If you are planning on adding landscaping rock to your yard, the
following tips will help you with your plans.

First, you need to know what exactly you want to do with your
landscaping. If you are trying to add depth and texture to your
landscape, natural stone is a great choice. The size, color,
textures, and type of rocks vary greatly however. You will have
to narrow them down based upon your design.

For example, small rocks or stones are used for things like
accenting paths or as a border for a garden. Larger rocks or
boulders are permanently placed and can be for decoration or used
as a place to sit and relax.

Planning Rock Placement

In order to be successful with your rock landscaping, you should
place the larger rocks and boulders in places where they will
become focal points. If you are trying to hide a certain area,
do not put the rocks there. Every rock that you place should
have a purpose, based upon balance, looks, and design. You
should not haphazardly place them. Instead, you should plan
exactly where each rock will go ahead of time.

Stones are very natural, so they should look that way. You can
bury part of the base of the rock to give an extremely natural
look. Large boulders can be planted deeper into the ground than
smaller landscaping rocks. Four to six inches is a good general
depth to use as a guide. It will blend in better with the entire
landscape if it is somewhat in the ground, instead of looking
like you just rolled a rock into your yard.

You should dig a hole a little bigger than the size of the rock,
place the rock inside, then fill in the rest of the hole that is
still open with dirt. It’s as simple as that.

When you are thinking about

where to place landscape rocks, you need to consider how they will get to
that position. If you are placing large boulders, you will need
a loader or bobcat. You will have to be careful though, that the
equipment does not destroy any part of your landscape. You may
have to seek out other options if there is no way to bring a
large boulder in.

Overall, you should try to imitate nature with your rock
placement. You should go on a nature hike and observe how rocks
naturally sit in the ground an strive to make your yard look
similar.

The addition of landscape rock in a landscape design can transform a garden and create dramatic images. Visit http://www.plant-care.com/buy-landscaping-rock.html for more on rocks in the landscape.

One of the biggest problems facing gardeners living with indigenous clay soil as they work to beautify their homes’ landscaping and gardens is the soil’s natural characteristics. Definitely a challenge to work but the soil’s obstacles can be conquered.

Home Gardening and Landscaping - Working With Hard Clay Soil

Clay presents several challenges to good plant growth. Just as a good foundation is the base of a solidly built home, so does soil provide the foundation for the growth, appearance, and health of plants.

Clay soil is heavily burdened by its innate characteristics. Clay soil is hard, sticky,difficult to work, especially vulnerable to water saturation and poor drainage. However, with all its short comings, clay soil has a strong redeeming quality, it is nutrient rich. So the landscaping and garden enthusiasts simply must decide a process to overcome its weaknesses, of which there are many, and accent its positive, a naturally nutrient rich composition.

It seems everyone has a theory, a type of “magic bullet” that will solve the soil’s problems and create a workable medium for plants. Oddly enough their unique solution is the practical remedy. A specific chemical additive, a certain time of the year, no offense intended to the farmer’s almanac, or a study that scientifically proves the only viable process. Please allow a slight diversion from the garden and landscaping world for a moment as you will be provided a recent historical analogy. During our nation’s recent economic downturn, experts all over the country were trying to convince the American public that the “old” theory of ” buy and hold quality investments” was outdated and a true dinosaur. The Dow dropped to the 7000 level and these economic evangelists were in their element. “Use my method and you will be assured long-term success. “Act quickly and avoid the inevitable future drop.” Well, the Dow came back and those trumping a miracle cure are relegated to the fringes of acceptable economic practices. But not to worry, they will again surface during the next downturn and be just as enthusiastic as ever. So it is with the clay soil. The good news is you will not invest your life’s savings, a little sweat and labor to be sure but the dividends you will earn will be worth the effort.

