Blending a Swimming Pool into your Landscape

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A well thought-out swimming pool landscape plan can turn a fun, recreational area into one that forever increases the aesthetic and (quite possibly) monetary value of your home. There are few things more decadent than having a private oasis in your backyard. That said, it is surprising how frequently would-be owners of such luxury, inground pools often spare little thought for the details of poolscape design. There are manifold considerations when it comes to swimming pool landscape design, considerations that include safety, convenience, privacy and, of course, beauty.

Landscape Design Ideas for a Swimming Pool

Possibly the best solution for a swimming pool landscape look that will be beautiful while also being immune to prying eyes is to surround it with greenery - plants tall and lush enough to form a screen around the perimeter. Of course, unless you plan to spend the other half of your free time dishing leaves out of the pool, you need to make your pick wisely. Large deciduous trees or even needle-bearing evergreens can be more trouble than they're worth, and fruit and flower trees, aside from being a source of obvious mess, attract flies, bees and wasps. Also, large trees with their correspondingly big root systems can cause damage to an inground swimming pool over the course of a few years.

Swimming Pool Privacy

Try instead for broadleaf evergreens like holly. One way to save space while still getting all the green you desire is to grow vines up trellises, or even to purchase an espalier tree. Espalier trees have their branches trained to grow out to either side, so they essentially form a flat barrier of branches. These are the best landscaping ideas for privacy, the alternative being a fence or wall, which will lack the gentle arboreal and natural feel of vegetation, but provide the safety and security you might prize over those traits if you have small children. Another serious consideration if that's the case is getting hold of a strong pool cover that will support the weight of your child should they happen to fall on it.

Patio Tiling

It's also a good idea to surround your pool with patio tiling, ensuring you of a safe, non-slip surface when you get out of the pool. Lazing outside is one of the most luxurious parts of having a pool, so think about the social space you're constructing and how many people you'd like to be able to entertain.

Landcape Pool Style

Lastly, think about style. You'd ideally like your swimming pool landscape design to echo the architectural features of your home. Often people renovate their houses without giving any thought to the outmoded style of the pool in the backyard. Look at a variety of custom designs, remembering always that your dream swimming pool will be the one that fits seamlessly into your dream home.

Poolscape Designs

A swimming pool in the landscape should not look like a fish out of water. Incorporating a swimming pool into your landscape is not always a simple endeavor. Pools are not only a major expense but also a major component to be fit into today's typically smaller sized lot. Designing a "poolscape" to fit you budget, lifestyle and site takes thought, creativity and knowledge.

A good "poolscape" design begins with an assessment of your goals. Pool size, shape and amenities are considered. Desired paving materials are discussed. Deciding whether the pool will have an automatic cover or not will dictate whether the pool must be rectangular or free form. These, and many other questions relating to the use and aesthetics of your pool area should be answered before the digging begins.

Site Conditions and Restrictions

Very often the location for your pool is determined by site conditions and zoning restrictions. Protecting existing trees, avoiding heavy shade and strong winds and deciding whether the pool will be visible during the off-season from the house must be addressed. Proximity to the house may be important, as well as to changing rooms and bathroom facilities. Building the pool far from the house often results in a pool which is unsafe and seldom used.

Well Designed Pool

A well designed pool should relate to the house and surroundings, affords adequate pool paving for eating, lounging and possibly shady areas nearby for sun-sensitive people. Pool equipment should be accessible but hidden from view. Safety equipment must be readily available as well. Most jurisdictions will require fencing, which should harmonize in the landscape. Consider your pool much like a tub in the bathroom. It serves an important role but it's only one component in a well-designed room. Your professional landscape design consultant can help make your "poolscape" a "great escape" from the worries of the world.

Swimming Pool is a Backyard Resort

With the weather warming up, what a great time to drift on a raft in a backyard swimming pool. There is no better place to getaway from life's little stresses than your own backyard. Travel time is minimal and the stay is free! With so many new swimming pool products and landscape ideas available, there is no reason you can't create that special retreat at your own home. There are an array of new pool decking materials available, new filtration systems (salt water is in), waterfalls cascading into the pool and outdoor living rooms are all the rage! It is not just a pool anymore; it is your own backyard luxury resort.

