Making The Best Use Of A Terrace

In these times when the costs of building make large houses extremely expensive, there is a way to extend your living area and that is to use your outdoor space to full advantage. There are many contemporary houses that have made many a room appear larger by visually extending it into the lawn or garden. This has been achieved through the use of tricks such as glass walls, continuing the use of a wall material inside and out on a terrace and doing the same for the ceiling. With such techniques it is now possible to have your living room, dining room and even the bedrooms in the house flow right outdoors on to decks of wood that appear to "float" , terraces constructed of brick or cement blocks or lattice roofs.

Whichever method you choose for your home, using vines, fences and shrubbery as well as shade trees and flowers can create an area that is both a delight to the senses and a very practical place for entertaining and relaxing. When you add a barbecue, another dimension is created, as having your very own fireplace or barbecue on the terrace, lawn or spot in the garden can transform it into an enchanted area for dining under sun and stars. When you are planning your terrace, you should consider installing an electric outlet to allow for lighting, a portable radio or stereo system, or an electric spit for your barbecue, etc. If you use vines for a lattice roof such as grape vines, you will have the advantage of shade in the hotter parts of the year and when the sun is low in the sky, the deciduous nature of the grape vine will allow welcome sun to pour in. The fruit is another added bonus. Whichever vine you choose, it should be a fast growing one such as the grape, wisteria or gourd vine.

Connect your terrace to the rest of your grounds by growing flowering plants and vines in pots, baskets and tubs. You can also soften the line of bare walls, cement slabs or paving with the careful arrangement of pots of plants. Dwarf trees growing in pots in a sunny position on the terrace and flowering shrubs in a retaining wall around the terrace add to the effect. Changes of level will add interest as will flower beds around trees, steps and walls.

For a house with young children, the terrace where everybody in the family assembles should contain a play space such as a sand box which can later be filled with plants, or a little square pool for sailing small boats. This latter example can be converted to a luxurious water feature when the children have grown. Trees need not be the only source of shade: the construction of a "self-bracing" terrace roof, extended from the side of the house and using wood, masonry or metal pillars as the supports, is an excellent way to create shade. Corrugated plastic and reinforced glass as roofing materials are in frequent use nowadays because they are watertight, yet let the sunlight through.

Being used more and more in architecture particularly in hotter climates is a structure known as the "parasol" roof usually extending from the walls of the house 4 feet or more to give pleasant welcome shade to the surrounding area. The planting of grass that can cope with the shade under the "parasol" roof helps to maintain a comfortably cool temperature range inside the house as it does not reflect heat and cause glare.

The accessibility of an outdoor living space will often increase its use. Converting a window in a living room to a French door will make it more natural to step right out on the terrace instead of having to walk around the house to reach it. A terrace that is an extension of a narrow porch in the form of a paved area next to the porch will ensure that the porch is much more livable. A flagstone path or any other path that leads directly to a terrace away from the house will increase the usefulness of the terrace and makes it more inviting. Some kind of hard flooring is of prime importance in making the terrace area or other outdoor area more usable. Examples of these hard surfaces include bricks, flagstones, cement slab and crushed, compacted rock. The hard surface allows for easier movement of furniture and other heavy objects and means that lawn is not tramped down and compacted. A terrace located in an area where you are having difficulty establishing a lawn can be a solution to the problem.

A successful outdoor living space is one that is sheltered. For instance, stone patios that are tucked away from street noises and traffic, from the neighbors and from the wind are perfect examples of calming and relaxing living spaces. An otherwise unused corner of the house or the garage, with the aid of fences and walls, can be transformed into a sun trap that will stretch out the season for out-door living both in spring and fall. Fences or structures made from louvered board, a basket-weave or lattice, or a modern wall made from cement or rendered brick, are all aesthetically pleasing backgrounds for planting and also act as good screens against wind and other natural elements.

About the Author

Kent Higgins helps consumers uncomplicate the topic of brick patios. Take in the variety of subjects at http://www.plant-care.com it's visited by 1,000's each day because of quality content in the world of indoor plants, landscaping and gardens.

Garden Pathways

When we speak of pathways, we may be speaking of a lot more than a convenient and attractive way of negotiating our outdoor living space. We may be speaking of our life’s journey and the route which takes us on that journey…and we all know that this pathway is littered with obstacles which impede the progress of our journey.

