Secrets of the successful creation of an alpine slideParticularly impressive is the design of the area, if you make an alpine slide with your own hands. After all, most people are confident that such work is possible only by a professional designer. But in fact, if you have a small amount of time, desire, as well as plants and the necessary materials, you can create an interesting rock garden. A piece of the Alps at the dacha area
The Alpine slide at a dacha is becoming an increasingly popular element of the decor even in small private gardens. After all, beautiful stone elevations look spectacular, perfectly fit into any stylistic design of the space. Any alpine slide is a unique design object. There are certain rules for its creation, but the style, size, features of the slides depend directly on the taste and creative idea of the creator. Probably, even if you use step-by-step photos to create your own alpine slide, two different designers will have different final versions.
The basis of the alpine slide is stone. But not all piles of stones with vegetation making their way among them are called alpine slides. There must be aesthetic appeal and harmony. Alpinaria emit several types:
- Rocky cliffs - the device of the alpine slide mainly includes stones. There is little vegetation, it is hidden in “pockets” and “niches”.At the same time herbs and flowers can not be called invisible.
- Mountain slope - it is distinguished by its height and pile of stones of various sizes and shapes. There is plenty of vegetation, but low-growing and creeping plants are mainly used.
- Valley in the mountains - consists of large stones, which are surrounded by a variety of plants. When creating such a hill, preference is given to bright flowering plants.
- Gorge is a good design option for natural troughs. Create from large boulders and rocky plants.
Read also: Learn to independently propagate juniper cuttings
Alpine hills with their own hands - where to start?
Before proceeding directly to the creation of rock garden, you need to prepare for such work. After all, only in the photo alpine slides in landscape design with their own hands are created quickly and simply. The process of creation is usually preceded by a thorough preparation, which includes several steps:
- We select the place for placement. The choice may fall on an uneven surface or a flat area if there are no natural irregularities. The size of the rock garden depends on the size of the area. But it is better if it is possible to select a spacious and bright place to create an element of landscape design.
- Sketch a sketch of a future rock garden. To do this, you can use photos of alpine slides in the country, created by yourself. The sketch will help in the end to get the result, which was originally expected.
- Purchase all the necessary materials to create a slide. Stones, earth, plants and other decorative elements should be prepared immediately, so that work does not stop due to the lack of one or another component.
When choosing a place for the location of the future rock garden, try to choose the best angles. Such beauty cannot be hidden from everyone, it is important to flaunt it!
Choosing stones and plants for rock garden
Any alpine slide in the country with their own hands is created from several basic elements:
- Stones - they should be proportional to the size of the hill, because large boulders on a small elevation will look funny and not aesthetically pleasing. Designers recommend picking up stones of different sizes in order to lay the largest ones at the base of the slide, and then install smaller elements.
- Plants - choose options with different frequency of flowering. It is desirable that the rock garden decorated plants with flowering periods from early spring to late autumn. This will allow you to enjoy the bright colors of the composition for a long time. In addition, the plants should be short and unpretentious. After all, they will have to survive among the stones, even if artificially piled up.
- Shrubs or trees - they are used to create the center of the composition, to decorate the top of the hill. Choose small trees, dwarf shrubs.
Read also: How to make rock ariar( video)
How to make an alpine slide on your own?
So, everything is ready for creating a beautiful rock garden. It remains the most difficult - the implementation of the hill on their own. So that the result soon pleased with its beauty, you need to follow simple recommendations:
- Creating a hill start with the markup of the territory set aside for it. The markings are carried out with the help of a twine or a contrast material with which the necessary lines are drawn. Thanks to the markup, it is possible even before the creation of the alpine slide to make some adjustments on its location. Indeed, thanks to the lines created, it is already possible to estimate the location of the rock garden from the side.
- Soil Preparation. If the area is clay or black earth, it will have to drain. In this case, the soil is removed by 30 cm, the resulting space is filled with materials of large fractions, they are carefully tamped and the earth is again sprinkled. If the ground is sandy, such preparation is not carried out.
- At the site, first place the largest boulders, which are preferably slightly buried in the ground for a more realistic view. The space between the boulders is filled with earth, which will be the basis for the next tier.
- One more row of boulders is laid on the earth mound. Usually for this series choose smaller size stones. After the required number of tiers has been created, a peak is made of one large or several medium boulders.
When placing large boulders, do not forget to leave some space between them, since the planted plants will need space for the development of the root system.
It’s best to start creating an alpine slide with your own hands in the fall. During the winter, the land will sit down, so in the spring you can fill the voids and plant the plants. A competent approach will allow you to create a beautiful alpine slide on your personal plot.
Alpine Slide Workshop - Video
Secrets of the Successful Alpine Slide CreationBut all these nuances can be used by beginners. It is only in the photo alpine hill with his own hands for beginners seems simple and concise construction. In fact, it consists of selected elements, well-planned placement and several subtleties that help achieve a stunning appearance. Read also: How to help the spathiphyllum if the leaves start to turn yellow?
So that the first rock garden created with its own hands looks excellent, we share several secrets of its harmonious look:
- To create a hill, it is better to choose one rock. Only in this case, it is possible to achieve a natural appearance of the slide.
- The size of the stones should correspond to the rock garden area. The larger the size of the alpine slide, the larger the boulders can be used.
- When choosing plants, preference is given to evergreen and undersized species. In this case, the hill itself will not be lost in a few years for the lush green of overgrown flowers and shrubs.
- Coniferous plants, as well as cover and creeping species, look perfect among stones. Flowering plants are better to choose with small flowers that will not distract all attention to themselves.
- It is better to plant the plants in small holes and cover them with earth with small stones. This will help prevent the growth of weeds.
- Plants should be placed so that they do not block stone embankments.
Despite the fact that the grass and flowers should not block the stones, in the rock garden vegetation is always in the foreground.
The choice of plants to create an alpine slide gives you room for imagination, because this element of landscape design allows for a riot of colors, a variety of varieties, up to a combination of opposites. Alpine hills mimic rocky areas that are diverse in nature. The main thing is that the hill should have a realistic look, and how steep, rocky and blooming its slopes will be, depends only on the author's imagination. And it is precisely in this versatility that the “zest” that has made alpine slides in modern gardens so popular lies.
Create an alpine slide on your own - video
