We build a rock garden with our own hands

Recently, the classic standards of landscape design have undergone changes. Now, in addition to gypsum sculptures and picturesque flower beds, the owner of the site can please himself and guests with an alpine slide – an alpinarium.

It serves as the main element of landscape decoration on sites with luxurious mansions, in city parks, on main streets.
The atmosphere of luxury created by an alpinarium causes an erroneous assumption that such landscape decorations are very expensive. However, if you properly understand the construction technique, then you can split the rock garden yourself and owners of modest country houses, cottages and cottages. Properly selected plants and stones will create an atmosphere of luxury and well-being on the site for all comers.

Classification of rock gardens

If you show patience and diligence, then create a rock garden with your own hands will not be difficult. Below, the ways of self-planning and creating an alpine slide are discussed in detail.

Particular attention should be paid to the main element of this decoration, which is a series of different in size and shape of stones. It is conditionally called “gray silence”. A group of gray stones is required to harmoniously dilute the vegetation, which must combine coniferous, stone-cut and cover rocks. They are the most characteristic for the Alpine area.

It is extremely important to create natural rock gardens with your own hands. For this, stones and plants should be placed in a strict form, but at the same time, it is rather chaotic. Everything should look like in a natural, natural environment.

Alpine hills are divided into several types. This is due to the selected material and the form of its location. Depending on this, these elements of landscape design are divided:

• on a rock garden with a stream;
• mountain slopes;
• a small swamp;
• Alpine meadow;
• forest ravine;
• Japanese garden.

For a complete understanding it is necessary to consider each of the above types.

Rock garden with a stream

This type is ideal for people who were lucky enough to have on their own territory a natural stream or a small pond.

To create an attractive rock garden yourself, you need the following:

• at the bottom of a pond or a stream, arrange stones of round shape;
  adjacent to the reservoir a small area should be chaotically decorated with stones and fern-like plants (some of the most hygrophilous and visually attractive);

• The location of stones and vegetation should look natural;
• with a competent approach and if there is a desire, the existing stream can be transformed by making a waterfall from it or a rapidscale cascade;

• In the coastal zone of the creek or waterfall, the ostrich is a perfect sight – a fern species widespread in the wild. This species differs from its analogues with wide, feathery leaves and reaches a height of 1 meter. This plant will create an atmosphere of wild nature on the Alpine hill.

Mountain slope

This type of rock garden can please its kind of owners of sites in whose territory are located natural relief varieties, for example, small hills. Visually they should resemble natural mountain screes with an arbitrary arrangement of stones of different size and shape.

A bouquet of vegetation when decorating an alpine hill must not include large plants. A good choice will be dwarf pine or juniper. If desired, they can be diluted with fern-like ones, which, against their background, will look quite impressive, creating an image of the wilderness.

Little swamp

Almost all people who are interested in ennobling the site despair, having discovered their land a swampy island, especially if attempts to drain it were in vain. However, this shortcoming can be turned into a significant advantage. For this, it is necessary to turn the swamp into a rock garden.

In the center of this unfavorable terrain, it is necessary to dig a small pit and clothe it with pebbles, stones and sand. Through natural processes, this pit will quickly fill with water and turn into an attractive pond. Its appearance is well complemented by plants characteristic of the marshland. These include the bathing ladies. The root system of these flowers is under water, and the leaves and large flowers float on the water. Recently, a hybrid variety of a bathing suit has been very popular, for which yellow or orange flowers are distinctly bright.

With proper attention to this problematic part of the site can be refined beyond recognition, creating on it an amazing rock garden.

Alpine meadow

Creation of this type of rock gardens with their own hands does not require significant effort from the site owner. Such an alpine hill represents a small area of ​​a green meadow with various colors, which smoothly passes to a stony mountain slope. In this area it is necessary to plant silky types of herbs, which are typical for the mountainous area. On a green background, the multicolored violets, forget-me-nots, primroses, red or yellow mantel, pink saxifrage, golden buttercups and others will ideally look like.

Forest ravine

The creation by own hands of this type of rock garden presupposes the presence on the site of an appropriate landscape in the form of a small ravine. It should serve as a support for stones between which should be located plants that do not require an abundance of sunlight. Between the large stones at the bottom of the hollow can be made an artificial spring, which supplement the appearance of the rock garden. For a forest ravine, the ideal plants will be various varieties of Japanese maple, the nobility of which will successfully complete the needles, junipers or ferns.

Japanese garden

This type of alpine hills will be an ideal place for lovers of quiet creation of natural beauty and philosophical reflections. The creation of such a rock garden does not provide for a large number of materials. He has minimalism. The main thing is to convey the color of the countries of the rising sun.

To do this, it is necessary to place several coniferous plants on the selected site. The space between them must necessarily be filled with a small number of relatively small stones. Their location should be well planned, but despite this – look natural. Next to the stones, you can besiege the box. The moss-covered stones will create an indescribable illusion that they have been lying in these places since time immemorial.

