To create an awesome rock garden careful planning is crucial before you start. It's essential to keep in mind the main aim is to produce a rock garden that will appear as natural as possible. At all costs avoid scattering stones over a flat bed. Pick a basic design, as a broad rule a sloping rock garden is a lot more striking than a level one. The chosen site ought to be free from shade for the best part of the day - a background of trees and shrubs could improve the natural feel, however the trees must be far enough away so that they do not have any damaging effect on the plants. Visit a good rock garden or two to determine what an outcrop or terraced rockery should look like. Draw a rough sketch, but a detailed plan at this stage is out of the question. Mark out a place in your garden with string which is slightly larger than your designed rock garden.
Prepare the location. Choose a day when the soil is relatively dry. Strip off the turf if you have any and take away all perennial weeds. This weed removal is important as couch and bindwees etc. can ruin a rock garden. Dig out all of the roots, if the site is badly infested you will probably need to use an appropriate weed killer such as glyphosate and leave the site unplanted for the period recommended on the label. Good drainage is an additional vital will want. On a sloping site on a non-clay area, no additional groundwork will be required, but if your subsoil is heavy then a drainage layer will be necessary.
Move stones about. You will be able to maneuver small stones around by merely carrying them, either alone or with assistance from a helper. Always wear leather gloves and sturdy boots. Keep in mind the golden rules, knees bent, back straight, hold the load evenly and then straighten the knees with elbows as close to your thighs as possible. Never stoop over to grasp the rock and on no account jerk up all of a sudden to lift it off the ground. You will be able to tackle rocks weighing up to about 1cwt with this way, but in a big rockery you need to work with some stones which weigh considerably more. One of the safest aids for medium sized rocks is a sack trolley. You will have to lay down a trackway of boards on soft ground. You should not use a single wheeled garden wheelbarrow because the load can easily tip over. Some stones are simply too large to use a sack trolley and these pose a huge drawback. You could make a track of wooden planks and roll the rock along by turning it over and over using a bar or perhaps a lump of wood.
To set the stones in place, you will require a crowbar, spade, some wooden planks and a strong stick for pushing soil between the stones. Unless the proposed rockery is very small. You will also will require a number of competent helpers. Ideally you have chosen a bank with a gentle slope of about 10 degrees, if the site is flat and you plan to make a sloping rock garden then you will require a minimum 1 ton of topsoil for every 20 sq. ft. Purchase Top quality topsoil if the earth within your garden is clay. Look at the stones and pick out one that is large and has a lovely face - this will be the key stone and serve as the centre point for the first layer of stones.
Dig out a hollow which is larger than the bottom of your key stone and roll your rock into place. Use the crowbar to lever it into its final location. Push rubble under the key stone and add soil both under and behind it. Ram this down firmly using a stick to ensure that there are no air pockets. Stand on your rock to make sure it is compact. Follow the exact same process with stones of varied sizes on either side of the main stone, this will complete the first tier. Some stones should be pushed tightly together with the crowbar but you should avoid a continuous line one stone high. It is far better to rearrange the stones in groups, declining in height as the edges of the rock garden are reached. It's essential to ensure that all of the strata lines on the stones run in the same horizontal direction, and soil should be pushed into the cracks. Alpines may be planted into these joints as you proceed - now move on to the next tier of stones. It may be necessary to set down wooden plank ramps to permit the stones to be rolled up to your upper tiers.
Continue until all the stones are set in place, stand back now and again to make sure that you are accomplishing the desired effect. The final step at this stage is to add some more soil between the stones, but don't fill the planting pockets to their final level - leave a space for the planting mixture.
Author Resource:
I have been a keen gardener for many years now but no one has all the answers. When I need help or advice I always call a company called Landscape Gardener London . So far they have given me all the help and advice that I have asked for, as and when I ask them for it.
![[Valid RSS feed]](http://www.look4articles.com/images/icon_Rss.png "XML Feed For RSS"){kind=icon}
Category Rss Feed
Print This Article
Add To Favorites
![[Valid RSS feed]](http://www.look4articles.com/images/rss.jpg "XML Feed For RSS")