Alpine hill is not only an element of landscape design. This is a way to recreate the pristine beauty of nature. A harmonious composition of stones and plants fits perfectly in any area. Arranging a rock garden is a time-consuming, but exciting business. When planning to build an alpine hill with your own hands, it is important to know all the features of the structure.
Rock Garden Features
Before embarking on the implementation of their design fantasies, it is necessary to develop a rock garden project. In all cases, the starting material is one, but the effect is different.
1. To recreate the massif you will need a large natural stone.
2. As vegetation use stunted trees and shrubs, flowers and herbs.
Do not think that an alpine hill is a pile of stones. Spread natural material in parallel stripes in several tiers or in random order. This will allow him to blend harmoniously into the natural landscape. Flowers and plants should focus on the viewer, and not be a simple addition.
The classical rock garden is more reminiscent of a mountain range, due to its multi-tiered and plant diversity.
How to choose plants for rock garden
To create a rock garden you will need plants that do not require special care. If every year you want to enjoy a new look, then it is better to give preference to annual plants. Do not forget about the offseason. The composition of the rock garden must necessarily include perennial bright herbs and shrubs. Sample list of plants:
• edelweiss - ground cover plant, blooms in June-July;
• stonecrop - used for edging rock garden, destroys weeds;
• young;
• saxifrage - looks spectacular in spring;
• lumbago - spring primrose, an ideal plant for rock garden;
• varieties of juniper;
• dwarf barberry;
• spirea;
• viola;
• asters;
• phlox;
• crocuses.
This is an incomplete list of plants that are often used to create rock gardens. Each gardener will complement it with those plants that will be suitable in style.
Where to equip a rock garden
After a decision has been made to equip an alpine hill with their own hands, they carefully select a place. Walk around the site, look at the spacious and well-lit place.
Pay attention to the composition of the soil. It is best to equip a rock garden on sandy ground. Other types of soil require preparatory work.
Soil drainage
A pit breaks out along the perimeter of the future rock garden. It is filled with construction waste, broken bricks, gravel and other material. A layer of pitch is poured over the drainage, after which there is a layer of earth.
Each new layer needs to be watered well. The laying of the next layer is started only after the previous one dries.
Important! You can not pull out one large pit, but make several pits smaller. They lay drainage.
Instructions for arranging a rock garden: get to work
After the project is completed, the site and the necessary materials are prepared, they begin to equip the rock garden itself.
Step No. 1 Creation of a knoll
To create a mound of an alpine hill directly, a previously prepared soil mixture is used. It should consist of land, large river sand and humus. To mound looked natural, use the earth from the bottom of the pit. The height of the embankment should be about 1 meter.
After the main mound is formed, the work is suspended for two to three weeks. It is necessary that the earth shrinks.
Step №2 Arrangement of a pond
In complex projects rock garden with a pond should be a system for supplying, replacing and purifying water. Consider a budget option. The pond can be made from an old car tire. To do this, it is instilled by a third, the bottom is covered with polyethylene. The edges of the pond are decorated with stones.
Also, an old bathtub or a trough is suitable for creating a pond. You should not even worry about replacing water. A thick layer of drainage is laid at the bottom of the container. It is enough to remove the cork and rinse the container with clean water. There are many options. Some gardeners use prefabricated plastic containers.
An alpine slide with a pond brings some coolness on hot summer days. And the choice of plants is increasing. At the edges of the tank you can plant moisture-loving varieties. Hosts, daylilies or a drooping ivushka will look good. Such plants grow well and give a natural pond.
Step №3 Stacking stones
Stones have the most natural. They should create the illusion of a natural exit to the surface of the soil. To properly place the stones, they are buried a third in the soil, as shown in the figure.
Equipping an alpine hill with your own hands, it is important to observe the correct arrangement of tiers. They are formed according to the principle of the pyramid, from bottom to top. The lower point of any tier should consist of large stones. They will further strengthen the structure so that small stones do not crumble. On the diagram, the laying of stones is as follows:
The diagram shows that stones cannot be laid out symmetrically. Indeed, in nature there is no such accuracy. To make the rock garden look harmonious, stones are laid randomly. In addition, there should be enough space between the stones for green spaces.
Important! Designers advise making an odd number of tiers. So the slide will fit better into the environment.
Stones are also laid on a flat surface around the pond, forming a natural path at the foot of the hill.
Step 4 - Making the top of the rock garden
In landscape design, there are two options for designing the top of the rock garden. You can put the largest natural stone in the center. This technique allows you to protect the hill from erosion after cages.
Some lovers lay smaller stones on top, forming a pyramid from them. The final decision rests with the gardener. The main thing is that the peak should look natural and concise.
Step # 5 - Planting Vegetation
The last and very pleasant moment in the work on arranging the Alpine slide with your own hands is planting flowers. Do not plant the entire surface of the slide at once. You might want to add something else throughout the season. Planting vegetation can be from spring to the most frosts. Before planting, you need to add soil mixture.
How and in what order to plant plants on an alpine hill is a matter of taste. Each gardener in his own way sees the color design of his rock garden.
Important! Do not heap the Alpine hill with additional figurines, figures made of plastic or glass. Stones and flowers are self-contained elements of the interior.
When creating an alpine slide with your own hands, you must not forget that this is a plant garden. Do not turn it into a rockery - the realm of a dead stone. The main focus of rock garden is vegetation. Try to harmoniously fit natural boulders and a pond into the world of wildlife.
