The recreation area should become a place of comfortable pastime for each family member, allowing you to spend hours of leisure time in nature with pleasure. The most important task in its design is the choice of location. How to properly place this important element of landscape design in the garden or in the country, as well as examples of its design are described below.

How to choose a place for a recreation area

When choosing the location of a relaxation zone, several important parameters should be considered.. The resting place should be located in the shade. If there are tall trees or shrubs with a wide crown on the site, it is easiest to use their natural shading. The walls of structures and hedges can play the same role.In addition to the shade, it is desirable that the site is hidden from the eyes of others, protected from strong winds and drafts. Artificial elements, such as garden screens, supports with wicker plants, and walls built in the right place, can be provided as barriers. The recreation area often adjoins the house, using it as a source of shade and protection from adverse factors. The distance to the neighbor’s fence should be as large as possible.

Important! The southwestern side of the site will allow you to enjoy the spring sun, as well as avoid the scorching rays of the summer.

It is also important to choose the size of the recreation area.

This takes into account not only the composition of the family, but also the lifestyle of its members:

• number of guests received. If large companies often gather on the site, it is worth considering the possibility of their comfortable accommodation or to think about how to expand the recreation area on such days;
• the presence of children, as well as their age. For kids, you can allocate a place under the playground;
• desired entertainment (active or passive rest). The relaxation area is often located near the pool or lawn for games.

How to create a recreation area

After choosing a place for the recreation area, they proceed to its design. You will need to draw a plan of the area on a convenient scale, as well as carefully apply all existing buildings and adjacent landings. The finished project should include all the necessary elements of landscape architecture (arbors, ponds, furniture, etc.), as well as the planting scheme of the selected plants. In special computer programs, 3D visualization can be done.

Then they go directly to the improvement of the site. The first stage includes the creation of small architectural forms and the preparation of the foundation. In the presence of significant elevation differences, a convenient approach should be considered and several steps should be provided. However, a slight slope of the site should be so that the water does not stagnate.

Important! The visual solution of the recreation area should be combined with the architecture of the house. You must consider how these elements of the landscape will look together.

The recreation area is often located near or partially on the lawn, at the same time, the place for garden furniture is lined with tiles, boards or bricks, and other materials suitable for the style. To install such large elements as arbors or bonfire zones, special site preparation, including concreting, may be required.

The final stage of improvement is landscaping of the recreation area. Selected plants are planted taking into account the intervals necessary for their development, so in the first few years, planting may seem slightly sparse.

Types of recreation areas

The choice of the main type for the recreation area is dictated by several factors. You should take into account both the size of the space allocated for it, and the general stylistic decision of the house and garden, as well as the planned level of financial costs. In addition to installing new structures, you can reconstruct existing buildings, bringing them into line with the plan.

Terrace

A terrace is a flooring near a house (usually adjacent to one of its walls), made on a specially prepared base, level or above ground level. Most often, it is done partially or completely under the roof to provide protection from rain and sun. Some shelter can be achieved with the help of a pergola, on which shoots of climbing plants are allowed.

One of the most common additional elements of the terrace is a fence, which can be partially or almost completely around the perimeter of the recreation area. The design of the terrace flooring should be based on transverse beams or pillar supports with reinforcement in the ground. Depending on the type of soil, foundation filling may be required. Support pillars can be set at different heights, which will allow the terrace to fit into a site with a complex surface topography. For the decking of the terrace, wood is usually used with special impregnation, which gives the material resistance to environmental influences.

Did you know? Patios were used in the architecture of the Roman Empire, in the homes of citizens and nobles, and in the Middle Ages were widely used in the Spanish-Moorish style of architecture.

A special terrace board is made of wood-polymer composite. It has small cuts on the reverse side to compensate for changes in temperature and humidity, and on the front side of the grooves of 1-2 mm to reduce slipping. The terrace can be surrounded by tall bushes or trees, have a beautiful view of the flower garden. Also often used is the placement of flowering plants in containers or decorative flowerpots.

Patio

The patio is a kind of room in the open air, continuing the space of the house in the backyard. A prerequisite is a solid foundation of stone, concrete or tile. The patio should be protected from prying eyes, being located among the walls or behind a hedge. Even in a small area, it is advisable to provide a source of water suitable for the style (small fountain, mini-pond, decorative jug or bird feeder).

Round platforms

A round recreation area is often designed around a fireplace, in the manufacture of which both traditional stone and brick, as well as more modern materials are used. (e.g. concrete and tile). Covering such a site is necessarily made of non-combustible materials. There is garden furniture around the campfire. It is possible to build a stationary base, on which soft pillows are then placed.

Gazebo

Arbor - a separate building, the form of which depends solely on the wishes of the owner. The most common round and square gazebos under the roof, with a fence and several steps. Materials for manufacturing can be wood, stone, metal, as well as their combination in various proportions.

Green room

The green room is the space fenced off from the rest of the site by fairly high and dense "walls" of plants. It can be either a hedgerow or a support covered with vines, a garden screen, etc. The height of such a fence is usually from 1.5 to 2 m. Most often, plants such as hornbeam, beech, are used for green hedges. small-leaved linden, thuja western. They should keep their shape well, withstand haircuts and have decorative foliage.

