How To Increase Space In A Small Garden

2023 Author: Ashton Daniels | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-08-25 13:50

So that you do not feel cramped on a small plot with an area of, for example, 4 acres, you should think over the entire "entourage" of your garden at the stage of erection of buildings, laying communications, as well as planting plants. Of course, even with the initial data already available, the situation can be rectified. In any case, there are two ways - to create the illusion of spaciousness visually and competently arrange all the garden elements.

Optical illusion techniques

Simple tricks will help make a small area larger without encroaching on neighboring territory. There are several of them.

Play of color …

Plants of cold colors - blue, blue, violet, some shades of burgundy - visually push the boundaries, create a sense of depth. Therefore, flower beds of delphiniums, aconites, sage, monarda and mallow (cold burgundy shades) and other "nordic" plants seem to recede backward, and it seems that they are located further than they really are. They need to be placed in the farthest corners of the garden, in a couple of three groups around the perimeter, just not symmetrically relative to each other.

Plants with orange, red, yellow flowers and leaves (that is, painted in bright warm colors), on the contrary, visually bring the perspective closer. They belong in the lobby area of the garden and in the foreground of the flower beds.

White flowers are special. They are able to visually "illuminate" the territory provided to them and, again, bring the object closer. They also need to be planted closer to the viewer or just "knock out" the edges of distant flower beds with them.

… and light

Competently built diffused lighting around the perimeter of the site in the form of spots located at ground level will allow the viewer to doubt the reality of the garden's boundaries.

For garden paths, too, it is better to choose low lights with warm light or spots built into the flooring or the edges of the path. They "snatch" the space around them, leaving a feeling of mystery, especially if the path is winding.

Be sure to gently highlight the existing small architectural form, a miniature waterfall or pond. Only they should be located not in the center of the site, but shifted from the guest to the depth. Here you will have to play with the direction of the light flux in order to find out in practice in which position the object looks more advantageous, and the light does not hit the eyes.

A win-win - mirrors

You've probably noticed that a huge wall-to-wall mirror can visually enlarge the space even in the smallest room. The same is true for a small plot. If you install a mirror in the area of the garden that is opposite some interesting composition, you, as they say, will feel the difference! For safety reasons, it is better to mount it on a massive screen, the size of which is larger than this mirror. What for? If you look a little from the side, it will seem that this is not a mirror at all, but a window to another garden. Or to the forest, or wherever you want …

Window to another reality

Clear zoning for a small area is contraindicated. Therefore, it will be only slightly outlined. The boundaries will be structures made of light modern building materials that are not afraid of bad weather. You can make slotted dividers out of them. The slots can repeat the pattern of the labyrinth, only with large "paths" to give the structure an airiness.

You can make single "windows" to the adjacent recreation area, and not necessarily rectangular or square, designs with round or elliptical "loopholes" look more interesting.

You need to paint the dividers in some kind of pleasant, not alien to the garden, pastel color, for example, delicate pistachio. You can even depict a corridor using such lightweight structures, but you just need to know when to stop so as not to unnecessarily clutter up the space.

In turn, such "enticements" are also wonderful backgrounds for a flower garden, a decorative reservoir, and practically for any design invention. And remember that any unusual accessories distract from thoughts of a small area of the site.

What the fence is capable of

The vocation of a small openwork fence, which rather resembles a decorative one, is not to build clear boundaries, but only to serve as a frame for the picture of your garden. In no case is it necessary to arrange continuous thickets along the fence. Let it "shine through" in your inner side. But from the outside, that is, from the street, it would be nice to arrange a flowering border (if, of course, there is such an opportunity). Then you get the impression that the site does not end at all, but smoothly merges with the surrounding area.

But there are times when you can't do without a high fence made of corrugated board. Then you can fix a photo grid on it with an unobtrusive landscape or a blurred natural background. Or even resort to the services of an artist in order to try to "prolong" the living picture of your garden on a metal base. The main thing is that the painted landscape is of good quality. If a pool is planned next to the fence, you can depict marine beauty as a background. In general, whoever likes what - to see a birch grove, a Russian field or a river bank in their garden - if only the hand-made picture would harmonize with the natural one and create a single ensemble with the filling of the garden.

"Winding" path

In a small garden, the presence of straight lines is undesirable. Let a narrow winding path, paved not with concrete blocks or strict cobblestones, but with natural stone or gravel, walk freely around the area provided. With it, you subtly divide the garden into zones and create the illusion of a large area.

In places of sharp bends, it is appropriate to plant a small group of the most "round" among the tui - from Tui Danik. Moreover, one copy should be bought for adults (40 centimeters high), and let the rest be planted in small "balls" and gradually gain "curvy" forms. You can try on miniature forms and varieties of ornamental shrubs for this role, avoiding excessive variegation, or plant a standard plant in the center of the composition and surround it with several specimens of creeping plants.

Another secret - let the natural stone tiles be of different sizes. That is, closer to the entrance to the site, large specimens should be laid, and already the part that runs, curling around a flower garden or a group of ornamental trees and shrubs, is small. Thus, the path will narrow in the distance, as if it were true to go and go to the opposite edge.

Contrast will smooth corners

A garden path or patio area will be more interesting if it is made of two or three contrasting materials. For example, combine two types of ceramic tiles, different in size (or maybe in color), and decorative backfill.

If you like the idea of a mobile pot garden, then try to play in contrast with the size of the pots. Again, we put large copies in the foreground, and place small ones in perspective. Or to the right of the track (in the area of its turn) we put compositions in massive containers, and to the left and a little further away - in smaller ones.

Plants in flower beds should not be planted in a continuous array, but using the rules of a mixborder device: the height of plants should vary both along the length of the flower garden and in width. The gaze should focus on dynamics. But it should look harmonious. That is, if there are tall plants in the composition, then there should be those that are lower and border ones. For example, in the classic coniferous group, at the foot of several rather large (but not huge) specimens, creeping junipers are very appropriate.

Expanding boundaries from a practical point of view

In order to free up the already cramped space to the maximum, it is advisable to place all the outbuildings and the house under one roof, and not "scatter" around the site in a chaotic manner. A gazebo, a summer kitchen or a terrace should also be "nestled" by one or two sides to the main buildings. On the balusters of the open sides, it is imperative to put garden vines in order to "involve" the buildings in the design of the garden. If you cannot do without an orchard, you should plant seedlings on dwarf rootstocks or columnar apple trees. The vegetable garden, if its presence is necessary, is best done modular. That is, to protect small beds from all sides with wooden, plastic shields (the tree must be painted or treated with an antiseptic) or rattan boxes. The modules can be installed in relation to each other "herringbone" and even significantly raised above the ground and build something like a ladder. Bare earth should not remain between the modules; it must be hidden under decorative filling or hard surface.