paint the uprights so they blend in too.

I just checked Ebay, they have it in 100 foot lengths for $5-7, it's also available in longer lengths. Black tends to disappear visually so that may work best for your purposes - although if you forget it's there ...

If you have stuff you need to hang from trees (like amateur radio antennas), it works great for that too.

I don't know how long this link will be good but you can always search - use "parachute."

Pam

Here is a link that might be useful: Parachute Rigging Line
Embothrium
16 years ago
First layout looks like a Wagnerian or Chinese opera, with conspicuously attired characters spread out over a stage. While the bed and lawn shapes are pleasantly related it is still a collection featuring unrelated specimens, a "specimen garden" or "Aberratum". To make this into a "restful landscape picture" (Garden Design Illustrated) would require interplanting with lesser shrubs to blend the different accent point types already present together. Planting drifts of multiples of the shrubbier conifers already present could help quite a bit toward moving the layout in that direction. It depends on what you want, when myriad extreme forms are packed together it is pretty hard to get away from a See's Variety Assortment look. I'd rather have something less active and more naturalistic than One of Everything, myself.
karinl
16 years ago
That can be the challenge of the collector's garden.

KarinL
dcsteg
Original Author
16 years ago
Of all the gardens I have seen I would have to give botann high honors. A well thought out design is pleasing to the eye. Because of the climate some of the best gardens are found in the Northwest. It also helps to have a large plot of land.

For the rest of us with residential lawns it is a definite challenge to get it right. Also, location plays a part. We all can't grow what we want to. We do our best with what we have.

Dansgrdn is a good example of a specimen garden. The garden is well thought out and the design is attractive. He has the natural ability to bring out the best in garden design.

Most of the rest of us are still developing what we precevive to be a conifer garden. We design and implement as time and money is available. Good results lay ahead. For some years away.

Yes, what you see in my garden is a hodge podge of unrelated specimens. Most of the main players are in. Some areas are developing quite nicely while other areas need companion plants to bring it together. In 10 years it should have come together quite nicely.

One good thing about this forum is we get to see what everybody is doing in garden design and we don't even have to leave the house. Many different personality's, wants and dislikes come into play. We all can learn from this experience.

Dave
kim_dirtdigger
16 years ago
Very well said, Dave! We all have different tastes, and we are all trying to design our own gardens under very different circumstances -- layout and amount of land, soil type, climate. We can admire many different gardens, and take little pieces and ideas from each of them to make our garden our own. This forum and those that contribute to it are a wonderful resource for those of us who are starting from scratch and trying to learn. I always enjoy your photos -- keep 'em comin. And I hear ya on diggin' up sod -- I've done my share of that this year. Kim
Embothrium
16 years ago
It always comes back to what you want. Input from others can help you get an effect you weren't achieving on your own. That's why there are designers who are paid to participate in projects (garden projects as well as other projects).

A classic way to blend conifer specimens in a collection is by planting drifts of heathers and other low shrubs of compatible naturalistic character around them. The National Dwarf Conifer Collection and A. Bloom's (Foggy Bottom) garden, both in England demonstrate this well. Bloom's books have many pictures and descriptions of what he has done there. The internet probably has some pictures of the other garden also.
tsugajunkie z5 SE WI ♱
16 years ago
Nice pix Dave & Botann and good design advice bboy. My biggest problem with design- in the city- for a collector- is designing to look decent now while allowing for at least some future growth. And although heathers aren't hardy here, I'll repeat annuals or perennials to try to achieve that thread of commonality throughout the garden.

tj
Embothrium
16 years ago
Other dwarf shrubs can be used instead, creeping junipers for instance.
lilyfkr
16 years ago
The lawn mower idea is a great one. I have found that if you have a side discharge mower you shouold make the paths at least two, three or four would be better, mower widths wide. The reason being that if you use a side discharge mower, you are blowing the clippings and any seed from grass or weeds that have formed into the bed if you are just making the path one mower deck wide. I know, I know, we don't let our lawns go to seed, but it always seems like we get rain here at least once a summer that prevents mowing until seeds have formed.
Pamchesbay
16 years ago
Botann: Thanks for posting that photo - it is lovely. I read on your page that you've been gardening on 10 acres for nearly 30 years. Until recently, I gardened on 1/3 acre and used strips of lawn as paths from place to place - like streams of water.