Swimming Pool Designs

The best place to start with any major project is with a comprehensive design. Whether you plan to do things in stages or all at once, you will want to be certain you receive a complete design to ensure the entire yard blends together. Start by determining a few key points for the design - the size and shape of the swimming pool, how you intend to use the space (relaxation, exercise, sports) and any special design elements you would like incorporate that suit your lifestyle. Your imagination is your only limitation (well and possibly your budget).

Swimming Pool Decks

The new trend in pool decking is to throw out the stark white concrete and use more exciting, natural pool decking products. You can easily give an old pool new life by changing the decking. We are seeing homeowners use more natural products - brick pavers, blue stone, and travertine - that blend in with their overall landscaping and add a little bit of color to their pool.

Total Outdoor Living Spaces

The new rage in landscaping is to create outdoor living rooms, and this includes swimming pools. Incorporating a gourmet kitchen, outdoor fireplace or cabanas and pool houses into your pool area can provide a perfect place to gather and entertain friends and family.

Water Features

Whether it is water cascading from a rock waterfall or an intricate grotto located behind the falls, the new trend for pools is to add the relaxing element of falling water. Customers are incorporating water features into their pools - fountains that shoot bursts of water through the air, elaborate cascades that drop a sheet of water into the pool and intricate waterslides for the kids (and you too). You can create your own natural wonder of the world.

Salt Water Pools

The new trend in pool filtration systems is salt! Benefits of this natural cleaning process include: no chlorine smell, no red eyes, reduced cost (your just buying salt), and no pool "shocking" with chemicals. Talk to your local pool company to learn more about how the salt filtration system works.

Swimming Pool Landscaping

Remember to add color and beauty to your swimming pools landscape. Bring in lush plantings around the pool deck to soften the hardscape and a few evergreens to add some privacy. Also think about shade elements; will you be using carefully planted trees, umbrellas or awnings.

Swimming Pool Lighting

Don't forget the lighting, you may want to enjoy your pool well into the evening. You can use a mix of landscape lighting for pathways, trees and gardens, use fountain lights in the pool and add a few Tiki torches for the island resort experience. You can set any mood with the right lighting!

Article Source & Arthur: Jasmine Leclair and Jasmine Leclair

Swimming Pool Types

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There are several different types of swimming pools available. Depending on your preference and any municipal restrictions that may affect your property, choosing a pool can be confusing. Consulting with a swimming pool specialist will make this decision much easier.

Concrete Pools

Concrete Pools are the most recognizable in ground types. They are also the hardest and most time consuming to build. They can take up to 6 weeks to complete. Basically, concrete is poured into a pre dug hole. Concrete pools can be constructed in almost any shape, and have almost limitless finishes and features. They are also the longest lasting and most durable. Concrete pools can be updated by refinishing or having a vinyl liner dropped in.

Gunite Pools

Gunite pools are similar to pour concrete. The difference being that once the hole is dug and the plumbing installed, a grid of metal bars tied together with wire is constructed in the bottom of the hole. A mixture of cement and sand over the grid. The Gunite is trowled smooth and left to set for about a week. Once dry the finish is added. Gunite pools are very durable and can be formed into any shape.

Fiberglass Pools

Fiberglass pools are the fastest growing type of pool on the market today. This type of pool is made from fiberglass-reinforced plastic. Fiberglass pools come in a variety of finishes, features, styles and colors. You can actually see what you are buying beforehand. Installation takes days instead of weeks. Installing a fiberglass pool is relatively simple, an appropriate sized hole is dug, the plumbing is put in and then the pool is dropped in the hole. The hole is them back filled, hook up plumbing and add water.

