Definition
Before you start working on a rock garden, you need to find out what it is.
So, a rock garden is a small garden made of stones, which is a type of decor for a summer house. The size of the rock garden may vary depending on the size of the dacha.
Recommendations for building a rock garden
If you look at a photo of a rock garden, you will notice that its construction requires great skill and skill. We want to tell you about the most popular mistakes, knowing which you can prevent inconvenience during the installation of a rock garden.
Amount of moisture
Carefully monitor the amount of moisture in the soil on which the rockery will be installed. But it’s also not worth installing rockeries in too dry soil, as this can negatively affect the plants that will grow in this area.
If you have not found the optimal place to install a rock garden, you can fill the area with soil that absorbs moisture well. This will help make the rockery area less humid.
External factors
In addition to soil, other external factors and pathogens can interfere with the growth of rockeries. One of these are shrews and moles, which can periodically eat plants and interfere with their optimal growth and development.
If there are such animals in your area, then install a special net that will block the moles from entering the territory. This mesh can be purchased at a regular garden store.
Other plants and weeds
Weeds are also very unpleasant for your flower garden.
The fact is that it is already difficult to care for flowers growing on the territory of a rock garden, and if you also turn your attention to weeds that will in every possible way interfere with the growth of plants, it will take a lot of time and effort.
But, fortunately, you can protect yourself from weed germination. To do this, before planting the plants, you need to cover the soil with a special protective layer.
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Subsidence of stones
This threat will first of all affect the appearance of your rock garden, making it very sloppy and ugly.
To avoid movement and subsidence of stones, you need to carefully compact and crush the soil on which the stones will lie.
Here are the main mistakes, avoiding which, you will make a good rock garden with your own hands.
Site preparation
Before moving objects in a separate area, remove the top layer of soil. The turf is removed to a depth of about 20–30 cm. The soil is useful for preparing a planting substrate. At the same time, weeds, rhizomes, and debris are removed.
Then they act according to their needs. They focus on the condition of the site and the objects proposed for placement. A low, wet site requires drainage. It is better to pour a small concrete foundation under large boulders. If the property is often visited by digging rodents, then be sure to lay a fine mesh net.
A layer of sand is poured over the prepared base. This will be followed by the distribution of planting soil. The soil mixture is prepared based on the needs of the plants to be planted.
Types of rockeries
Of course, there are many types of rockeries. We will present to you the main types that are used most often.
European rock garden. Quite an ordinary, standard rock garden. It got its name because of the plants that are used for this rockery. To get such a flower garden, you need to use plants that grow in the middle zone.
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English rockery. This rock garden is already more interesting. It differs in that in the design of this rockery you need to calculate everything as accurately as possible, because any mistake can cause failure. Usually, they try to fill such a flower garden with greenery as much as possible.
Japanese rock garden. This look is classic. This is what is meant by the most ordinary rock garden. The basis is stones of different sizes and shapes. Regarding plants, there are no special recommendations, use according to your taste.
Varieties of styles
A rock garden allows you to play with the landscape of the site in an interesting way. The use of stones implies the presence of mountain plants, although this set is often diluted with other types of vegetation and decorative elements.
Considering the numerous compositions using stones, one cannot fail to note the variety of design solutions when decorating a flower garden. Its content is determined by the chosen style and allows the most harmonious integration of an exquisite element into the overall landscape design picture.
The following are the most popular design options for rock gardens. A detailed description will help you decide on the appropriate style for your own rock garden.
Japanese style
It is quite natural to start getting acquainted with the features of oriental design, which is considered the ancestor of all types of rockeries. The popularity of Japanese style in landscape is growing day by day. Characteristic features - the emphasis is on stone elements, vegetation plays a secondary role here. Landscaping will benefit from the use of Buddhist statues, a compact tea table and a cage with a bird. Such a rock garden is natural in a garden intended for yoga, meditation and relaxation procedures.
A rock garden, where the atmosphere is imbued with Japanese traditions, is called a rock garden. But this does not mean a dull and monotonous picture. The use of furniture and plants in pots is relevant here; there is a place for decorative lighting and other decorative elements.
European destinations
Alpine style is nothing more than a classic alpine slide. A characteristic feature is a set of plants that grow in alpine areas. Conifers and bulbous plants occupy a special place here. The use of alpine rockeries in the landscape implies the presence of waterfalls, where water cascades down. By far, every rock garden located vertically in the landscape can be called a rock garden.
The European style is several steps away from the Alpine direction. In addition to high-mountain vegetation, there is the use of decorative specimens, which, replacing each other, bloom throughout the warm period. Shrubs whose foliage turns bright red or orange in autumn look organic. The atmosphere and landscape around the European rock garden is similar to the French province. An alpine flower garden is characterized by a picture of a chalet lost in the mountains.
The German style is distinguished from the European style by the greater severity of its lines. The natural shape of stones can be replaced by massive structures, although of natural origin, but processed. Laconism and functionality are the motto of a rock garden when decorated in the German style. Pedantry is expressed in individual details of the landscape, where the use of perfectly even stones laid along a ruler is practiced. Plants are planted with the same meticulousness, which distinguishes the German rock garden from classic flower beds with a landscape distribution of elements. Even the presence of water here is expressed in a special way: a multi-level stream replaces one powerful stream, the artificial origin of which is beyond doubt.
The health of plants in the German landscape style is given special attention. Therefore, the use of lush plants with an even trunk or powerful foliage is justified.
Advice! Unpretentious vegetation that is guaranteed to bloom even in unfavorable weather conditions is ideal for German rockeries in the landscape.
