Clear-Cut Ways to Create a Functional and Beautiful Flower Garden
Flower garden designs should be carefully considered and planned early in the process.
I love my garden. It’s huge!
And therein lies the problem!
A large flower garden needs order and function. Otherwise, chaos ensues.
The first problem is the amount of weeds and grass overtaking the garden.
I usually throw in a bunch of wildflower seeds, and it has worked reasonably well. The problem is the crabgrass. I cannot compete with it.
As the garden has aged, my previous gardening techniques have become increasingly inadequate.
I have dug it out, ignored it, and planted seeds early, and it’s still there and overtaking the land.
Since I have edible fruit, such as strawberries, in the garden, I would rather avoid specific weed killers that might harm them.
But that is not the only thing that makes this garden hard to manage.
Another difficulty has been the lack of a pathway reaching every garden area.
Weeding and tending are difficult without a path.
There is also a total lack of structure.
I typically plant tomatoes, rhubarb, horseradish, and veggies on one side of the pathway and flowers on the other.
However, the lack of structure is starting to get to me. And I can’t take this much chaos either.
As much as I love my garden, and I do! Things need to change!
Functional Paths.
Do not forget to include a functional and accessible path when creating your flower garden design.
Paths for your garden should help access every area without stepping on young or developing plants.
There are different ways to do this depending on the type of garden that you have or are envisioning.
Some gardens are more structured, featuring straight lines and a designated area for each plant. This is found in more formal gardens. It is cleanly laid out.
Others may prefer the cottage garden design, which tends to be more curvilinear. In this design, the path must be followed to discover what is next.
This type of garden feels like you are walking along a mountain trail.
If money is tight, buying expensive stepping stones or rocks may be out of the question, but there are ways around this.
Garden pathways made with pallets.
This can be complicated, but it is an option. If you do not have one, you may need to borrow a truck; however, pallets are often given away.
Pallets come in different sizes, and some may be in poor condition. If you choose this option, allow yourself more time to organize and collect a wider range of uniform sizes and styles.
There are different styles of pallet walkways.
Here are two different options for a pallet walkway.
This one is for a garden with straight lines.
This is an excellent idea for a more cottage-like garden feel.
Rock Pathways
There are also various options for rock pathways.
Stepping stone pathways are beautiful!
Please be aware that you can often find garden rocks or stones in your area for free or at a discounted price on Facebook Marketplace or Craigslist.
Suburban Homestead has an excellent video on this. I especially like that the creator of the content often considers price and works within financial limitations.
The stepping stone directions are about halfway through the video, but the whole video is worth watching.
Gravel pathways are very functional.
These types of pathways are easy to create and use. Quality weed cloth and proper drainage should be part of the design.
This is quicker to assemble but can be more expensive.
After creating the pathway, you must deal with overcrowded areas with weeds or grass.
For me, the issue has been crabgrass.
Some plants are almost impossible to deal with. I have seen two ways to deal with this besides using weed killer.
These include covering the area with heavy plastic and allowing the sun’s heat to kill the weeds.
This must be done early in the spring, especially if you have a warmer climate or an extended period to leave the plastic down, possibly up to a few months.
You must also lay bricks or rocks on the side to prevent the plastic from blowing away, or use landscape staples.
The other option is to lay a layer of cardboard down and cover it with about six inches of good dirt.
This can be expensive, but if you have a landfill nearby, you can get compost with dirt at a discounted rate. And any grocery store will have lots of boxes for free!
This way is controversial. But I believe it is worth pursuing in the right situation.
Finally, consider creating smaller spaces within your garden.
Extensive gardens require time and money; if you feel overwhelmed, consider creating smaller areas within your garden first.
Consider creating a pea gravel sitting or bird bath area to decrease the space within your garden.
You can add to the garden annually, but the initial price and time needed will feel much more manageable.
I have also covered gardening basics in a previous post.
Enjoy your summer! It’s going to be a marvelous year!