What are the ideas for landscaping the recreation area, photo

Landscape designers constantly offer interesting solutions for the design of recreation areas on sites of different sizes. The following are some common ideas that can be applied to most gardens.

Pools

In landscape design, it is preferable to use a stationary pool, it is this type that is easier to fit into the surrounding nature. Its disadvantages are high cost and long installation time. If a prefabricated pool is selected, it is recommended to dig it at least partially into the ground so as not to spoil the design of the site.

The pool is located in an open space to avoid clogging of water from plants and so that the water heats up faster in the sun. When designing, it is important to consider the convenient coverage of the surrounding area and the possible protective fence (in the presence of small children). The shape of the pool should be in harmony with the architectural design of the house and the entire plot, and the surrounding plants are selected accordingly. Do not forget about the lighting of the reservoir, for which LED lamps are often used. Around the pool are usually loungers with umbrellas that protect from the sun.

Ponds

A small pond can be an attractive element for a recreation area in any garden. Special plants are planted in such a reservoir and often fish of ornamental breeds, for example, Japanese carps, are launched. On a site with a difference in height it will not be difficult to arrange a waterfall with a relaxing murmur of water.

The pond is placed at a certain distance from the trees so that the roots do not damage its base, and the fallen leaves do not pollute the water.. If aquatic plants (for example, nymphaea) will be planted, you should choose a place with illumination of at least 5-6 hours a day. Most often, a pond is arranged with a waterproofing film, which is lined with the bottom of the pit, and for small forms you can take a ready-made rigid form. A variant is also possible with concreting the base.

Important! Minimum maintenance will require a body of water, whose area will be slightly more than 3.5 m², and the depth — 50 cm. If you intend to run fish there, the depth should be at least 70 cm.

Gabions

Gabion, translated from Italian, means "big cage", and they originally appeared to protect the trenches during the war. Subsequently, wire mesh filled with stones began to be widely used to strengthen slopes and areas with the risk of landslides.

Gabions are divided into the following basic types:

• box-shapedwhose shape is perfect for reinforcing and erecting walls or high fences;
• cylindricalthat are used as decorative elements (columns, columns, etc.);
• mattresses or mattresses Renault used to fix the bottom of various reservoirs.

Modern technologies make it possible to produce mesh structures of any shape, which significantly expands the use of gabions in landscape design. For a recreation area, gabions can become a barrier from the sun or unwanted glances, and they will also be useful if leveling the terrain is necessary.

Additional details

An important part of the design of the recreation area is garden or country furniture. It can be both stationary and mobile, but the materials used must necessarily be resistant to adverse weather conditions.

The individuality and comfort of each site are created, including accessories. In the garden centers, a wide selection of garden sculptures, decorative lanterns and original containers for plants is presented. Forged elements are popular - stands and arches for plants, drinking bowls and baths for birds, etc.

Did you know? Installing a drinking bowl for birds will help the plants on the site. Birds attracted by water to the garden will reduce the number of pests and their larvae.

How to do it yourself

Many elements for the recreation area can be done independently. For example, it’s quite easy to install several gabions with your own hands.. Tanks for them can be bought in many construction supermarkets. They are made of galvanized double torsion mesh with anti-corrosion coating. You can buy strong “containers”, with jumpers connected by welding. The filler is selected depending on the desired appearance and color of the stones, sometimes they are even laid out with a pattern.

The installation sequence is as follows:

1. Clean and level the gabion area.
2. Remove the layer of turf and dig a recess along the width of the gabion.
3. It is advisable to lay geotextiles on the rammed bottom, sprinkle it with gravel and compact it.
4. Assemble the walls of the gabion in a box, first connecting the corners and fastening the ribs.
5. Install the resulting box in the trench. Fill the stones, placing them as tightly as possible to each other.
6. After filling a third of the box, the walls must be pulled together with special hooks.
7. The box should be filled a few centimeters above the upper edge, since over time the stone will settle.
8. The last step is to rinse the gabion with water from a hose.

It is also quite affordable to create a small pond from the finished form. To do this, you must:

1. Install the shape in the chosen place and circle its outline, adding about 30 cm around the perimeter.
2. Dig the ground to a depth of 30 cm to plant coastal plants.
3. Put the mold back and circle the bottom, adding 20 cm.
4. Select the earth to a depth exceeding the depth of the form itself by 5–10 cm.
5. Fill 5–7 cm of foundation pit with sand, tamp.
6. Set the form. Pour the deepest part with water, then fill the space between the walls of the pit and form the sand. In the process of falling asleep, ram and water.
7. Decorate the coast with tile or stone, laying them on a cement mortar so that the edge hangs over the water.

Video: creating a reservoir from a finished mold

A well-thought-out relaxation area can be a favorite place in the garden for the whole family. Taking into account the interests of everyone, site planning should also be carried out commensurate with the possible financial costs and time that can be spent on the project. If you wish, many work can be done with your own hands, saving a significant part of the money.