The English style is characterized by a greater emphasis on the use of landscape compositions. In addition to traditional conifers, cereals and wormwood are often found. The landscape in the English spirit is filled with flowering vegetation and specimens with beautiful decorative foliage.
An Italian-style rockery is not much different from an Alpine one. It is typical to use the same plants, but graceful sculptures and smooth lines of forged furniture will add a special zest to the landscape.
Landscape with an American twist
The Mexican style is remembered for its bright colors, but its use in domestic spaces is practically unheard of. Although in this hot country with a desert landscape there are mountains, the vegetation of which can be actively used when designing your own rock garden. The difficulty lies in the climate discrepancy; exotic cacti do not take root well in harsh conditions.
The peculiarity of an American-style rock garden is its location. It usually decorates the landscape around the house or complements the seating area in the backyard. The main goal is to attract maximum attention, but not at the expense of size. It is common to use small and neat compositions.
Ice and fire
Harsh natural conditions left their mark on the design of a rock garden in the Scandinavian style. The presence of conifers and low-growing ground cover plants is quite natural. Due to the peculiarities of the climate, greater emphasis when designing the landscape is placed on the use of decorative elements.
Here you can find:
- numerous paths;
- figurines of fairy-tale characters and birds;
- candlesticks.
The stones and plants themselves fade into the background in the composition.
The unpopularity of the tropical style when decorating rock gardens is explained by the same climate discrepancy. Vegetation suitable for a landscape with tropical rockeries is characterized by lush flowering and powerful foliage. The use of tall exotic flora in the cascade composition is complemented by traditional European filling on the lower tiers.
Despite the close proximity of tropical and Australian styles, the latter has distinctive features. First of all, the manufacturability of rockeries is highlighted. The practical approach is expressed not only in decorative lighting and a carefully thought-out irrigation system. The technique of paving the landscape with concrete often smoothly flows into the arrangement of a rock garden.
Attention! It is worth highlighting the active use of geometric shapes in the design process of the Australian style.
There are no smooth curves in the landscape; all elements have clearly defined shapes - a rectangle, a square or just straight lines. The use of similar tactics has been noticed in rockeries.
Volumetric stones are not in demand here; preference is given to flat shapes of various sizes.
As you can see, there are a lot of options for making an original rock garden. Using the style you like when designing a landscape will give you the opportunity to express your own talent as a designer.
Choosing the right stones
The main factor considering which rockeries are used in landscape design are stones. They create the main beauty of this flower garden. That is why their choice is very important.
So, we present you with basic recommendations for choosing good stones for your rock garden.
Durability. The most important parameter, because it determines how long your rock garden will serve you.
Choose those types of stones that do not crumble under the influence of external factors. Granite will be the best choice for you.
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Besides the fact that this stone is quite durable, it also looks pretty good. This can have a positive effect on the appearance of your rock garden.
Decorative. The appearance of your rockery is also very important, because it is precisely because of its unusual appearance that the rockery is so popular. Here we will advise you to choose stones such as sandstone and granite.
Plant selection
The right choice of plants is also very important for a good rock garden. There are several rules for choosing plants for rockeries. We will present you with the basic rules for choosing flowers and greenery.
We do not advise you to choose plants that bloom and look beautiful only at a certain period of time. Since rockeries are planted for a long time, plants for them should also be selected that bloom for a long time. As an example, we can give you decorative bows. These plants are perfect for your rock garden.
There is no need to plant plants that grow very quickly. It may happen that the plants are much taller than the stones. This completely destroys the entire appearance of the rockery and will make it look like a hedge.
Therefore, select those plants that grow at an optimal speed and whose growth can be controlled.
Final stage of work
Having planted all the plants in their places, the composition is decorated with small stones.
- Medium-fraction stones are laid out as a base, which gives a natural look to the composition and hides the shortcomings of intervention in the landscape.
- The area is then filled with smaller stones. Moreover, larger stones should be placed near large plants and vice versa.
- It is possible to use colored pebbles and create various patterns.
Having mastered the device and followed the rules described above step by step, you will implement your planned project in collaboration with your own imagination and create your own small picturesque corner that you can admire for many years.
Author: T. Rozanova
Rockery care
An important factor is the care of your rock garden. After all, if you properly care for your flower garden, it will serve you for a very long time.
And so, if the basis of your rock garden is greenery, then it should be watered frequently and thoroughly. For watering, you should use a special spray nozzle so as not to break the plants with a large flow of water.
In addition, you should carefully monitor dying plant leaves.
If you see a yellowed leaf, then you should get rid of it immediately in order to prevent the subsequent death of healthy leaves. You also need to remove shoots of unnecessary plants and weeds.
If you left your rockery for the winter, then you probably lost some frost-resistant plants. During the onset of the summer season, it is worth planting new plants to replace the dead ones.
Periodically check the stones for stability. If the stones begin to stagger and move, then add soil under them to restore them to a stable position.
Only those plants that need it need to be constantly watered and fed. Do not overdo this, otherwise you may oversaturate some plants and they will stop growing evenly.
If your flower garden contains bulbous plants, then their bulbs need to be dug up periodically and checked for suitability. Dead and rotten bulbs need to be removed and new healthy specimens planted in their place.
These are the basic rules for caring for rock gardens, by following which you can maintain the good appearance of your flower garden for many years.
Rockery or alpine slide: nuances of the name
A rock garden is called a rocky garden. The composition includes both plants and stones. The designed area imitates a piece of mountainous terrain. By and large, rockery is a collective name
There are different types of such gardens. The rock garden or everyone's favorite slide of the same name is a rocky, tiered elevation. A classic rock garden is usually understood as a flat garden containing stones. It is a typical structure that comes to mind when this name is mentioned.