Home Gardening and Landscaping - Working With Hard Clay Soil

A couple of simple tests can determine the necessity to prepare the soil. One thing is for sure, if you live in an area populated with clay soil you can be assured it is compacted,poorly aerated, and has drainage issues. But, if you must, just to convince yourself, by all means perform a test for proper soil drainage. First pick up a hand full of dirt and squeeze firmly. Should it fall apart easily the soil is probably good for planting. Another simple test. Dig a hole 6 inches deep fill with water allowing it to drain. Refill again tracking the drainage time. If more than 8 hours your soil is retaining too much water. The most successful method to determine the need for water is a simple inexpensive, and accurate soil tester which may be purchased from a green house supplier. Soggy soil will produce poor plant growth. The symptoms are very easy to spot. Poor plant appearance, droopy leaves or poor production of blooms or fruit.

Now that your curiosity is satisfied and you have proven to yourself what you really already knew begin preparing the soil for planting. The steps of the process are:

1) Remove existing vegetation.

2) Till the soil to 8 – 12 inch depth.

3) Add 1 – 2 inches of organic matter.

4) Add 1 – 2 inches of sandy loam.

5) Add 20 – 30 pounds of gypsum per 1000 square feet.

6) Add fertilizer.

7) Till the soil between the above steps.

Home Gardening and Landscaping - Working With Hard Clay Soil

Sure you can hire a professional to do the work but by doing the work yourself you will reap the pride of a job well done and gain confidence that will prepare you for your next gardening project.

Once you see the results of your labor in your garden or landscape you will realize you can do a professional job with just a little planning and preparation. Don’t forget the money you will save.

For more information and tips on home gardening,greenhouse gardening, and the tools and supplies that make the job go easier visit our learning center at http://www.hillgreenhousesupply.com.

Retractable awnings are a powerful way to individualize a space. Retractable awnings exhibit overt style and elegance that simultaneously harmonize with the existing appearance of a home or office. Retractable awnings also bring functional benefits like extending living spaces and even saving money on energy bills. To maximize these benefits takes planning.

Retractable Awning

Function before Form
Style is intrinsically related to function. The first step, then, is to identify the installation location:

o What does the awning need to do in this space? An awning can provide shade either by blocking sunlight from a room or by shading a space outdoors. Shading a room may require only a small dome retractable awning over a window, while creating a new outdoor sitting area may require a very large lateral arm awning.
o How big a shade area do I need? How big can the awning be? Retractable awnings are installed to slope (pitch) at a slight angle, dropping about 3 inches for every foot it goes out. The largest lateral arm awning is 40′ wide with a 17′ projection; the smallest is about 5’6″ wide with a 7′ projection. Knowing the square footage to be shaded dictates how big the awning should be.
o Where is the awning being mounted? There are several places where the mounting brackets can be located: on the roof, wall, ceiling, soffit, or eave. The major factor is clearance, making sure that obstructions like doors, gutters, and shutters are away from the awning itself.
o What features will be shaded? Awnings have a different affect whether they’re installed over windows, doors, patios, hot tubs, break areas, or parking or sidewalk areas, and each space leans toward a different style of awning. Additionally, landscaping is affected by shade, including any grass areas, gardens, and trees. Plan the shade and awning size and style around the natural feature of the space.
o What direction does the home or office face? Properties which receive most of their light from the south or west also receive a huge amount of heat, driving up air conditioning costs. Identifying the hottest areas is a good place to begin installing awnings, since this can lower air conditioning use 25% or more.

History and Style
Defining the function of the awning naturally flows into recognizing the perfect style. There are three major categories of retractable awnings:

o Lateral arm, the traditional, flat stretch of fabric across two or more folding arms
o Dome, rounded, relatively short awnings which have a high arch stretch over several ribs for shape; extra-long versions are called elongated domes
o Drop arm/Side arm, with a single arm on both sides of the awning which can extend horizontally (side-arm) or straight down (drop-arm) for optimum coverage and allows the awning to retract fully.

For many building styles, retractable awnings are a natural feature. Lateral arm awnings are commonly used over patios, while dome retractable awnings and drop/side arm awnings are common over windows and doors. Lateral arm awnings, however, were very popular for both Spanish and art deco influenced architecture, even over windows.

