Advice on Garden/Terrace/Patio design!
6 years ago
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Gazebo, Planters, Patio, Terracing on a Cliff
Comments (9)Today I was doing a little brainstorming of the north/sunny side of the footprint. The silver pole in the middle is 10 feet long. The long orange ribbons are about the first floor. A couple of more trees will come out soon. I am trying to figure out how to position the garden, water feature, hot tub, cold frame and a seat back here where the sun hits thanks to removing trees for the house. I guess the water feature/koi pond should be just outside the hot tub, seat should be up on the hill out of the sun, an area for sun bathing someplace nearby the tub and the garden and cold fram off somewhere where they get lots of sun too. The yellow ribbon marks the drainage swale that will have water in it only during a very heavy rain storm so it could be rock lined or grass lined and could have a bridge crossing. The smaller orange delineations are possible locations of hot tub etc. So all of these need to be joined with walks and stairs and the relationships between them, the slope, the sun and the view to and from the house and the distant trees all need to be addressed. So what needs to be where? Patty, what do you think? :) a href="http://photobucket.com" target="_blank">...See MoreAdvice for growing climbing roses on a terrace, please.
Comments (21)I have no head for heights and that makes me feel a bit giddy but it must be fun to look out from there on a sunny day... I think I would grow the rose up the wall on the left and a clematis along the railings.. I would plant the clematis on the right at the corner junction to train the clematis along both railings. However, depending where the sun rises, you might find most of the flower stems try to grow on the other side of the railings away from you and some pulling back in and training this side may be necessary, so you get the most benefit. I'm not sure if I would use 2 individual pots rather than 1 large one. I grow a rose in a pot that's much smaller... it's about 1 foot from front to back, about 2 and half feet lengthways, and about 2 feet deep. The rose I grow in it is 'Benjamin Britten' and it's been there for 3 seasons now and is thriving. It will be good for another 3 I should think and I won't change the soil until I see signs of deterioration. It's about 5 foot tall and I've had about 4 flushes this year, and it's trying for a 5th but the weather has cooled.. I grow bulbs, Pelargoniums, Violas, Candytuft, along with the rose during summer.. nothing too invasive rootwise though. 9th Sept '16 'Benjamin Britten' in a pot... ..you can see a glimpse of my container here below, it's quite narrow across the top. I was taking a photo of my Molinia 'Karl Foerster'. I know I'm a long way off but just trying to give you some encouragement. Hope all goes well.......See MoreAdvice on landscape/garden design please
Comments (35)"I need something that won't get over 10 feet (my husband doesn't want it to grow taller than the corner of the roof)" from a landscape perspective that doesn't make rational sense. The purpose of that tree is to give a sense of shelter and protection for the house (making it look somewhat nestled in, and be over the head of of those who use the walk. It can't do this job if only 10' tall! When such a small tree is planted close to the house, whatever portion of it would grow into the house is simply cut off. It's at the back side and doesn't show. As with a wall sconce, one does not become distressed because the back side of the lamp & shade doesn't exist. If a tree is only 10' tall, then one figures the bottom of the canopy can be no higher than 5' to 6'. (A pancake shaped head is not desirable.) That is not exactly OVER one's head, as shelter would be. It is a head SCRAPER ... as a tree that seems neglected would be. The point of the small tree is that is doesn't exceed a certain terminal height by virtue of its genetics, but a reasonable height for the position you have would be 15' or 16' with the canopy bottom being in the 8'/9' height range ... plenty easy enough to walk under and plenty tall enough that it looks in proportion to the house and capable of acting as shelter and protection for it. If it doesn't look like it makes sense, it's ultimately not going to look good. The tree itself may be a beauty even if it's way undersized, but it is certainly not going to look like it's properly manning the post for the job it's supposed to be doing for the house....See MoreWhat to do with terraces beside our patio?(all the backyard we have)
Comments (13)Slope frequently does not convey accurately through photographs. It's hard for us to tell exactly how much you're dealing with. To me, it looks like you're going to need some retaining walls and cannot convert it back to slope. Keep in mind that slopes are like slow moving glaciers. A slope could stay in place for awhile. But over time they move, working their way downhill. After a bit, if just slope, I would imagine you'd be constantly cleaning soil off of the patio. There would likely be erosion problems coming, too. To replace what is there, I would recommend you use a concrete or masonry material due to its being longer lasting and its potential to be simpler. The existing wood walls look very busy and poorly constructed. I would recommend that you get someone on site to design something simpler, within your budget. It would be nice to make the slope toward the patio, including the stairs, less steep. I would use plants that didn't get too tall flanking the patio. Right now there are large bushes at each front corner of the patio. To me, they encroach too much in the view and would be better placed closer to the house, but not in front of windows. Directly out in the yard are a couple or three trees that will eventually be smack in front of the main view. I'd consider doing away with these in favor of trees pushed more to the side of the view....See More- 6 years agolast modified: 6 years agoLinsy B thanked Southwest Boulder & Stone
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