Landscape design ideas for a summer cottage

A summer cottage is a special place. A place where people traditionally go to take a breath, relax and gain new strength. In order to achieve this in the best possible way, you need to feel as comfortable and cozy as possible. This is the main idea of landscape design for a summer cottage. You can try to do this on your own, but still do not forget that such an undertaking is a complex and responsible matter. The optimal solution would be to order landscape design from those for whom this is a favorite craft. Believe me, it's worth it.

Landscape design of a summer cottage

The main task is to create a single, holistic, pleasing to the eye and harmonious in every sense territory at the dacha. Choose several compositions that you can implement and that you really want to contemplate every day. Try to combine your desires into a holistic and harmonious picture, draw a schematic approximate plan for the placement of the necessary elements. As soon as you visualize the future picture of your garden, the style, shape, and functionality will immediately be determined.

It all starts with standard landscape work: a detailed analysis of the site, soil research and assessment of its condition. Even the geographical features of your garden must be taken into account when designing landscapes. Next, you need to devote time to detailed design, taking into account ideas regarding the design and improvement of the summer cottage.

Step-by-step action plan

It will be easier to master a new area if you break the process into separate tasks and then complete them one after another. Then a clear picture will immediately form in your head - what is most important, where to start, what can be left for later.

This will relieve the state of some confusion in which owners of neglected areas often find themselves.

Pre-planning will also help to avoid annoying mistakes that can complicate the life of a summer resident and add more work to him.

The development of an overgrown area can be divided into the following stages:

Cleaning the area.
Removing unnecessary trees and shrubs.
Tidying up the remaining trees and bushes.
Weed control.
Preparing the soil for planting.
Keeping the soil weed-free.

Functional areas of the garden plot

The main functional areas that are located on their site include:

The front zone is an area for parking vehicles and entering the house. I place them on the façade of the building and decorate them with decorative shrubs or flower beds.

Recreation area - here there is a gazebo or dining area with a canopy, a fireplace (barbecue, barbecue). Simply put, a place for comfortable relaxation in the fresh air.

Green area. Fruit and ornamental trees and shrubs, and vegetable beds are placed here.

Utility zone - placement of auxiliary buildings: barn, greenhouse, bathhouse, garage, summer kitchen.

The play area is a separate corner for children to spend time in the fresh air. Here you can place a sandbox, a swing, a bench, a sports complex, a slide, or a small house.

Cleaning the area

First you need to clear the area of household waste. These can be rags, fragments of bottles and bricks, boards, rusty pieces of iron and other objects that have no place in the beds.

Sometimes what remains from the previous owners is a real mini-dump, disguised with weeds or lightly sprinkled with earth.

However, you shouldn’t rush to throw everything away at once. Some things can be useful on the farm, especially at first. For example, boards, old buckets, large pieces of film, etc.

Now you need to walk around the area with a strong iron rake and comb out the old grass along with fallen leaves and twigs.

Dry standing stems of large weeds can be trimmed, cut with pruning shears or mowed with a sickle. All plant debris will be useful for laying a compost heap or warm beds.

Principles of landscape design

Landscape design follows the principles of unity, balance, proportion, rhythm, contrast and color. If you use coniferous trees, they should be consistent in style with the design of the house. A large variety of plants looks scattered and chaotic if this is not part of the author's design.

Balance in the landscape gives a feeling of regularity and calm. In large gardens, balance is achieved through symmetry and repetition. These principles work together and have common correlations to create a unified, landscaped, thoughtful garden.

Correlate the proportions of the elements. A small garden pond is not appropriate in a large open yard. Such a pond can be located in a corner or on the edge of a large area. So, it will become a focal point, creating its own element in the landscape.

The repetition of elements creates rhythm. Plants, flower beds, lanterns, benches, and other structures can be repeated in the landscape, this will create the desired dynamics.

Color adds richness to the landscape. Using different shades you can create an accent or influence the overall perception. Yellow and orange are bright colors that improve mood and attract attention. Cold blue and pastel shades visually distance objects. Monochrome colors work well for backgrounds.

New fence

Not only for safety you need to fence your area with a new fence, but also for the perception of the dacha. You will already get the impression not of an abandoned area, but of a complete and well-groomed territory that has owners.

Before installing the fence, clarify the boundaries so that there are no problems with neighbors in the future. To do this, invite surveyors who will make the correct markings according to the site plan.

Author: Zimina Tatyana
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How to choose the style of the future landscape

It makes no sense to list all the styles of landscape design, since there is enough information on the Internet with their characteristics and detailed descriptions. You need to focus on your capabilities. Here are a few points to deal with “on the shore”.

