Small Space Gardening

There are many different reasons for people choosing to garden in a small space like on a balcony, patio, or courtyard. For some they have moved from a large house to smaller accommodation, and some have chosen to live in rental property to avoid the high-cost of owning a home. Whatever the reason, this doesn’t mean we can’t garden. No space is too small for a small space garden. You could say that only one plant in a container is a garden. In fact, many gardening options are available in terms of pots, half-barrels, window boxes, troughs, cast-iron planters, recycled materials – the list is unending with possibilities.

Planning a Small Space Garden

When planning your small space garden several steps are fundamental. The first consideration is to determine what purpose this space will serve. Next what do you want to do in it, grow vegetables, herbs; entertain family and friends; meditate; create a place of peace and healing; have a memorial garden – the list is endless. Now, walk around your space and really look at what you have. Where are the doors, sheds, permanent and planters located? Clear out any clutter and start with a clean slate.
If possible, take a chair and sit down, move it around, and think about where the energy feels best for you. Wherever that is, place your seating such as a park bench, lounger, Adirondack chairs, dining furniture, swing, etc. Do you want a formal or informal setting? Think of what features you may want? Features such as water, flowers, wind chimes, wild life, color, etc. These can add the finishing touches to your small space garden. Finally, have a plan particularly if you are going to use large features such as a half-barrel because once filled with soil you will not want to be moving it.

Creating a Small Space Garden

Containers: Generally speaking natural materials such as wood, clay, stone, or cast iron in all their forms make better companions for plants. Remember that wet soil weighs a lot so if you garden is on a balcony you may have weight restrictions. Containers made from lighter weight materials such as fiberglass are ideal for roof or balcony gardens. The styles of containers include hanging baskets, wirework stands and baskets, wood window boxes, sinks, troughs, galvanized buckets, old shoes or boots, and all manner of recycled objects.

Scale: Scale is extremely important in small space gardening. For example, small plants look more balanced in small containers, large plants in large containers. I especially like the effect of vines growing on trellis in half-barrels with smaller plants edging the container. I have found that the effect of scarlet runner pole beans is really a knockout with their gorgeous red flowers and you can eat them too.

Microclimates: You should choose plants according to the conditions suitable for their optimum growth. Plants such as begonia, coleus, and Fuchsia prefer shaded areas while geraniums, marigolds, and petunia prefer full sun. Also if you are gardening on a balcony wind can be a major factor and damage fragile plants. For this you need to choose plants that are wind tolerant such as many of the grasses; the sound of the rustling of the grasses as the wind blows through them is very pleasing to the ear.

Soil: I buy pre-mixed potting soil from garden centers or department stores. These are generally lighter in weight, are sterilized to prevent weed seeds from germinating, and contain a lot of peat moss that helps loosen the soil so that it doesn’t compact in pots.

Watering: Check daily as container plants often dry out more quickly. This is especially true if you are using clay pots. Make sure your pots have drainage holes though, as roots sitting in water will rot. You may even want to empty saucers that are full after heavy rain fall.

Fertilizer: Due to frequent watering, container plants require fertilizer on a more consistent basis than plants in the ground do. I use only organic fertilizers such as blood meal, bone meal, or fish emulsion, as I add the soil to the garden at the end of the season, and chemical fertilizers harm the wildlife.

Function: When you are creating your small space garden you are actually designing an outdoor room. So keep in mind you may want to color coordinated it so it appears as an extension of your home. I also move my indoor plants outside for the summer (which they love) and design these areas as garden rooms.

Focal point: Create a focal point such as a large pot, tall plant or small tree, color, or a water feature. You can also create a sense of mystery by hiding a plant or ornament behind something else to give the pleasure of discovering it.

Color: In a small space, try using three colors such as pinks, blues, and whites; reds, oranges, and yellows; or reds, whites, and purples that provide continuity rather than too many colors which tend to be distracting. Cool colors can make the space appear bigger and brighter while intense colors tend to shrink spaces. A white and green color theme called a ‘moon garden’ is more formal and particularly at night it’s spectacular.

Lighting: I like the small Xmas lights hidden in plants or interwoven throughout a trellis with climbing vines. Small spotlights can focus attention on a particular area for evening entertaining.

Small space gardening is fun and not that much work as you don’t have that much to take care of. But it can have a huge impact on your outdoor living space.

Small Space Gardens “by the yard”

Protecting Exterior Woods Properly is a Growing Challenge

Homeowners have made wood the top choice for exterior surfaces. So keeping it properly protected is important and a growing challenge, it’s not just siding, but decks, furniture and all the other accessories that are part of the extended outdoors lifestyle.

