Quite often, the natural forms that were created by nature look bizarre and original. Some shrunken stumps or snags look as if they are part of some kind of landscape composition. It sounds rather unusual, but in fact, over the years, a direction called rutaria (creating a garden from the roots) has been actively developing in the world. This article will discuss the main nuances of this landscape style.
What is rutarium, its application in design
This direction of landscape design appeared relatively recently, when compared with the art of decorating gardens and parks in general. In recent years, the style has become increasingly popular in the world. He became the embodiment of a fairly simple idea: with very little effort, you can create an interesting decor for the site, even on the basis of useless and shriveled snags.
The first experiments to create a garden based on the roots were carried out in the mid-19th century in Staffordshire. At that time, the direction was not distinguished as a separate style, combining in it notes of the grunge so popular at that time.
Rutarium is created on a site sheltered from direct sunlight. To do this, use old stumps, driftwood and various roots. In addition to these elements, planted shade-loving flowers and shrubs are also added to the composition. Sometimes the place is turned into park areas, exhibiting nearby benches and decorative figures.
Did you know? The estate of Prince Charles, located in Gloucestershire, is considered the most popular rutarium. Today, the territory not only has a root garden, but also whole populations of ferns and various vines have been planted.
Varieties of rutaria
There is a whole classification of rutaria depending on their style, design, and also the materials used. In the science of landscape design, there are mainly three basic directions.
Protozoa
The composition of such a home-made landscape object includes exclusively inanimate components (no additional plants are used for decoration). The only “but” in this case can be called the need for pre-treatment of the stump or driftwood itself, as otherwise the composition will quickly deteriorate.
You can choose a rhizome in the form of an object, for example, a man’s hand, the silhouette of a goblin or an animal, so that only in some places you can finish something and get an original sculpture. Such objects look very interesting on lawns.
Natural or Composite
In this case, the composition consists not only of treated stumps or snags. Various flowers and shrubs are also used, which are planted next to them. This type of rutaria is considered the most popular today, especially among owners of suburban areas. To create such an object will require significantly more time than in the first case, but the result will clearly impress the owner.
Cartoon
Quite often in parks and squares, as well as at home sites, such rutarias are created. They differ in that in addition to the stumps and roots themselves, additional figures made of wood or ceramics are also used. it can be garden gnomes, animals or any fairy-tale characters. Sometimes landscape designers create whole pictures-fragments from various famous works.
DIY composition
Creating rutaria can be done in two main ways. In the first case, you first need to choose a place for the object on the site, make a sketch, purchase decorative elements, and only then select the right wood.
Did you know? In the Kaliningrad region there is a "dancing forest." The pine trees that were planted there at the end of the last century bent in an unimaginable way, twisting a loop at the base.
In the second case, they first go in search of snags, and then, based on their form, they come up with the main composition. Both approaches are effective, and their choice depends more on the imagination and wishes of the owner of the site.
Placement Selection
With the help of a beautiful and original rutaria in the garden, you can easily transform the site, making it more comfortable. When you design it, you must definitely find a suitable place. Weeds are removed at the selected site and fertilizers are applied (a centimeter layer of compost) if flowers or trees are planted next to the stumps.
It is best to place a decorative rutarium at the entrance to the site. Fairy-tale figures will delight the eye and interest passers-by. Natural compositions are more suitable for secluded parts of the garden, which are designed as a rock garden.
Important! It is not necessary to place rutarias in lowlands and ravines, where a large amount of precipitation accumulates. The tree will begin to swell and burst over time.
Preparation of materials
If there are many trees in the garden, then after the annual pruning, a large number of different branches and snags can remain. It’s not worth throwing them away right away, because some of them may turn out to be quite interesting objects for decoration of rutarias.
If there are no stumps on the site, on the basis of which you can make a composition, you can go to the forest for materials. It is also worth looking closely at the cuts and logs of an interesting shape. After that, if necessary, cut the necessary sections of the material. The wood itself can be further protected from pests by opening it with varnish or painting.
Step by step instructions
Before you start placing objects in a selected area, you should draw a sketch in compliance with scale and proportions. This will help to see the possible disadvantages of the built composition at the planning stage. After that, you can start digging and fertilizing the soil, as well as form a landscape drawing.
Large items
When the wood is fully processed, you can begin to design the rutaria itself.
There are such rules for creating a composition:
- Initially, it is worth installing the largest elements: large snags and roots.
- After that, you can dilute the landscape drawing with stones.
- At the very end, figures of gnomes, animals, mushrooms are exhibited. In some cases, the object is decorated with wooden and ceramic dishes (if the composition has an ethnic direction).
Planting suitable plants
Some experts advise planting plants not next to stumps or snags, but right in them. This can be done if the flowers have a creeping and shallow root system. Over time, the plant grows so much that it creates a single whole with a stump.
The most commonly used for this purpose are sedum, stone rose, or medunica. Perfectly take root in stumps with large holes of begonias, petunias and verbena. Some experts advise decorating the composition with cereal plants, which will give the overall picture airiness and lightness.
Important! If the wood is not treated before the creation of rutaria, then stumps and driftwood will begin to crumble in 5–7 years.
To complement the composition of a bizarre shape, it remains only to establish a wooden bench in the vicinity, and you can enjoy the work done. Such landscape decoration will definitely surprise passers-by and cheer up.