Prefabricate and Vinyl-Lined Pools

Prefabricate and vinyl-lined pools are not above ground pools, a metal, plastic or wood frame is assembled in a pre-dug hole. After the plumbing is installed and a layer of sand, the vinyl liner is attached to the frame. These pools are a lot less expensive, but also a lot less durable. Usually the liner will need to be replaces about every 10 years.

Above Ground Pools

Above ground pools are the least expensive, less attractive, and limited on design. These pools come in a pre-fabricated kit and can be assembled by the purchaser (it is probably wiser to hire someone to assemble it for you). The vinyl liner is attached to a frame constructed of metal, plastic or wood. As with the in ground styles the plumbing is installed under a layer of sand, once the pool is assembled and the plumbing hooked up. It can be filled with water, and it is ready to go. Above ground pools are the least durable and they can be disassembled and moved very easily.

Note: in-ground pools appear to be stationary, but depending on ground water in your area are actually floating. This is why even in the winter; the pool needs to be kept filled. Ground pressure can push a pool out of the ground if it is left empty. Pressure on the inside of the pool needs to be roughly the same as outside.

Article Source & Arthur: Nicholas Ayres

Backyard Landscaping Designs

Backyard Landscaping

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Coming up with backyard landscape ideas is not always easy. Did you spend weeks picking out the current color for your house and landscaping your front yard, only to neglect the backyard and hide it with a big fence? A good backyard landscape plan is a key element to having a beautiful home that will feel finished and net you higher dollars when you sell. Curb appeal is a marketing term for how your house looks from the outside, does your house have backyard appeal? If not than you will want to continue reading this article and learn more about backyard landscape ideas.

Decorating your Backyard

We spend a lot of time and energy in decorating our houses and making them a home. Do the same for your backyard with landscaping and you will add another room to your house. A well-designed backyard-landscaping project will cause you to want to spend time outside enjoying the landscaping and nature. To start designing your new backyard landscape spend some time thinking about what you want to see in your yard and do with your yard, bushes, and trees during each season of the year. Do you want green trees all year, a lot of flowers and color in the spring, and lush grass in the summer? Or maybe you like more low maintenance plants and shrubs.

Another Room in the House

Backyard landscapes have evolved from lawn and a sprinkler to new modern designs involving pools, spas, barbeque pits, tables, couches, and dishwashers. The modern idea for a back yard has become an outside room that you can use many months out of the year. Backyards are the screened porches of the twenty-first century but before you start digging the hole for the pool do some research online to view pictures of what other people have done with their backyards. Spend some time thinking about what aspects of their designs you like and what you dislike. Research the appliances you want to use and see if others have recommended the appliance for use in your area. After all what works in a backyard in California probably won't work out as well in Maine.

Make a Do It Yourself Plan

Once you have your backyard landscape ideas you can start making a plan on how to achieve your backyard goal. If you are a do-it-yourself kind of person you can find plans and instructions online to complete your backyard-landscaping plan. If you do not have the time or the desire to complete your backyard-landscaping plan yourself, search online for a backyard-landscaping contractor. You will find many people who are ready and willing to take on your project and give your backyard the appeal you never imagined possible.

Blending Personality

The backyard is a place for peace and a spot to have some fun with your children after a heavy and long day at work. Whatever your purpose is, there are still several landscaping ideas to select from, in making your own desired space.

There are so many creative and brilliant ideas anybody can think of in landscaping the backyard. Like for instance, if you want something to create a mull and backyard pop over your character or personality, then try it out! Moreover, if you're looking for a wild and fun location to spend time with family and friends in, then you can do "chief setting" for your backyard.

Flowers to Decorate

Other alternative to consider is to plot some wildflowers and other vibrant flowers to decorate your landscape. If you're decorating a new yard, then pick some cool color for the stones and tiles on the floor. In addition, you can also customize your patio by adding some effects and designs.

Landscaping Themes

You can also consider adding various themes in landscaping. Like if you want to have a tropical getaway, your backyard should have lots of fruits trees with harmonizing flowers. You can also place a "hammock" in between two trees, and a swing on the side. Toss some candles in your patio and a few tropical toss rugs in the floor. Then after a while, you will be surprised when you feel the warmth.