Homeowners are upgrading their outside living and garden areas with a lot of zeal these days. Americans spend $40 billion annually on their terraces, decks, patios, cabanas, pool houses, gazebos, and outdoor kitchens. This means there is a lot of outdoor wood in our yards that needs protecting.

What's necessary to keep all of this wood in tip-top shape as it faces exposure to the deteriorating effects of Mother Nature?

One of the ways to maintain a natural wood look and protect your wood at the same time is to use outdoor wood stains. When it comes to stains performance is the main thing a consumer should look at and the two main things it should protect from are water and UV rays. It needs to stop water from penetrating into the wood where it breaks down the cells, causing the wood to go soft on the inside and eventually rot. UV rays are what changes the color of the wood and they work on the surface of the wood to break it down and cause it to rot.

Responding to this growing focus on the expanded outdoors lifestyle paint companies have developed new technologies that protect and beautify just about every wood surface. These collections offer a multitude of extraordinary hues, often inspired by organic life and the outdoors world. These stains come in solid colors and translucent (which allows the natural beauty of the wood to come through. When choosing the color of the stain that is best for your house the best way is to make sure it blends well with the existing colors around your house. So you should consider things like the color of your roof, siding, trim, driveway, and surrounding plant life.

When it comes to finishes, a clear finish is ideal for new or well-maintained wood. As I said it reveals the natural beauty of the material without obscuring either its grain or texture. With more opacity, the additional pigments provide additional protection and color selection, but mask the grain of the wood while still highlighting the wood's natural texture. Stains with more opacity are a good choice for older wood that is not in pristine condition or when additional color selection is desirable.

For every type of wood no matter its condition-new, worn, or plagued by mildew or mold, there is a preparation coating that is available and recommended. Woods like redwood or cedar have natural wood protectants right in the wood and stay looking good for a long time. Even though this is true they also can use some help from time to time. To ensure your exterior wood assets are protected, they should be coated evenly with a clear finish, relatively soon after installation. Remember, proper preparation is the ultimate determinant of how long the beauty of a staining job will last.

For the best advice on selecting an exterior stain and preparation appropriate for the type of wood on the exterior of your home or other outdoor project, speak to an experienced professional at the paint store you prefer dealing at.

One last tip: Be sure to test your color selections on the surface to be stained to see if it's accurate and exactly what you want. Remember that the natural color or grain pattern of the wood itself can greatly influence the final color.

Protecting exterior woods “by the yard”

A Beautiful and Healthy Lawn

It’s time to start working on that beautiful and healthy lawn in your yard. You don’t have to use chemicals to have a beautiful lawn. In fact, your lawn will be much healthier if you ban the use of chemicals. Many communities have and are in the process of banning the use of lawn chemicals (mine already has). The use of chemicals can poison soil and contaminate our water.

Use the following tips to get your lawn off drugs.

• Start off by testing your lawn’s soil, using a soil test kit. This will tell you how much organic matter is in the soil, the ph balance and what nutrients you need to obtain a perfect soil balance.

• Aerating your lawn at this time of year is always a good idea in order to prevent the soil from becoming compacted. This breaks through heavy thatch and allows nutrients and organic matter to reach your lawn’s root system. If water runs off your lawn easily when watering, it’s a sure sign that you need to aerate. Note: The best aerators in the world are earthworms.

• Check your lawn for thatch and if the thatch layer is more than a half inch thick, it’s time to de-thatch. Thatch prevents air, nutrients and water from getting to the soil which can cause a wide variety of problems. If you aerate and rake your lawn briskly, most of the thatch will be removed. You don’t have to get rid of all the thatch as some thatch is beneficial to your lawn as it promotes decomposition of grass clippings and organic matter.

• If your lawn has some bare spots, you need to reseed with a mixture of grass varieties. Most lawn diseases are very selective. By using a mixture of grasses, you will ensure that your lawn will not be totally wiped out by disease.

• You need to learn to tolerate beneficial weeds, such as clover. Clover is a nitrogen magic plant that will enhance the health and beauty of your lawn.

• The best type of weed control is to remove weeds by hand. Around 80% of all weeds are annuals. If you remove them before they go to seed, you will be rid of them. Some lawn weeds are perennials and you need to dig them out by root. It must be the entire root system to ensure they can’t grow back.

• Grass is always healthier when it is a bit longer. Grass should always be two to three inches high. To prevent it from going into shock you should only cut one third of the height of the grass at one time. Taller grass grows longer roots, shades the soil and prevents weed infiltration. It is also imperative that the mower blade is always sharp to prevent grass damage.

