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There are many ways to arrange beds on your site. Some owners simply dig up the soil, forming a small embankment, while others build fences from improvised materials. If you want to add a twist, equip the so-called French beds, transforming a dull garden into a real work of art.
What is the peculiarity of the French beds
The French style of decorating the backyard takes us back to the reign of Louis XIV. If you look at the photo, then such a garden symbolizes, first of all, the cleanliness of the site with harmoniously arranged beautiful flower beds. The main distinguishing feature of the French beds is the symmetry in design and the presence of geometric shapes. The simplest example is the division of a rectangular garden into four equal squares, and a garden sculpture is installed in the center.
The garden with French beds is decorative. Each segment of the flower bed is separated by a beautiful fence. Paving slabs are laid between the beds or bulk paths are made of colored stone. As plantings, there can be not only vegetables, but also ornamental plants, flowers and even trees.
Clearance at customs
Before you start breaking up the beds, you need to decide on their shape. One of the geometric shapes is taken as a basis. It can be a circle, a rectangle, equal squares forming a chessboard, etc.
When designing a garden, you need to consider that:
- Flower beds can be made on the same level with a common garden. They will stand out only for decoration.
- It is allowed to raise the beds above the ground up to 20-30 cm. In such cases, fences are installed most often from brick or cobblestone. You can use other materials, as long as the flower bed is beautiful.
Having decided on the shape of the beds, proceed to the selection of plants. A feature of the design of the French garden is the absence of empty land in the flower bed. Vegetable crops alternate harmoniously, and the gaps between them are planted with ornamental vegetation. When choosing plantings, the peculiarities of each plant are taken into account: growth, flowering time, light-loving, etc. All crops growing in a flower bed from early spring to late autumn should not interfere with each other.
An integral decoration of the French garden are vertical decorations from vegetation:
- Temporary elements are made from annual plants. Tall tomatoes or corn are not bad. It is possible to build a vertical lattice in a flower bed, along which annual plants, for example, beans, will trail.
- Permanent elements of vertical gardening can be perennial climbing plants, shrubs and dwarf fruit trees.
For planting on beds, do not give preference to strongly sprawling trees or shrubs. Over time, their crown will shade other undersized plants.
Choosing a shape for the future beds
We have already said that the French beds are in the form of a geometric figure. However, the more complex it is, the harder it is to build a flower bed. It is better for a beginner gardener to take a square or circle as a basis and break it into several segments.
square flower bed
For a square-shaped French garden, a high fence is equipped, as shown in this photo. Usually the seat is raised up to 30 cm from ground level. Each segment of the bed can be in the shape of a diamond, triangle or rectangle. Four equal squares are assembled from them, forming one common quadrangle of the correct shape.
Round flower bed
The photo shows an example of the design of a round French garden. The basis is a large circle. From its center to the edges, boundaries are broken, dividing the site into several equal segments. On the dividing lines, paths are paved from gravel or paving slabs. The result is a large round flower bed, divided into equal triangles with one semicircular side. If desired, at the junction of the triangles, you can break a small round bed.
Whether it is a flower bed of a round or square shape, it is designed for a certain style. If the owner prefers retro, forged items will be a good element of decor. It can be not only fences, but also figures of birds, animals or plants. However, forging costs a lot of money. You can cheaply decorate with a scarecrow or install a pole with suspended glass balls from an old chandelier. You can focus on a flowerpot with growing medicinal plants installed in the center of the flower bed. Good for these purposes is calendula. A bright orange flower will decorate the garden throughout the summer. A flowerpot can be made independently from an old bucket or an earthenware vessel, decorated with multi-colored patterns.
Choose a place
French-style beds represent beauty. They are located on the most visible part of the yard. It is optimal to adhere to a checkerboard pattern, which improves the comfort of servicing flower beds.
When choosing a site, it is important to consider how the plantings will be cared for. On small segments, planting crops and digging the earth is done manually. Large flower beds can be serviced with specialized equipment, which means that a convenient entrance must be provided for it.
An example of self-production
Now we will consider how you can independently break the French beds on your site. Regardless of the shape chosen, the technology remains the same, so let’s take the example of arranging a square flower bed with a circle in the center:
- Work begins with the preparation of a section of the yard where the future garden will be laid out. The area is cleared of vegetation and any debris.
- Next, proceed to the markup. In the center of the square, draw a circle of the desired diameter. Rays are marked from it to the corners of the square. The result is a large square flower bed with four triangular segments and a round bed in the center. If the area in the yard is very small, you can draw a semicircle instead of a circle. Then at its flat side it will be possible to organize a place of rest. A bench is installed here, and a canopy is arranged from a vertically installed lattice with weaving plants. When arranging a place of rest, it is necessary to provide that vertical structures do not obscure the plants in the flower bed.
- According to the markup, the clubs establish a fence for each segment. For these purposes, any building material is used: brick, stone, boards, etc. Vertically dug plastic bottles are suitable as an option.
- Paths are laid between the fences of the segments. The soil can simply be mulched with a black film, and gravel or crushed stone can be poured on top. Beautiful paths will be obtained from paving slabs or savage stone. The width of the path is determined individually, but not less than 50 cm.
- Fertile soil is poured inside the finished fences, after which they begin to plant plants.
A resting place near the flower bed can be organized from an installed bench and table. It is better to braid a lattice canopy with clematis or a climbing rose.
An integral element is an installed sculpture or other similar structure. It’s easier to buy a concrete garden gnome or another fairy tale character. If you get creative, you can weave an arch from the vine, and install wooden benches under it. Any vertical structure is allowed to be equipped with bowls. Then it is possible to additionally grow remontant strawberries in them.
Plantings in a French flower bed should consist of your favorite vegetables and flowers. A beautiful design is obtained with a leaf lettuce of different colors, basil and other edible herbs.
What is better to plant
According to their purpose, French beds are no different from traditional counterparts. You can grow whatever you want. It is only important to observe the harmony of the garden so that the plants do not interfere with each other to develop, bloom and bear fruit. If preference is given to spicy herbs, then carrots or radishes planted between them will not interfere with them in any way. The decorativeness of the French garden will not suffer, and the owner will also receive fresh root crops.
When planting different types of salads, a flower bed can be decorated with undersized flowers. Decorative plantings will give even table beet leaves. Beautifully combined curly parsley with fennel and onions.
The French garden is the perfect place to grow medicinal plants. Many of them are highly decorative. Common medicinal plants are: sage, lavender, calendula, nasturtium, echinacea. Each planted group of plants in a flower bed should stand out with a bright area, which provides the main requirement for arranging a French garden.
In the photo you can see how cabbage plantings look perfect, and the French flower bed fence itself is made of ornamental vegetation.
This makes it difficult to care for plantings in the fall. When digging up annuals, there is a threat of damage to the root system of perennials.
The video tells how to make a French garden:
The French garden is ideal for people who love order in their backyard.