The author of the following text is Radosław Mielcarek from Kutno, the reader of the Garden Recipe magazine. "
Establishing and maintaining a garden requires not only patience and aesthetic sense, but also knowledge - at least at a basic level. Greenery is my passion, and I am lucky to have a profession.Working as a gardener, I had the opportunity not only to create gardens from scratch, but also to "improve" old ones.
Every time I try to find irregularities in the arrangement of green corners and eliminate them. What am I guided by when establishing or modernizing a garden? Here are the top 10 things.
1. The style of the garden and the surroundings
The most important thing is the compliance of the garden with the buildings and the surrounding landscape. Of course, you can set up a country garden on a plot with a modern house, but a certain rasp will remain.
A country garden is more suitable for wooden huts or manors.In addition, it is also worth choosing the color of paving stones or other stone used for sidewalks and paths so that they do not clash with the roofs of buildings.Too many colors in one space do not look good.
Greenery should also harmonize with the landscape - it is good to plant some common species of plants in the garden that grow in the surroundings. These can be, for example, black lilacs, pines and wild roses.
2. Choosing the right plants
Depending on the size and location of the property, I select the appropriate plant species.A huge tree growing as a solitaire on a small plot of land will drown other specimens. On the other hand, low trees planted in a large garden will not give the expected effect. When selecting plants, I mainly consider their light and water requirements.
It is obvious that plants that like the sun will grow poorly in the shade and vice versa.I take into account the type of the preferred substrate only in the second place - its structure can be changed - by loosening, composting, mixing with sand and other similar procedures.
3. Separation of a section in the garden
I "unfold" the garden into several parts, dividing them, for example, with flowerbeds and solid elements such as a stone path. In the place farthest from the road, I would see a practical place - a vegetable garden, an orchard and a herbarium. The representative part of the garden should be richer in colorful flower beds, hedges and structures
stone or wood.
4. Less is more
I always prefer to plant a smaller number of species, but in slightly larger groups.Too much diversity of plants destroys, and basically deprives the garden of its character.
5. I bet on nature
I try to avoid introducing any kind of artificial decorations. While I am ready to admit the beauty of marble statues or fountains, garden gnomes, colorful swans or frogs have never convinced me.It is of course a matter of taste - but in this respect I follow the philosophy of the Far East - the garden should be as natural as possible.
6. Composing a discount
When creating a rebate, I stick to the iron rule - plants are low in the front, taller in the back. Many plant lovers make mistakes on this issue.
7. Tailor-made garden
In elevated areas, I set up rockeries, moors or plant cover plants. I have seen lawns on uneven terrain.Of course it looked nice, but remember that such turf is difficult to mow.
8. Let's plan ahead
Another important rule is - better not enough plants than too many. Beginners often plant greenery in a thoughtless way.You have to remember that the plants will grow in time and there will be a problem.Clearing such a garden requires additional work and effort. Plus, I feel sorry for every plant I have looked after over the years.
9. Man in the garden
When arranging the garden, I remember about the household members. If we have a small child, it is better to fence the pond and not to plant poisonous or thorny plants, such as barberry and acacia. The curiosity of children knows no bounds, so in the moment of our inattention, they can hurt themselves.
10. We fight intruders
I try to create a pest-free garden from the very beginning. When setting up a new lawn, it is worth investing in a mesh and placing it under
soil to protect against moles.Better to incur the additional cost once than then look for expensive and not necessarily effective ways to get rid of them.In the garden, I limit the places of water stagnation to reduce the occurrence of mosquitoes.
