How to Set up a Moveable Garden

Why would you want to set up a moveable garden? Reasons could include extending the gardening season, climate control, and animal control or just to create change in your backyard and landscaping design.

I am creating two moveable gardens. Both gardens are for the same reason: flood control and to create new looks for my yard. By changing growing containers and flowers I can give the area a new look for each season.

As we are moving into fall in my area I will make my first containers mainly a collection of autumn mums. Other ideas might be a dried tree root with vines or an old crate with a variety of potted plants.

In the front of my yard I have had a raised bed garden. It’s been practical for ease in mowing and it’s been very pretty. But with the recent front yard flooding I am setting the landscaping up in such a way to redirect any future water problems and to protect the house and the lower apartment.

For this reason, to keep moisture away from the house I am removing the plants from the raised beds and turning it into a raise flat rock patio area. This will remove any soil that can attract moisture to the house foundation. My plan is to lay in flat rock and then add potted trees, plants and garden features to the area for color. The outer corners will keep a small amount of soil but be set up to keep water away from the foundation Two shrubs will remain but small potted trees will be added to the flat rock patio for height and interest.

To start my flat rock patio garden I have removed my perennial plants and added them to a holding garden (a garden that houses any stray homeless plants).

I have placed a 4-inch tall by 2-inch wide small cement wall by the house to keep any soil and moisture away from the foundation. This will not be noticeable when I am done with the flat rock patio.

Next I have laid down heavy cardboard to make sure I have choked out any weeds that may think of growing.

It has taken several days to pick out rocks that fit in a nice pattern and will lay flat. To help make sure the rock lay well I put down some free sand I picked up from a home where they were removing their pool. By walking and tamping down on the rock I have helped them to settle in.

After letting them settle for a few weeks I will add cement or another bonding material. After all the reason for the rock patio is to keep the area by the house dry.

The flat rock patio will take a month or so to totally finish and will be a garden area that can and will change with the seasons.

I may include some vegetables and herbs next summer in containers and a large container of sunflower would add color to the garden area. I would also like to pick up a container fruit tree and an indoor-outdoor tall tropical plant.

My second moveable garden will be located on my rock retaining wall that is nothing but a plain and very ugly looking pile of rock. This project needs a backhoe, topsoil, and compost and time to make it look good. This wall is my new flood protection for the house as the road drains were damaged beyond repair this year in the flooding we have had this summer.

This project will be covered later this fall.

TIP: If you need concrete for any of your projects call your local cement or construction company. There are times you can make arrangements for free or reduced concrete. All you need to do is have the area prepared and ready for any concrete.

If the company has extra material from a job that they need to get rid of and you have the area ready and can level the material they will often give it to you for free. The problems are, the area must be ready to pour at any time and you must be able to work the concrete when they can deliver it.