Even the color can be influenced by architecture. For example, Victorians used the effect of sunlight through awnings to create diffuse colors in rooms. In the US, many residential awnings are stripes in sedate forest green and beige, but Spanish architecture lends itself to vibrant reds and yellows, while deco tends to black and white and Victorian to pastel.

An Eye to Climate
Climate has a huge impact on how a retractable awning is used. Retractable awnings can be motorized, and this allows sensors to be attached to the awning which can extend and retract the awning at predetermined climate conditions:

o What kind of weather do you have? Retractable awnings are primarily for sun protection; the weight from heavy rain or snow can damage them. Specific sensors can detect rain and retract the awning. Likewise, light sensors automatically extend the awning at a certain brightness and close it at dusk.
o Is it windy? Retractable awnings can handle sustained winds of approximately 35mph. Wind sensors detect wind speeds and retract the awning at a preset speed; some automatically recheck every few minutes to re-extend the awning when the speeds drop. Motion sensors detect sharp, sudden movement and retract the awning; this is ideal for climates subject to wind gusts.

Retractable awnings are a great fit for almost any space, but it’s important to find the right awning for the right space. By looking at retractable awnings as part of a whole solution, you can tie the threads of function and style together so a retractable awning is organically part of your home or office. Asking questions about your space will point you in the right direction.

Landscaping with trees to the beauty of your garden. As most home gardens are limited in size, choose trees that are small to medium. Most home gardens can accommodate at least one tree – even a courtyard can have a tree – even if it’s a dwarf citrus in a pot.

Front yard landscaping with trees

Your front yard is the visible public aspect of your home and the introduction to it for your visitors. Your landscaping here is different than for the back which is your private area. Featuring with flower beds, trees can make a front yard very appealing and also be a ‘frame’ through which the architectural features of your house are shown.

An ideal tree is the silver birch – either a single one or a cluster of 3 or 5 – always select specimens whose trunk will not fork. Three can fit quite easily in to a small yard say 15ft x 30ft. Plant about 8 feet apart – the advantage of clump planting is that multiple white trunks have a far bigger impact than a single tree trunk and the closer planted the less height is attained. Fast growing.

Planting a sasanqua camellia or an hibiscus in the midst of the cluster will also give you green foliage and flowers as the birches lose their leaves. Alternative landscaping trees: Small dogwoods, Japanese maples, Crepe Myrtle or the Goldenchain tree Amur ‘Flame’ Maple is a small Asian maple tree having dense foliage and spreading habit – very tough. Vivid scarlet autumn colour makes this an excellent ornamental planting. Often used in Japanese landscaping and Bonsai.

Backyard landscaping with trees

If a flat expanse of grass just isn’t inherently interesting enough for your tastes, you can plant flowering trees either to the side or off-center of the grassed area. Cherries, almonds and peaches, plus oranges offer beautiful blossoms and perfume, Silver birch and Japanese maples also will work very well in the backyard.

Courtyards

Many citrus can be planted either in ground or in a container – as well as dwarf versions of apples and other fruits. Japanese maples will also do well.

Larger properties

These homes can, of course, make a place for the larger growing and spreading trees such as oaks, maples, elms the larger pines and firs and so on. They can be displayed singularly or in clusters with room to spread their branches and provide shade all through summer, then dressing themselves in brilliant colors during Fall.

Do you want to learn more about gardening? If so, please download my free e-book on “Better Gardening Ideas.” Our new Expert Gardening Solutions is also now available. Peter Ryan is a landscape and gardening expert and can be reached here: http://www.betterhouseandgarden.net/learn-how-to-garden-easily.

Landscape rock is the landscaper’s tool of choice when it comes to accenting a beautifully landscaped lawn. With the latest technologies landscape rock doesn’t have to be omitted from any residential scaled down landscape project. You can use artificial rock to replace heavy, cumbersome landscape rock.