Two years ago, I moved to 5+ acres close to my original cottage. Most of the land is flat, empty field, with about 1,500 feet of waterfront on the Chesapeake Bay. I view the land as a gift but didn't know what to do with it. It is so big. Conditions, especially wind, are completely different. I was overwhelmed.

I have no training in landscape design. I wanted to make beautiful gardens but didn't know where to start. Finally, I decided to stop pressuring myself to take action and spend time reading, studying and learning on forums like this one.

I think this is the right path / stream to take for now. It's very hard but I don't know enough yet to plan and create for beautiful gardens and forests.

For those who were impressed by Botann's photo, you can see more of her garden pics on the Webshots site.

Pam

Here is a link that might be useful: Garden Pics from Botann
jspece
16 years ago
Amazing garden, Jan!
conifers
16 years ago
Those are footsteps and blueprints to great garden(s).

Dax
Pamchesbay
16 years ago
Jan: Your gardens blow my mind. I've never seen anything like them. Can you describe how you learned to do this?

Your brain must be very gifted in visualizing and creating designs.

Pam
treelover3
16 years ago
Jan,
Your garden is AMAZING! It is the PERFECT garden, IMHO.

Shape, color and texture all used to create an unbelievably harmonious garden setting. I wish I had the amount of space that you have for your garden.

Some day...

Thanks for posting the pictures.
Mike
botann
16 years ago
Jan, excellent photos of an excellent garden, conifer or otherwise. Absolutely beautiful! Look at all the forms, textures and colors! And not a blossom to be seen,...and it's all year long!
Cottage gardens pale in comparison. (oh oh, here we go.)
Pamchesbay
16 years ago
botann:

I don't think anyone could disagree with your statement about cottage gardens after viewing the gardens Jan created. I discovered photo albums on his website - I think they will be interesting to those of us who want to learn more about design issues.

If you go to Jan's website at http://wbgarden.com/
then click the American flag, you will be directed to the English language version of the site where you will find several slideshows.

http://wbgarden.com/nove/wb/wbe/indexe/indexe.htm

I found many more images on this page (link at end). Scroll down until you see many small images, click one, a large one will appear.

Pam

Here is a link that might be useful: Photos from Jan's Gardens
gottagarden
16 years ago
Great photos everyone.

Botann - why did you remove the bamboo to the right? As I looked at the photo I thought the bamboo was perfect, screening off what was behind, making a bit of mystery, it's heft balanced the other side, and from the other direction it probably made a nice screen.
wbgarden
16 years ago
Hi, thank you for kind words, but I have to tell you that landscaping time of my garden is slowly going to the end, because my garden is small and overcrowded now. About 3000 trees on the 1000 quadrat meters..., every ten cm is a tree.., mostly dwarf conifers, of course...
Jan wbgarden

PS To Botan, I donÂ´t understand a bamboo positioning..., /sorry for my english...
Jan

Here is a link that might be useful: Dwarf conifers
kim_dirtdigger
16 years ago
Pam -- Thanks so much for posting that link. I saw that grouping of pictures once, then couldn't find them again when I went back into Jan's website.

Jan -- Absolutely amazing garden!! How long have you been gardening on your property?
botann
16 years ago
The bamboo on the right is screening some nice conifers that are the same scale as the ones on the left. It was also blocking the view from the house of a pond located, unseen, in the foreground in front of the grass. Even though the Black bamboo is supposed to be clumping, it was spreading and becoming a maintenance problem. It still is, as it is 40 ft. wide planted between the driveway and the pond.
kim_dirtdigger
16 years ago
Botann -- I love your gardens and enjoy looking through your albums periodically.

I can't imagine what a job it must have been removing the bamboo. Can you ever really get it all out? I've been tempted to plant some, but fear it getting out of control. The black bamboo is especially attractive. -- Kim
botann
16 years ago
I only removed about 15 ft. I cut it off and when it sprouted, I sprayed it with Roundup. We'll see what it does next Spring. I was using the Black Bamboo to help contain the Gold Bamboo as the Gold seems to spread faster for me. Hey, it worked for about 15 years!
I'm glad you enjoy my albums Kim. Someday I'm going to get them organized.
I strive for simplicity, but never seems to achieve it.

In garden design lay out keep it simple

wbgarden

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