Designs for Entertainment

If you're someone who enjoys barbeques with family and friends in the backyard, then there are many options for you. Expanding your patio will create an extra room for seats plus more entertaining space. The trick here is to build a roof on top of your patio. This will be a great time to enjoy the outdoors even if the weather is not that good.

Planting Flowers and Trees

Another great way to bond with your family is to let them plant flowers and trees in your backyard. Teach the kids the importance and benefits of the trees and flowers. Let them plant in the desired place they want. This is a good way to capture moments and produce memories with tour family.

A wonderful backyard landscape can be done in less than two weeks. It might take longer, depending on the size of your backyard.

Just remember to enjoy and expand you imagination, for sure you will have a getaway that is unique from the rest.

Blending with your House

Here let me bring in to your notice, how you can get your backyard landscaping ideas to blend with the rest of your house. A backyard is a space to relax in. It has special meaning and significance in architecture. Especially, in a warm climate, backyard landscape provides some fresh air and greenery.

Landscape a Beautiful Place

The air in and around backyard landscape is generally cooler, which is comparatively free from dust and grit? Good backyard landscaping ideas if implemented properly , can become a soothing, beautiful place for enjoying your morning coffee, eating a meal, relaxing, chilling out with family and friends, reading, hosting intimate parties and more. Canopy comes in handy for cozy meetings with friends and family. Large or small, permanent or temporary, the canopy in a landscape ideas is a great way to enjoy the outdoors either alone or at parties.

Outside Patio Furniture

The furniture you chose really depends on your budget and the style of your backyard landscaping ideas. Cane and bamboo furniture looks trendy and is inexpensive. Easy chairs, lounge chairs, a chaise, divan and even a bean bag go well. A hammock is a good buy too.
Swings are ideal for backyard landscaping ideas .Even a fountain would fit in well. Place a few statues either in brass or stone in strategic corners. If budget is not a constraint, invest in a few marble statuettes.

Hanging Flowers

A backyard landscape can have hanging colorful flowering plants in pretty baskets and other containers as it would definitely add to the attractiveness of the backyard landscape. Spotlights can be used to highlight your plants at night and give the area a dramatic look.

You can also have several large but slow growing creepers all over the fence in the backyard landscape. Its slow but steady growth will be a pleasure to watch while not requiring constant care. In a nutshell, creative and inexpensive backyard landscaping ideas can be a reality with proper implementation and care.

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Article Sources & Arthurs: Joseph Calestine Tim Lee Mary Rose

How to Grow Organic Vegetables at Home

A Healthy Way of Living - Organic

An Important aspect of organic vegetable gardening is the health benefits. You won't need to worry about consuming chemical pesticides since everything you'll use in this type of garden will be natural. This means your food will be more nutritious and your body will be able to fight against illness better. The soil is one of the main things that need to be nourished if you want to produce the best nutritious vegetables. It's vital that plants have a healthy environment.

More about the benefits of organic vegetables

How to Nourish Your Soil

Find out what type of soil you have by picking some up and feeling it. This will help you know how to nourish it in the best way. Sand, Loam and Clay are three basic types of soil. Loam soil is great to grow plants in because it has a lot of organic matter that holds plenty of water. Loam soil will stay together but crumbles easily. One way to tell if your soil is healthy is send a sample away to an agricultural agency. They will test it for nutrients and measure acidity or alkalinity. You can also buy soil tests to you can use at home. A mild acidic or neutral soil is usually fine for vegetables to grow. Compost and manure will improve the quality of your soil. Mulch can help soil keep nutrients and moisture.