Artificial rock is truly a new age crowd pleaser. By using artificial rock in your landscaping project you can save your back, as well as your pocketbook. Landscaping today has lent itself to new ways to accomplishing dreaded tasks with the greatest of ease and added more flexibility to landscape design.

Landscape Design can now be adopted, by residential homeowners and your do-it-yourself weekend warriors. For far less money, you can do the landscaping yourself and afford yourself more for other projects as well.

For years the commercial landscape market has had the advantage of using special tools and equipment to re-create artificial landscaping and the regular joe homeowner was left to only admire the landscaping constructed from high-end tools of the trade.

Landscape rock is the icing on the cake, if you will, for separating good landscaping projects from great landscaping design. When you want it to fit your limited area, you can now choose the option of creating your own artificial landscape rock and be assured it will accent the areas you want with no problems. Finding a special size or shaped rock is no longer an issue.

Fake rock has become the faux pearl of the landscaping world. It’s not that we are leaving mother nature out of the lawn art, we’re just helping her show the full potential of our limited spaces and reduced expense. Fake rock, artificial rock, whatever you want to call it, call it a back saver, a life saver, and a wallet pal for sure.

CaveRock Design has mastered the residential landscape rock business, when you want to create larger more unique rock. Boulder size rock can really add a deeper dimension to any landscape and from a cost standpoint, CaveRock Design is your best friend on cost. Once you see for yourself the difference artificial landscape rock can make, the only decision you’ll have to make is what method of artificial rock making is the most cost efficient.

Deck Designs

Deck Designs:We all work so hard in our daily lives that being able to relax in a peaceful outdoor space after a long day is done, is something we look forward to and expect as home owners. And for most of us, a backyard deck or patio is the typical place where we wind down.

So when did the contemporary idea of backyard decks become so popular?

Interestingly enough, wood decks are a relatively knew phenomenon over the last 50 or 60 years. It used to be that homes had covered front porches where people would gather and socialize. It served a slightly different purpose then and was usually tastefully built-in as part of the overall architectural design of the home.

However the kind of decks found on single-family homes today are not really part of any defined architectural movement or period. The deck designs of today evolved from the west coast, which was younger, hipper, and less concerned about sticking to traditional architectural designs. People just started building cedar or redwood decks on to the backs of their homes to create more living space and take advantage of the milder weather.

And when pressure treated wood became available it was then possible for homeowners in the more seasonal parts of the country to build decks that would last longer and withstand the elements.

And perhaps another reason why decks became so popular was because most builders did not provide any front or back covered porches on their homes. Also many homes were being built 3 feet or more above grade requiring stairs from the back door to the ground. So building a deck was a perfect solution and something usually done by each homeowner afterwards.

Most Backyard Decks Clash With The Style of The Home

But here is the dilemma, since a deck is really just a platform to sit on and relax, very little effort tends to go into creating deck designs that actually look good and work with the architecture of today’s homes. And because of the perceived simplicity of building a deck, almost every handy man has tried his hand at this one time or another, further exacerbating the deck design void.

deck designs

To create a well designed deck that has some style and looks like it belongs well with a home, rather than an after thought, requires only a bit more effort. But the results are worth it.

So here are some tips to help you come up with better deck designs for your next project.

Materials

Redwood and cedar are beautiful materials to work with and perform well for decks. But there are all kinds of materials at your disposal nowadays that offer different design influences. Consider the design options available from aluminum, vinyl, glass or wood railing combinations. Different decking materials such as Ipe and even mahogany give your deck a real feel of attachment to the home.

And to add visual and material contrast don’t forget that the actual deck surface materials nowadays can include advanced waterproof and maintenance free vinyl flooring material, fiberglass, as well as one of over 55 different kinds of composite decking boards.

Consider Existing Architecture of Your Home

Deck Designs

Probably the most important thing to consider when designing your deck is the existing style of your home. This is certainly the one area that deck builders often overlook entirely and just go ahead and build a big cedar or redwood rectangle suspended 4 feet above the ground regardless of the look and style of the existing home.

