Nice ideas for the gravel garden
Gravel gardens are not only a question of (simplified) maintenance, but of course also their appearance. There are countless ideas for creating such a garden, for example
- as an accurate and artistic replica of nature like in the Japanese garden
- as a natural replica of a mountain landscape like in a rock garden
- as a Mediterranean designed gravel garden
- as a replica of a steppe landscape
- as planting of a stream or garden pond close to the bank
- as colorful gardens with colored gravel and contrasting plants
- with reduced planting or very lush
- or designed close to nature.
also read
- We want to create a gravel garden - what costs do we have to expect?
- The most beautiful plants for the gravel garden
- The most beautiful grasses for the gravel garden
Planting plan makes work easier
Before you go to the nearest garden center and immediately buy suitable plants and other accessories for the gravel garden, you should first think about the style of your gravel garden - and which plants go best with it. Before planting, make an exact plan to get a rough idea of what effect the ensemble will have in the end.
Prepare the planting area
In the gravel garden, the rock material is less of a design element, but rather serves to thin the soil and make it permeable. Creating a gravel garden is therefore easy in dry regions. In contrast, in areas with high levels of precipitation, it is difficult to create suitable conditions. If that is too time-consuming for you, it is better to plant such areas with moisture-loving perennials. To prepare, do the following:
- Peel off any existing lawn.
- Remove all plants that should not be in the gravel garden.
- Loosen the planting area deeply.
- For now, let them lie idle.
- The weeds that emerge are carefully dug up and removed.
- Use a digging fork to dig out.
- Heavy, clayey and / or highly compacted soils should be excavated and replaced.
- In this case, fill in a mixture of grit (€ 12.80 on Amazon *) and compost instead.
- There are about four shovels of grit for one shovel of compost.
- Mix the individual ingredients well!
Once this preliminary work is done, you can start planting.
Planting plants correctly - a guide
Before planting, however, watering comes first, because drought-tolerant species must be well supplied with moisture before planting - this makes it easier for the plants to grow.
- Pot out the plants and remove the top layer of substrate.
- Often you will find weed seeds here, which of course you do not want to use.
- Now put the bales in a bucket of water
- until no more air bubbles rise.
- Now distribute the plants over the area according to the planting plan
- and double check the bigger picture.
- Now dig the planting holes
- and loosen matted root balls.
- Put the plants in and press them well.
- Water thoroughly.
Finally, the area is covered with a four to five centimeter high layer of mulch made of coarse gravel or gravel. Not only does it look good, it also makes it difficult for weeds to germinate.
Tips
The gravel cover has to be renewed every few years as the material migrates into deeper soil layers over time. This work is best done towards the end of winter.