But of course, when back in the backyard and done with philosophising, we know that these actual pathways need not be an impediment to our progress at all. In fact, they should be designed to facilitate our every need in terms of negotiating the space and in terms of being an attractive asset to the infrastructure of our home.

Pathways can be as simple and as complex as their creators. They can be a short straight line pathway from the front door to the gate. They can be a link between the backdoor and the tool shed out the back…and they can be a labyrinth that interconnects the various outdoor rooms of a complex and large formal, or indeed informal garden.

When planning your pathway, whether it be a humble pathway or one on a grand scale, you need to consider such things as the width of the pathway. It ideally should be wide enough to accommodate two people walking side by side, and remember that you will probably need to be able to transport garden implements such as a wheelbarrow along the path.

What materials you use to construct the pathway depends upon the amount of use that you expect the path to get. If you expect it to be used frequently then you should consider using robust materials such as brick or concrete pavers. A gravel path may suit a situation where the path will endure relatively little use.

If paving with concrete or brick pavers, make sure that you prepare the base for the path thoroughly. If unsure about how to go about this, get the advice of someone experienced in the art.

My personal favourite pathways are those which meander mysteriously around the features of cottage gardens, revealing on the one hand the bulbs of spring, and on the other the gnarled trunks of trees which have seen more of life than I have. And what is a pathway that doesn’t take you to a place of rest? A garden bench around the next corner, I believe.

My view of gardens and pathways in relation to those gardens is romantic, but romance need not preclude the practical. A thing of beauty can be successful from a functional point of view, so let’s get on with it.

If you wish to read a lot more about the various aspects of garden paving then please check out my website at http://www.garden-paving.com.

Garden Paving - Enhancing Your Outdoor Space

Paving your outdoor space not only enhances the appearance of your backyard, but provides you with an amenity that will last a lifetime. There are many paving alternatives which need to be considered carefully to fit in with your outdoor environment and with your aspirations for that environment.

The infrastructure of your backyard can only be enhanced by the building of pathways connecting the various structures in that yard. Garden paving will provide you with many advantages. During inclement weather a pathway is a better option than an unpaved surface, which could be muddy and slippery. A good system of pathways in your backyard will link all of the different structures.

A cottage garden populated by trees and shrubs provides an ideal environment for the placement of pathways, which will lead you to all the hidden spaces.

No matter what sort of garden you have, there is a design to suit. Paving slabs come in many and varied shapes, colours and sizes. Appropriate garden paving will improve the appearance of your outdoor space, and will give you years of pleasure, both from the point of view of the practical and the aesthetic.

Composite and stone are the two basic sorts of paving materials.

Flexibility is a feature of composites and they come in a wide range of colours and shapes. You will find that prices vary, but there will be something suitable in terms of price, practicality and appearance for most garden paving projects.

Precast concrete pavers, which come in a variety of colours, sizes and shapes, are a good quality option to consider. Another option which will give you much flexibility with the shape of the paved area and with the aggregation of the material is poured concrete. You can be very creative when working with poured concrete, and it is a very durable surface.
Another very popular paving option is bricks. Bricks are available in such a range that there is bound to be something suitable for most tastes, and they can be put down in various patterns to create different results. Although not necessarily the cheapest option, bricks are, nevertheless, always worthy of consideration, and most garden paving is done with bricks of one kind or another.

Paving stone comes in a wide range of shapes and sizes and colours. Do shop around because it can be a little expensive sometimes.

Limestone is relatively easy to work with, but comes in a more limited range of colours. Although less durable than some of the other stones, slate is, nevertheless, a good choice in terms of sheer beauty.

Granite is a more expensive option than most, but there is a good reason for that. It is very hard and has a wide range of colours, and for those reasons is one of the very best choices.

Sandstone is widely chosen because it is relatively easy to use. It comes in a wide range of colours and shapes and tends to be less expensive than some other options.

It is a good idea to use a variety of materials in a paving project. There is no rule which says that only one material can be used per project, and the variations which can be achieved with creative mixtures of materials can be worth the effort.

In conclusion, just remember that no matter what your taste dictates, you will be able to find very suitable options for your garden paving from the wide range of available products and ideas. If you wish to find more detailed information on all aspects of paving please visit our Garden Paving website.

Adrian Broadby is a writer and researcher and maintains the website GardenPaving.com. at http://www.garden-paving.com.