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An Easy Bathroom Curtain Idea
I always had a hard time decorating my bathrooms. You want them to look more “cute” instead of fancy, after all, it is a bathroom not a bedroom! I wanted to have some type of window treatment over the windows, but the ones I usually picked out...
Gardening Your Personality: The Greens Of Growth
Many gardeners are the nurturing type: just like Mother Nature.
People say they have "green thumbs" because they can make
anything grow. Is your personality the growth type? Are you the
kind of person who wants to see others grow and develop? If...
How To Prune Your Roses For Stunning Results
Pruning and deadheading are essential to proper rose care. Alas, there are nearly as many opinions about how and when to prune as there are roses in need of pruning.
While seasoned rosarians have their favorite tried-and-true methods, this article...
The “Minimal” Garden
Some people who lead busy professional and personal lives, don’t feel they have the time to invest in the constant upkeep of floral and other gardens, but would still like to do something about landscaping or decorating their property. And there are...
Welcome To Michigan
Welcome to Northern Michigan, the home of the beautiful Grand Traverse Bay. We have an abundance of natural beauty in our area. Traverse City is known for it’s cherry and apple farming, locally produced vintage wines, clean white sandy beaches, and...
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Courtyard Gardens – Planning Tips
With an increasing tendency for empty nesters, young couples and singles towards higher density inner city living, and the desire to spend minimal time on maintaining gardens or other outdoor spaces, most new apartments, townhouses and condominiums tend to have only pocket sized backyards, courtyards or balconies. So it becomes particularly important to make the most of such limited areas by landscaping and utilizing the space in the best possible way.
But you don’t have to be a professional landscape architect to create an inviting courtyard space - you just have to follow a few basic design principles. Whilst you can’t physically increase the size of a small garden, you can certainly employ a few visual tricks to create the illusion of space.
One important way of doing this is to create a thematic link between the indoor and outdoor areas. Linking the backyard or courtyard to the family room or kitchen, breaks down the division between inside and outside, making the total area appear larger. To establish this link, try to use paving materials that are similar to those used in the house. If you have a tiled area inside, consider extending the same or similar tiles outside. If you have a solid wood or wood laminate floor, one simple solution is to lay interlocking wood deck tiles on the external patio or courtyard (see for example www.ezydeck.net). Although such tiles are best laid over a concrete pad, they can also be laid over a level and well compacted gravel surface.
And they can be moved and re-laid at will should you decide to change the design of your outdoor space at any time.
Light colours in the paving and on the courtyard walls will also create an impression of space, so lighter colored tiles would generally be preferable in small spaces.
In confined spaces, more space should be devoted to sitting & walking areas than to plants which should be placed in wide, raided beds. Deck tiles could be used as “stepping stones” along a pathway interspersed with gravel or stones and bordered by plantings. Don’t overdo the garden art. One sculpture or water feature is more than enough.
Clan simple lines are generally better in small situations rather than a “busy” appearance and a formal look is usually more suitable than an informal look. Several large pots or planter boxes will look less cluttered than numerous small ones.
Avoid using flowers with strong red, yellow or orange colours as they tend to “advance” towards you. Blues, purples and grays are preferable because they are not dominating. And make sure plants are selected for all round appeal and not just for a brief burst of colour for a few weeks, but dull for the rest of the year.
With a bit of planning, even the smallest of areas can be made to look larger than you may think.
About the Author
Malcolm Kay is the CEO of Intex Pacific Pty. Ltd. an exporter of landscape materials including modular decking tiles. For further information see www.ezydeck.net
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