Small spaces work perfectly for mini perennial gardens. I spent today moving some of my perennials and planning out my small space terraced gardens on graft paper, then on the computer.

photo credit: echoforsberg

My front yard is going to be small terraced gardens, seven mini gardens in all. One will only be two foot by 3 foot and the largest, a rose garden; will be 4 foot by 8 foot.

As I spent most of the day moving a perennial garden, my two areas for perennials will be the first areas I work on.

The one small space garden will have rock cress and a moss ground cover in the front. Behind that I will plant a few varieties of herbs and small variety hosta plants. The last section in the back will be red sedum on the sides, bee balm in the center and one other taller perennial flower. I haven’t decided which one yet.

The other perennial garden is located near a tree so I will need to set up a shade garden in this area.

I dug up close to 150 perennials today. I put them in my transplant garden area overnight until I fix their new home or repot them for sale or trading for other new plant varieties.

You don’t want your plants you moved to have the opportunity to get dry roots so you need to make sure the roots are wet and that they are placed in soil as fast as possible.  That’s were a transplant garden can come in handy if you cannot plant them on the same day.

My terraces areas are set up on a hillside with a 30-degree slope. The area is being terraced to help redirect and prevent any runoff flooding from across the road. The road drains are all clogged and they said they would not replace them for 15 years so prevention is the best step to take. I say this after the downstairs of the house was ruined last year.

I am also place a mini mound garden area with shrubs and very hard perennials up by the road to help redirect any water if I have this problem again.

I am planning hardscape stairs in two places and laying them out in such a way that if I have any rain problems the rain will be carried away from the house and any gardens areas.  I think think the look of stairways curving through gardens will also add interest to the gardens and landscape.

The other small space gardens will be an herb garden, a flower garden and two veggie/flower garden mixes. The vegetable gardens are being planned for near the patio area and near the kitchen area. This will be a perfect location to run outdoors and select a few fresh vegetables to add to a meal.

These garden areas should be easy to maintain. They will make a problem yard less work and they will also help control any future water problems.  And above all they will add color and interest to a rather ordinary yard.

Technorati Tags: garden planning, hardscape, herbs, landscaping, mini terraced gardens, perennial garden ideas, perennials, rose garden, small space perennial garden, terraced gardens

photo credit: foodistablog

With a little planning on fruit varieties that you want, you will be able to raise fresh non-chemical produce for your family. And by adding other soft fruits like strawberries and melons you will have a great supply of fresh fruit for any occasion.

Here are two you tube videos on small fruit orchards.

One shows growing a small fruit orchard in your backyard. This garden is set up in a city and set up in a raised bed. You could also grow the fruit trees in containers for the patio or balcony garden.

One point mentioned is that sometimes you have to wait a year or two for the fruit to produce.

What I do during this waiting time is add leafy vegetables around the trees or in the containers for color and to make use of the space.

The next video shows how to grow blueberries.

Blueberries add to any mini orchard and are easy to grow. You will need at least two varieties of blueberries for cross-pollination so a larger patio or balcony will be needed or a backyard for the blueberry plants.

This you tube shows planting a blueberry plant in a container. What I like about this your tube is that they really showed mixing up a great soil that will keep the plant healthy and producing for years.

I have 6 blueberry plants that I planted in a circular garden form near the patio and added other small fruit in this area. Vine peach on a trellis, rhubarb in a few groupings, kiwi fruit and raspberries all grow here. I added a few herbs and edible flowers for color and as other crops to harvest.

I also added a bench and a water fountain to this area to create a wonderful place to read or relax in my backyard oasis.

A small fruit orchard can add to the beauty and value of your home  and with the new varieties of small growing trees you can grow almost any fruit that will grow in your climate.

Technorati Tags: backyard oasis, blueberries, fruit trees, garden planning, growing fruit in containers, min orchard, small fruit orchard

In a Postage Stamp garden, a garden that uses a barest possible amount of space, the placement of your plants is critical. You need to utilize every square inch of space but leave room for the plants to breath and receive enough nutrients to grow healthy and produce large crops.
photo credit: The Marmot

Below are a few suggestions for plant placement

Its best if you had time in the winter to plan a garden but you may have decided to plant at the last moment or you have just created a space for a garden. If you haven’t planned a garden it is helpful to lay a design out on paper.  You will have a better plant placement plus you won’t forget a plant or two.

One important part of a postage stamp garden is to use as much of the air space as possible. Some call this layering the plants. Train tomatoes, cucumbers, squash, and vining plants up trellises, arbors, fences, poles, walls or what ever is available. This keeps the plants off the ground, saves space and promotes healthier plants. Sprawling plants will also choke out over smaller plants and makes weeding more difficult.

I have also found I have less insect problems growing certain plants vertical. One more additional plus is that it is pretty. Mix a flowering vine in with the vertical vegetables and it’s stunning. The flowering vine will also help pollination.

For your small backyard design postage stamp garden it’s not necessary to use rows. As a matter of fact rows use more space. I divide the garden into rectangular, square or circular spaces and plant a certain vegetable in that space. The same applies to seedling that you buy. Plant them randomly leaving enough space between the plants. Plants need enough space to grow and like to touch when mature. Spacing will depend on the plant.

For example tomatoes need one foot on both sides when trellised, lettuce like six inches and you can space beans four inches apart. . The Square Foot Garden book by Mel Bartholomew has a great section on plant spacing.

Its best to leave pathways in your garden if you have to reach more than a couple of feet. This way you can get to all the plants easily. This layout will also give you garden an artistic look. And if you have room on the garden place a small bench to rest. I also place a rain barrel in the center of my garden that I fill with water for quick watering or plants.

I also mix flower, herbs and vegetable all in the same plot. They benefit each other, many flowers have natural insect repelling characteristics and it just makes the garden prettier. I am a firm believer in a garden should be fun.

One other important consideration in your small backyard postage stamp garden design is to make sure you plant tall vegetable on the north end of you garden. Taller plants will shade the smaller plants that need sun. Plant the other vegetables in a descending order according to their size down to the south section of the garden. I do occasionally break this rule during the hot summer months with spinach and lettuce plants to give them a little shade in the afternoon hours.

With intensive gardening and the Postage Stamp Gardening method for using space you should be able to design a small backyard garden for any area, even balconies and patios. Gardens add to the development of a backyard oasis paradise.

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