The basics of landscaping
Some people prefer to have experts do their landscaping. But you can opt to do it yourself as long as you know the basic steps . Photos by Edgar R Batte
What you need to know:
ave you always felt landscaping was high-sounding and out of bounds for you? It need not be so according to Esther Murungi, managing director Miracle Gardens and Landscapes, “Landscaping is all about digging the land, removing all the rubbish from the garden and levelling it.”
Have you always felt landscaping was high-sounding and out of bounds for you? It need not be so according to Esther Murungi, managing director Miracle Gardens and Landscapes, “Landscaping is all about digging the land, removing all the rubbish from the garden and levelling it.”
Preparing the soil
She explains that the first step is to level the soil. “Use hoes and metallic rakes for that. Some places may be hard, so dig them and remove all the stones. Use rollers for some places. If you have added a lot of soil, use a roller, otherwise add a little black soil and manure before getting the plants in.
Plan for the garden
Make a plan for your garden. It is from this plan that you demarcate the walkways. Use a tape measure, depending on the width of the walkways. They are usually two to three feet wide, but a walkway of three feet is ideal.
The walkway
Put road herbs on the sides of the walkways and pavers on them if you wish. Or put paving stones along them in sporadic places, leaving patches in-between for grass to grow later.
That kind of walkway is unique. You can make your walkway lead to the house from the garden. Use them to direct your steps to whichever place you may choose.
The grass
Having demarcated the walkways, add black soil and manure to the rest of the garden. The proportions will depend on the layout of your garden.
If it is too low, add black soil and manure to a reasonable level. If it is not too low, add a thin layer of black soil and manure.
Add black soil first, then manure on top of it. Then the garden will be ready for planting. Plant your lawn with grass specie of your choice.
Examples of good choices are Pasparum and Zimbabwe Grass. Water immediately after planting.
Watering the grass
From then on, water in the morning and evening for two weeks.
Then water once a day for a month during the dry season. But if it is during the rainy season, plant the grass let it grow without watering it.
Flower garden
After planting the grass, allocate space for your flower beds and plant flowers. You can put some of them next to the house, along the perimeter wall, at the corners, or you can plant hedges along the walkways.
Palm trees are good for your garden. You can plant them in the middle of the lawns, or on the sides, along the perimeter wall. Shrubs like Costus look nice next to the house.
Palms also look good in a home. Hibiscus looks good as a hedge. Plant it in different colour flowers along the perimeter wall.
Purple Leah’s – which are short flowering plants also look nice next to the house. The Eugenia Tree – both a tree and a shrub, though it does not grow that tall, would also be a good choice. Bio-colours, a type of flower would also look good.
Watering the flower garden
Water your garden every day during the dry season, especially when you have just planted it. During the rainy season, water only when it is sunny.
Do this in the evenings, from 5pm because the nights are cool.
Work your garden every day for two months after planting it. Weed and fumigate it at the same time every two weeks until it is ready in two months.
After two months, skip a day before you water it during the dry season. Don’t water it during the rains. A garden will have matured after two months.’
So, if you have got the energy and the drive, why not go ahead and do your own simple landscaping?