Do you have time to regularly keep your plants in shape? Or do you have the opportunity to hire a gardener who will care for your plants and trim your bushes? Then you can decide on a garden in a classic regular style or design a French garden.

How much time can you devote to care? If you are an infrequent visitor to your summer cottage, give preference to a landscape style or decorate your garden in an eco-style. Here the lines are freer, so some neglect will not be evident.

If you don’t like to tinker with different plants, and you are a perfectionist by nature, minimalism will suit you. It is distinguished by a sparse variety of vegetation; free areas are covered with lawn.

You can’t imagine a garden space without sophisticated modern forms - pay attention to the Art Nouveau style. Expensive and elegant elements are often used here, so be prepared for immodest financial expenses.

Improvement of trees and bushes

It’s quite easy to tidy up neglected shrubs. First you need to get rid of all dry and damaged branches.

Then, following the pruning rules for each crop, shorten or completely remove some of the shoots. All this can be done in one season.

Many types of shrubs can be rejuvenated by simply cutting them back to 2/3 of their height or even more. This can be done with gooseberries, honeysuckle, currants, shadberry, and viburnum. All bushes must be well fed.

Neglected trees cannot be completely restored in one season. At first, it is enough to carry out sanitary pruning. It can be done at any time.

The main thing is that the air temperature is positive. Which branches should be deleted first:

dry or injured;
damaged by diseases or pests;
hanging down to the ground;
intertwined with each other;
potentially dangerous to buildings and people.

More than three large branches cannot be removed at one time, as the tree will receive too many wounds and will not be able to cope with them. In the second year it is already possible to thin out and shape the crown. But overgrowth shoots can be cut out at any time.

Very often, trees on an abandoned site are affected by diseases and pests, so they need to be treated with suitable chemicals.

Over several years without proper care, the soil under the trees has become very depleted, so it needs to be well fertilized. Simultaneously with fertilizing, it is useful to shallowly loosen the soil under the crown and form a tree trunk circle.

Design of the main elements of the site

The overall visual perception of a personal plot is built from individual elements. Therefore, they must be in harmony with each other and be made in the same style.

Trees and shrubs

They can be fruit-bearing or carry purely aesthetic significance. The amount of tall vegetation should be directly proportional to the size of the site and occupy no more than 15-20% of its area. You can plant trees in front of the house, along paths, in remote areas. It is better to plant tall varieties on the north side so that they do not create excessive shading.

Lawn

A universal coating for decorating a site or covering unoccupied areas. Read more about how to grow the perfect lawn.

Reservoirs, fountains, pools

Artificial ponds are being built on the site to create a corner of unity with nature. The murmur of a small waterfall has a calming effect on us. If you decide to build a pond, be prepared for the additional hassle of cleaning it and maintaining an attractive appearance.

On the contrary, installing a swimming pool is less troublesome. It is enough to choose a ready-made structure of the required volume, connect a cleaning filter, and use special products to maintain cleanliness throughout the season. A good addition would be an awning that will protect the water from leaves and debris.

Whatever design you choose, the main thing is that it matches the surrounding landscape.

Garden figurines

Use garden figurines only where they are appropriate. They can become a complement to the composition, part of the architecture, or an accent on a large area.

Fencing

The fencing must match the style of the main building. This could be a blank wall that protects your home from prying eyes. Or a lightweight version: Euro picket fence, 3D grid. Climbing plants will decorate the fence. Even a blank fence can be transformed using greenery inserts, thereby enlivening the fence.

Paths

Paths are laid for comfortable movement around the site. They can have a decorative function and serve for walking around the garden. But more often they indicate the trajectory of movement: between beds, between different buildings.

The more important the path is, the wider it is and the thicker the base along it. For large and constant loads, the track width is 1-1.2 m. For installation, remove the soil to dense layers of soil, fill it with a sand cushion and compact it. Then crushed stone is poured in and also compacted. Next, the tiles are laid on a dry screed.

Particular attention is paid to the front area. Here both the material and the base are prepared more thoroughly. Typically, tiles are chosen because they are durable and aesthetically pleasing. Paths in the backyard can be more easily arranged and even look like an embankment of crushed stone.

Design of flower beds and flower beds

In the landscape design of dachas, flower beds occupy a worthy place. This is a garden decoration, its accent component. Flower beds can be vertical, consist of flowers of the same shade (mono-garden), or be located on a small hill (alpine slides).

Mixborders that combine ornamental shrubs, conifers and bright annuals or perennial herbaceous flowers with different flowering periods look very impressive.