• Do not remove your grass clippings from your lawn. This saves you raking your lawn and also acts as natural fertilizer if they aren’t coated with chemicals. To promote the decomposition process though, you need to make sure the grass clippings are not clumped.

• There are several creatures that are the secret to having a healthy and drug free lawn. Invite beneficial micro organisms and earthworms to your lawn, as well as dragonflies, ladybugs, spiders, toads and frogs.

• Water your lawn thoroughly and deeply but only when it requires it. If you water frequently and lightly, your lawn will have shallow roots, which makes it more susceptible to disease and insects.

• Always use natural fertilizers. Organic fertilizer decomposes thatch and grass clippings quickly. Natural fertilizers release nutrients into the soil better and allow it to retain them longer. Sheep manure is one of the best natural fertilizers available.

• Do not use herbicides or pesticides. Chemicals kill birds, insects and earthworms that are beneficial to your lawn’s health. If you practice natural lawn care, you will discourage pests.

Beautiful Lawns “by the yard”

Designing a Japanese Garden

When designing your Japanese Garden you need to think and act a little different then with other types of designs. You will still need to organize and draw out your garden design, and determine the shape of your landscape and what you desire for your garden. But you should also allow yourself to "go with the flow" and let it "speak to you" as your garden takes shape. Allow for improvisation and ideas to emerge rather than being rigid in sticking to your original design plan.

We in the west often feel compelled to try to control and plan all aspects of design when making something. We don't want to make a mistake. Here you need to make your plans loosely to leave more for those ideas that come and the actual design takes shape. This can be liberating for some but intimidating for others. If you work through the questions below it will help you stay on track.

Before any work begins within the yard itself, a basic garden plan should be drawn up to help you formulate your ideas and the placement of elements. Here are several questions you need to address to help with this process:

1. Do you already have an existing garden in the area where you wish to incorporate a Japanese garden style? If so, what type of garden is it (flower garden, English garden, rustic wildflower garden, etc.)?

2. Do you want to try to integrate your current garden into the new Japanese garden plan? What aspects and features do you want to remain and what has to be moved, replaced, or removed entirely?

3. What style of Japanese garden are you most interested in - tea garden, courtyard garden, stroll garden, pond and island garden, Zen rock garden or a combination of them? But for small areas, you will most likely want to stick to only one style. For those who have a large area to landscape, you can have your choice of any of the styles which compliment your yard and suit your desires.

4. Does the area you’re designing have natural hills and valleys? Are there any design elements, such a stream, already present? How large is the area you are considering using? Take a good visual view of your selected site and note down all the details on paper. Take measurements as well, so you know the exact area size you will be working with.

5. Which elements and features are important to you? Would you like one small area to feature a Zen garden? Is a stepping-stone pathway which leads to a gate appealing? Do you wish to add a feature like a waterfall, water basin, or a rock arrangement?

6. Will you be building this garden by yourself or will you have help? The size, design and amount of work to create your Japanese garden will obviously affect this answer. For example, building a very large stroll garden by yourself would take a long time and may be impractical. Then again maybe you can plan and do it in stages.

7. If you plan to use large boulders or plant more mature trees (rather than saplings), how will you get them into your garden? Is there room and access for large machinery to help with placement? Keep in mind boulders and large trees are extremely heavy.

8. Will your garden be formal, semi-formal, or informal (rustic)?

9. Many Japanese gardens are actually built around a theme. Do you have a theme in mind for your garden? Your theme could even revolve around a smaller replica or area of an original famous garden of Japan. Read books and view photographs of existing gardens to get some ideas. An example of a theme would be a miniaturized version of "The Bridge To Heaven", which is a marble and stone bridge that spans the famous Dragon Beard Ditch in China. This bridge was built over 600 years ago to allow the Ming and Qing emperors to cross over on their way to the Temple of Heaven.

10. What do you want to achieve with your garden? Will it be used primarily for meditation? Do you wish to incorporate a strolling pathway with new visual delights beyond each curve? Do you want the invigorating sounds of water, such as a waterfall or fast moving stream? Will it be a place to sit quietly and contemplate nature? Understanding the concept behind the garden design is important.

If you carefully contemplate these questions and answer them before you begin to put your design down on paper, it will really help you know how to design your garden. Otherwise you could end up with a garden that holds no meaning for you or your visitors. A Japanese garden should have a "reason for being." What are your reasons?

Japanese Gardens “by the yard”