Creating a Room
For some, the entire garden is a respite. From border to border, the garden serves as a haven from the hectic activities dealt with on a daily basis. On the other hand, many gardens have to fill a wide range of uses, from vegetable gardening to a play area for children to a gathering and entertaining area. Even so, you can still carve out a portion of the garden for the specific purpose of having a place to get away from it all.
One way to make a garden getaway inviting is to make it feel like a room. To start, provide an overhead canopy to help contain the area and bring it down to a human scale. A canopy needn’t be a solid roof.
An open structure — such as the gazebo and the vine-covered hideaway shown on this page — allows plenty of light and air to move through the area while still providing shelter. Next, choose the seating for the number of people you intend to have in the space. Most successful secluded spots have seating for at least two.
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Setting a budget
The pleasure of landscape planning is all about dreaming, rather than worrying about costs or who will do the work and when. Once your plan is in place, the time has arrived for wise planning, which includes comparing costs as well as scheduling the work, whether you tackle it yourself or hire someone else to do it.
Using your final design, make a list of every major component. Most plans call for some work that’s beyond your capability, time, or desire to do it yourself. Start contacting landscaping professionals. Also do comparison shopping for materials.
To devise a budget for landscaping, compare what you think you can spend (what your resources allow) and what you think you should spend (what the best quality materials cost). On average, budget 15 to 25 percent of your new home’s price to install your dream landscape. Budget 5 to 15 percent of your home’s value to renovate an established property. If you keep your expenses within this range, your landscaping efforts are most likely to boost the value of your property.
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Trying to get yourself a bargain on the plants, soil, wood, and rocks you need to build up your outdoor living area means making sense of the huge variations in prices among sources and regions. As if that’s not challenging enough, prices for many materials — such as lumber — fluctuate quickly and seasonally. Here are some tips to keep in mind as you shop for your yard.
Plan before you buy. Sketch your landscape design on paper before you start planting and building. Knowing exactly what you need and where you’re going to put it helps avoid wasting money.
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This homeowner’s deck was not always a restful spot in her garden. When she first purchased her 1926 English Tudor-style home in Tulsa, the deck overlooked a barren yard. But she transformed her yard into a vivid, colorful landscape, and utilized her deck as the perfect backdrop.
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