More about properly nurishing the soil of a homemade garden

Picking an Area to Plant

Organic vegetable gardening needs to be done in area where there is direct sunlight for about six hours. Vegetables need this much sun in order to flourish so they shouldn't be put in an area where anything blocks the sun. The sun will also keep the soil warm. The area where you plant should also have adequate drainage. If there isn't enough drainage it can interfere with the nutrient absorption of the soil. Roots also won't grow properly. Too much drainage isn't good either and can take away nutrients. To find out if you have drainage problems you can use a percolation test which will measure how packed your soil is.

Picture guide of suggested areas to start a garden

Designing a Garden Plan

When designing an organic vegetable gardening plan take into consideration that when plants are full grown they take up more space. Planting in blocks will give you more space than planting in rows. Block planting can make it easier for you to take care of your vegetables. Whether you decide to plant in rows or blocks, you should never overcrowd any area so your plants stay healthy. The way you arrange your garden can also depend on the type of plants you use since some vegetables require more space than others.

picture guide of garden designs

Choosing the Types of Vegetables to Plant

First, you should always choose vegetables that you and your family will definitely eat. Some common types of vegetables are artichoke, brussel sprouts celery and spinach. Low-maintenance vegetables plants are great if you're a beginner at organic vegetable gardening. Beetroot is easy to care for because it only needs moist soil to grow. You can eat beetroot fresh from your garden between June and late fall. Radishes, zucchini, cucumbers and parsley are also easy to grow. Green beans are a great vegetable choice and a very productive plant.

view our large selection of all vegetable plant types

The organic vegetable garden will very quickly become one of your very best investments. Not only will you save money on your food bill, but you will also be able to give yourself or your family healthier choices at the dinner table. But before you begin your journey into this world, these are just some of the things that you should know:

Year Round Growing

Depending on where you live, you might not be able to grow your garden year round. Certain vegetables require strict temperature ranges. Brussel sprouts and onions for example should be grown at temps around 50 to 70 degrees. This is in my opinion, the lower end of the temperature spectrum for growing veggies.

Automatic Watering System

Make sure that you have some type of automatic watering system in place. This will aid you in the long run because we are all busy and the last thing that your organic vegetable garden cannot go without is WATER! You have to make sure that your garden is watered everyday. You don't won't dead seeds before your garden has had a chance to begin!

more about automatic water systems for your home garden

Sunshine is Necessary

Make sure that you plant your garden where there will we lots of sunshine. Vegetables like any other plant need lots of sunshine to properly grow, around 5 to 6 hours of sunlight is optimal.

Study the location of your garden

You need to know the usual weather and type of soil that you have. This is so that you can decide on what types of plants should you include in your garden. For example, leafy vegetables such as spinach, lettuce, cabbages and parsley do not need as much sunlight as do the root vegetables such as radishes, onions and turnips. If your garden is somewhat shaded, you can plant these vegetables that do not require strong sunlight. The types of vegetables that need the most sunlight are those that produce fruit such as eggplants, tomatoes, cucumbers and peppers.

Plant a variety of vegetables

This is called mixed cultivation. By planting a mixture of types of vegetables, you would have better and healthier yield. This is because your vegetables help each other grow. For example, you can plant carrots, leeks and onions together or cabbages with dwarf (French) beans. You could also combine lettuce, kohlrabi and red radish. Furthermore, such situations will draw beneficial insects to your garden and thus, you will have fewer problems with insect pests.

Adding mulch and compost

Mulch is made up of materials like sawdust, straw, wood chips, leaves, twigs etc. Adding mulch around your vegetables will protect your soil from dehydration, erosion and weeds. It also controls the temperature so your plants will be able to survive until harvest season. Besides mulch, also add compost to your vegetables, which is a natural fertilizer to your plants. The ingredients for compost are basically the same as that for mulch. You can either buy them or make them yourself. To make your own compost, just leave the materials in a pile or a bin for a few months so that it can decompose. Turn it over once a week and let nature take its course. After a couple of months or so, you will have lots of compost for your soil.

Get Familiar with your Vegetables

This comes with close and regular inspection. Look over the leaves, roots and stems every day and you would be able to spot early signs of pests or disease. By doing so, you can act on it fast and nip problems in the bud.