How to start the construction of a rock garden with your own hands

“Before starting work, it is recommended to create a sketch of the future rock garden, which should take into account all favorable moments of the landscape”

If you have a strong desire to create an alpine slide on your own site, you should use the step-by-step plan for its creation, which is presented below. Thanks to this, many errors can be avoided and an approximate estimate can be made. Before starting work, it is recommended to create a sketch of the future rock garden, which should take into account all the favorable moments of the landscape. It is also important to determine the number of levels of the Alpine hill. This will allow you to calculate the cost of creating it.

1. The right choice of terrain. Choosing a site for the future location of the rock garden, it should be remembered that it will become the main property of the site, so it should be located almost in the most prominent place. In most cases, people prefer to spend most of their free time next to the rock garden, so you should take care to place nearby paths, tables, benches and hearths in advance. All this must necessarily complement each other, merging into a single ensemble.

2. Having chosen the most suitable place, you should make the markup in accordance with the sketch. To do this, it is best to use lime or sand. This will give an opportunity to visualize the future rock garden and the adjacent territory.

3. Having finished with the marking, you need to determine exactly where the stones are located. If such a site consists of clay or chernozem, then it must necessarily be drained before the construction of the rock garden with their own hands. Sandy soils of soils do not need such preparatory procedures. For drainage it is necessary to dig a hole, the depth of which should be about 30 centimeters. Its cavity is required to be filled with one of the building materials of large fractions and covered on top with dug ground. The level of loosening should not exceed the level of the rest of the plot. For additional compaction, it is recommended to water this area with water.

4. In the extreme parts of the site, which will accommodate the rock garden, it is necessary to arrange the largest stones. If possible, they can be slightly deepened into the ground. In this case, they will look as natural as possible. The inner part should be filled with the soil accumulated during the drainage process. There will be the following tiers of the rock garden and vegetation. Plants need to be planted in a measured manner, since they will need space to form a root system. The space between the largest stones is also filled with earth.

5. Having created with your own hands the planned number of rock garden levels, you need to start creating a vertex that will complete the composition, as well as prevent erosion of the soil. As a top can be used as one relatively large stone, and a few smaller ones, laid out in the form of a pyramid.

It is important to understand that even if there is no vegetation in the rock garden, it should look beautiful and natural. Stones should be located harmoniously, but asymmetrically. Only in this case the alpine slide will seem natural and organic.

Place for accommodation

The rock garden is the main attraction of a summer residence, therefore the place on which it will be located, should possess a good versatile review. As a rule, this is the central, southern or south-western part of the lawn. In this case the self-built rock garden will receive a sufficient amount of sunlight and heat.

This decoration of the site should not be located next to any buildings. Large trees and shrubs are also inappropriate, although in the remote background they will contribute to a more effective perception of the appearance of the rock garden. When choosing a place, one should also take into account the unique relief features of the site, which can complement it. These include:

• ravines;
• small hills;
• lowlands;
• natural reservoirs.

The presence of high vegetation in the background should not violate a single color gamut, so the color of plants and trees in the background should be approximately the same. If desired, the flower garden can be crossed by a stony path or by a dry reservoir of white stone rocks, as well as nearby benches. This will be a very effective addition to the landscape masterpiece – a rock garden made by own hands.

Very nice looks Alpine slide with a pond, especially if it flowers typical plants. On a small island of land near the borders of the reservoir you can arrange a large-sized coniferous plant. This will create an interesting image of the rock garden and visually expand its boundaries. Truly mesmerizing will look a small waterfall, falling into a pond.

Drainage of the rock garden with own hands

The best solution will be to start work on the installation of the alpine slide in the autumn season, because the spring warming will settle and it will be possible to make final adjustments to the location of stones before planting.

Work should be conducted only in dry weather. First of all, it is required to dig a relatively shallow pit (up to 80 cm), which must subsequently be filled with crushed stone or broken brick. This is necessary for the future stability of the rock garden and the removal of unnecessary moisture. At a depth of 30 cm, the remaining space should be filled with sand, which must be properly tamped. For this purpose, watering is mainly used.

Soil Preparation

Soil for planting vegetation should be carefully cleaned from possible weeds and their root systems. It must be diluted with peat, humus and coarse-grained sand. Each of the constituents should be added in equal amounts and then thoroughly mixed. In the future, the resulting soil should be poured onto a previously prepared by means of drainage pad. This will be the basis for creating a rock garden with your own hands. Its height should be not less than 80 – 100 centimeters. The resulting slide must lie for at least two weeks. This is necessary for its shrinkage. Then you can start installing stones.

Correct installation of stones

At the base of the Alpine hill must be located the largest boulders. At the second level, smaller stones. Each of them should be as stable as possible. To do this, they must be carefully sprinkled with soil, sand and gravel. At this stage of creating a rock garden with your own hands, you should remember about the areas where the plants will be located, so you need to leave the appropriate place for them. In the arrangement of stones, organic is the most important, and therefore it is recommended to set them asymmetrically and as diverse as possible in order to give the impression of the natural origin of the Alpine hill. However, for all that, unnecessary chaos should be avoided, as this will disrupt the aesthetic integrity of the landscape work.