Instead look at your home and identify its architectural influences – if any. Some homes built over the last 30-40 years are quite nondescript so you’ll have to wing it a bit in those cases. But if you have Arts and Crafts bungalow style home famous for its simple but robust accents such as large beams supporting roof overhangs, shingle siding and clean lines – try to add hints of some of these attributes to your deck.

If you have a Cap Cod style home famous for long sloping front oriented roofs and dormers, a California influenced redwood deck is going to appear a bit out of place however well designed and built it is. On the other hand, a deck that uses the soft marine influenced color palette for the deck boards or fascia with white railings, or teak inspired decking (if you can afford it – Ipe is a nice alternative) might look like a perfect match.

Another example might be a Victorian era style home known for is “busier” appearance. These homes exemplify complexity in detail with such attributes as large turned balusters, circular turret style roofs, curved walls and more. They also typically had large porches on the front of the homes with roof overhangs. Imagine just sticking a square pressure treated 2×6 deck on the back of one of these homes. It would detract from the character of this kind of home.

These are extreme examples of how architecture can clash but hopefully illustrates the point well.

So you see, you have to just take a bit of time to think about how this additional living space will work with the overall design of your home. But you will be delighted with the improvement to your deck designs if you follow these simple approaches.

So get out there and build it right!

For other interesting articles, information and ideas on designing decks visit www.ideas-for-deck-designs.com

Richard has been in the building business for over 15 years and shares his knowledge of contracting, designing and building home improvement projects through Ideas-For-Deck-Designs.com

Copyright 2005 Ideas-for-deck-designs.com All rights reserved.

Slate is a metamorphic type of rock, which means that it started out as something else, and then changed over time. This results in a rock that can stand up to changing temperatures and lots of water. These qualities, in addition to the beautiful look of slate, make it a wonderful material for outdoor landscaping.

Many types of outdoor landscaping projects come to mind when we think about stone. If you’re only looking for an accent of stone, you might want to consider a flower bed border. It doesn’t take a lot of stone, and it looks very nice. Many people use brick for this, and while brick is less expensive, it is not as durable as slate. Also, you can usually find broken slate or salvage slate for a project like this and pay very little for it. Some people like to simply line the outside of their flower bed with slate, but others like to build an actual border along the outside – sometimes as high as six inches high.

Another project you could consider is that of a water feature in your yard. Slate can be used to build a fountain-like, or a waterfall-like water feature that will add a cool tranquility to your outdoor space. Because slate can be exposed to water, heat, and even freezing temperatures, it is the perfect material for such a project. As for the look of your water feature – there are many possibilities. You can choose an unusual slate color for the project, for one. For another, you can create very different looking spaces depending on the size of slate pieces you use, and how you arrange them. You could arrange them in a stair pattern, with the water trickling from above. You could use larger sheets of slate to create a basin with a water source in the center. Check online or in do-it-yourself landscaping magazines to get ideas.

Lastly, many people choose to build a walkway or patio out of slate tiles. Slate can get slippery, because it does not absorb water, but there are ways to texture the slate to improve traction. Because the stone is so durable and withstands weather changes so well, it is resistant to cracking, which is a very important feature when considering the material for your walkway or patio.

It is surprisingly easy to lay a slate patio or walkway. Pre-cut slate squares are available for a uniform look, or you can create a quirkier, more natural look with different size and color pieces of slate. While bricks will crack and crumble, concrete will crack and warp, slate will hold up for many years, creating a natural, yet sophisticated and classy look for your patio or walkway.

If cost is a factor, consider the fact that slate has been around for years and years, unlike man-made materials like brick or concrete, so while you may pay a little more upfront, you will certainly save money in the long run because you won’t have costly and time-consuming repairs to do to your outdoor landscaping structures. Slate is an investment, and one that only improves over time.

Find quality Slate Tile from http://www.virginiaslate.com