The main thing is that the flower bed fits organically into the surrounding landscape and is its decoration. To do this, regularly care for the plants, fertilize and pruning. Flower beds look more aesthetically pleasing when free areas are mulched with gravel or tree bark.

Dry stream in landscape design

A dry stream is not often developed in summer cottages. It requires a lot of time to care for it and keep it neat. But if your free time allows you to create such an emphasis on the dacha, get down to business. This will become a real decoration of the landscape.

Read more about how to arrange a dry stream in your summer cottage.

Gazebos and recreation areas

Place the relaxation area where you feel comfortable, a little isolated. Provide convenient communication with the food preparation area so that you can set the table without much effort.

A very convenient option are separate gazebos with their own small summer kitchen. But they occupy a large area and are not suitable for every site. The minimum size is from 20 square meters.

For small summer cottages, it is suitable to arrange a canopy or an open recreation area directly adjacent to the house from the kitchen with a separate exit here. This could be a terrace, a patio, or just sun loungers under a large umbrella on a paved area. It all depends on the mood you want to convey with this corner and practicality for your family.

Benches and swings

Usually placed in a children's play area. For comfortable observation of children playing in the sandbox or on the sports ground.

Sometimes, in the absence of a full-fledged recreation area, a free-standing swing or bench can replace it. This is relevant for areas where it is difficult to allocate sufficient space for a relaxation zone.

Lighting

It’s difficult to live without functional lighting. It is provided in the front area, gazebo, in places of possible evening movement - along paths, next to outbuildings.

Decorative lighting is organized to maintain the overall style of the landscape and decorate the recreation area at night. These could be solar-powered lanterns or electric lighting.

The lighting of the area must be considered at the stage of connecting the electrics. If you are not yet ready to lay lines across the territory or the land work has not yet been completed, provide at least a supply line, for example, to a recreation area. In the future, it will be easier to distribute lighting throughout the area from here.

Sowing green manure

The most long-term, albeit effective way to get rid of weeds is to sow green manure. In order for them to take over your site and remove all unsuitable plants from it, you need to plow the soil in the spring and immediately sow a mixture of green manure thickly. After they rise, you will have to plow everything again with a motor cultivator or mini-tractor with a harrow, and sow again. This procedure must be repeated three times during the summer.

Green manures are very tenacious and in addition to being an excellent green fertilizer, they are also capable of displacing any plant aggressor, although in very overgrown areas you may need two seasons to get the most noticeable result.

When and how to sow green manure correctly - all the information in one article
What do some weeds, grains, forage and ornamental crops have in common? All of them can become excellent fertilizers with the right approach!

How did you cope with the pristine thickets at your dacha?

A selection of photos with ideas for garden landscaping

Summer residents are different. Someone needs a cozy house, beds to “tinker” with, and a flower garden to please the eye. For another, a work of art with a thoroughly thought-out landscape design and a seating area to captivate guests. But the presence or absence of a dacha does not change the way of life. Therefore, proceed from reality.

You often gather guests, you have many grandchildren, your friends often stay overnight with you - invest in the arrangement. If you don’t really like crowded gatherings and come to the dacha to be alone with yourself, do everything for your comfort. There is no need to think that if you build a gazebo for 20 people, you will begin to organize collective gatherings more often. If your company is a couple of girlfriends or friends, set up a small but cozy gazebo. Sometimes all it takes is a swing and a coffee table to make you happier.

Choose the best option for transforming your summer cottage and bring it to life. Let harmony and comfort reign in your dacha area.

How to arrange a garden and vegetable garden beautifully with minimal costs.

Advice from experienced gardeners

To make work on removing weeds from an overgrown area more effective, you should use the advice of experienced gardeners:

Avoid using fresh manure. This organic fertilizer contains a large number of weed seeds. If the composition is allowed to rot for a year, it will become very hot during decomposition, and all weed seeds will die.
Weeds love emptiness. It is necessary to plant all the free space of the site with cultivated plants, then weeds will have nowhere to grow.
Compaction of plantings. Plants should grow densely, but not crowded.
Regular pruning of the above-ground parts of weeds. The roots of pest plants will use up their entire supply of nutrients and die.
Processing beds with a pitchfork. When working with a shovel, you can cut the large rhizome of the weed, and from all its parts numerous shoots will soon appear.
Weeding by hand. Many plant pests grow from the top of the root. If you cut it down while working with a hoe, a branched bush with several stems and a large number of seeds will grow from this place.
Application of drip irrigation. Weeds also need moisture. If you water cultivated plants carefully at the very roots, so that the water does not spill over the entire area, the weeds will dry out. For the same reason, it is not recommended to use a hose to water plants.