Selection of plants for the Alpine hill

When planting plants, it should be borne in mind that some of them can grow very much. Therefore, it is necessary to observe the intervals between them. Ultimately, plants should not completely cover themselves with stones, so they should not be much. You should start with the largest flowers and follow the following rule: the smaller the final size of the plant, the more representatives of this species should be more. In addition, smaller flowers should be placed in the foreground, so that the taller ones do not cover them. To properly plant flowers on the rock garden, it is required:

• make a small depression in the ground and fill it with a small amount of water;
• the flower should be placed in a hollow with a clod of soil, slightly pressing it with your fingers;
• It is necessary to level the soil, adding a little to the missing one and again to pour it with a small amount of water;
• if desired, you can decorate the flower with a layer of gravel. This will become a fairly effective element of the decor.

When the flowers are planted, the main thing is to check the absence of air pockets. Otherwise, the root system will hang, ruining the appearance of the rock garden built by own hands.

Selection of suitable rocks

“The rock garden is an imitation of a mountain landscape in which stones are irregular, but at the same time beautiful and natural form”

The right choice of stone – the key to success in creating a spectacular, aesthetic and organic alpine slide. It should be remembered that the rock garden is an imitation of a mountainous landscape in which stones are irregular, but at the same time beautiful and natural form. They are constantly polished by gusts of mountain wind and precipitation, so sharp or too round stones of river origin are not suitable for the alpine slide.
One of the best solutions for creating rock gardens with your own hands will be the choice of limestone or sandstone.

Also very successful will look dolomite – a bright representative sedimentary rock, layered shale, as well as basalt and light gneiss. An invaluable example for a rock garden is a natural forest boulder, on the surface of which moss and lichen grows.

When using in the creation of the Alpine hill on its site stones of limestone rocks, it is necessary to be ready for an alkaline reaction when they come into contact with the ground. This will create an unfavorable environment for the full development of some vegetation. To avoid this, the soil of the rock garden should be slightly acidified.

Helpful Tips

The above instructions for the construction of rock gardens with their own hands will help anyone who wants to create on their own territory a true work of art of landscape design that will please its appearance all year round. However, in addition to the above tips and recommendations, there are a number of useful tricks that will make it possible to simplify the process of creating an alpine slide as much as possible, and make it as attractive and organic as possible:

1. The rock for the rock garden must necessarily be of the same species, so that its landscape looks as natural as possible;

2. The size of the stones should depend on the area allocated for the rock garden. The larger the area – the larger boulders can be used to create a flower garden;

3. Particular attention should be given to the selection of plant species. The best will be those that are continuously covered with a variety of blossoming specks. In addition, it is worth paying close attention to the timing of their flowering;

4. It is better to give preference to eternally green grades of undersized flowers. In this case, it will not be necessary to remove fallen leaves, which often fall between boulders;

5. Very beautiful look a few stunted coniferous plants, located between the stones. Also, the rock garden can be diversified with creeping plant species with small flowers. In addition, it is worth considering the coverslips to achieve a more decorative roller coaster;

6. When you build a rock garden with your own hands, you can use stones of non-natural origin, such as concrete or brick. The saxifrage can quite grow out of the cracks between them, and the moss on their surface. In addition, if desired, you can use ceramic tiles, artificial stone from painted resin, as well as decorative glass stones of small size, which quite well fit into the design of reservoirs;

7. Regarding the choice of plants, the owner of the site is also given complete freedom. When decorating a rock garden with your own hands, you can use colors that have nothing to do with the alpine climate. Among the most common species are lilies, roses, calendula, violas, strawberries. Such an approach can give a genuine individuality to the style of the future roller coaster. The main thing for this improvisation is to observe the basic rules of planting the rock garden with your own hands, namely – the vegetation should not obscure more than half of the surface of the stones;

8. You can use indoor plants to plant a landscape slide. This will enable the owner to periodically replace them with others, as a result of which the rock garden will be regularly transformed. In this case, flowers should be buried directly in the pots;

9. When decorating a rock garden with your own hands, you can allow yourself complete freedom for creative thinking. If desired, you can supplement the hill with decorative elements that are not typical for wildlife. We are talking about a variety of figures and fragments of colored ceramics.

How to properly care for rock garden

In terms of care, the Alpine hill is rather whimsical. It will have to be watched constantly. In the spring it is required to clean it from old leaves and spoiled vegetation. In addition, it is necessary to monitor the stable position of the stones and, if necessary, add soil. In the summer, it is necessary to transplant some flowers, regularly water and fertilize them, and also cut them.
In the autumn, you can start new plantations. The main thing is to prepare the rock garden for winter, namely to cover it with lapnik. It must be fixed by means of heavy objects or by means of a wall.

Conclusion

When creating a rock garden with your own hands, it is extremely important to plan the work sequence in advance. It is not necessary to adhere to classical concepts when creating an author’s masterpiece. It is a personal choice of each, matter of taste. To date, you can find a huge variety of Alpine hills, in which almost never occurs repetition. The main thing is simplicity, organicness and originality, expressing the owner’s personal style.

Photo gallery – rock garden with own hands

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Author: Mikhail Bond

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