The projects of courtyards are commented on by the teacher of the school of landscape design “Gardens in Detail”, the head of the company Forrest Tatiana Lebedeva

A patio (translated from Spanish simply as “vegetable garden”) is a piece of land fenced with a fence, an inner courtyard. For a long time, like the vegetable garden, it was laid out from the back of the house. In the modern sense, a patio is both an “outdoor living room” (often with a fireplace or fountain), a solarium, and a garden. The patio can be located in front of the house, in the courtyard or on a separate platform, in a quiet and secluded place protected from the wind. Like any other element of the landscape, it should fit seamlessly into the overall composition of the site.

The patio area should be flat and dry. Depending on the chosen style, it is paved with stone, tile or brick. Fall asleep with crushed stone, pebbles or sand. They are poured with concrete or laid out with concrete slabs. Another variant of the “floor” is wooden flooring. It is acceptable to combine different materials in one project. In any case, do not forget about drainage. With a paved or bulk coating, a “pillow” of sand is made under the platform. Its thickness depends on the quality of the “native” soil. It makes sense to treat wooden elements of platforms and decking with special compounds that prevent rotting and swelling of wood.

Contrast shower

According to the laws of coloristics, blue and yellow are contrasting colors, like black and white. In this project, the designer relied on their “shock” combination: he painted the corner concrete bench with bright yellow paint and covered the garden chairs with blue fabric. It turned out catchy and fresh! The appearance of certain materials in the design of the garden should be justified. Here, for example, the timber seats do not seem to be a foreign part because of the wooden “backdrop”.

To cut back

A great idea: to make a partition in the form of a decorative woodpile, at the base of which a hedge is planted. The main focus is a window with a view of dense greenery. If there was a perspective in the window, it would be even better.

Light in the window

The real find of the architects is an unusual fireplace facing the street with a furnace. It does not violate the integrity of the facade and looks like another window from the outside. The only “but” is that such a hearth is not very effective in terms of heating: because of the heat-resistant glass, heat almost does not penetrate into the patio. In addition, there are doubts whether it looks beautiful in an unlit state. A black hole or ashes under glass is not a very pleasant sight!

Undercover!

The arched pergola, covered with vines, creates a living openwork shadow in the garden and plays the role of a gazebo. Interestingly, as a decorative element, this garden structure began to be used only at the end of the XIX century. Before that, the role of the pergola was purely utilitarian: it served as a prop for the vine. In our climate, pergola is covered with lemongrass, hops and maiden grapes.

Count ‘s Ruins

An old brick with peeling paint, washed by rains and burnt out in the sun, looks very picturesque. And the authors of the project know about it: they built a fence and a street hearth out of it. The whole picture is made by a stone floor with grass-sown seams.

Go out into the light!

This ultramodern outdoor pavilion is a winning entourage for secular open-air parties. The smoky concrete of the walls, the polished stone of the floor tiles, the lacquered leather of the seat upholstery – the design is restrained, but very refined. The lattice canopy hardly protects the patio from rain, but casts a beautiful patterned shadow.

Old and new

Modern furniture is also appropriate in a classic environment. Here is an example for you: a bright designer garden set based on the works of the pop art classic Robert Indiana did not spoil the open patio with a classic colonnade and clinker paving, on the contrary, it became the main coloristic accent of this “garden room”. It really hits the eyes!

It’s going to be hot!

An empty corner of the garden near a blank wall of the house can turn into a secluded shelter. It is enough to build a fireplace made of natural stone and fill the site with concrete. Furniture, flower pots and accessories should be selected very accurately. Only natural materials, no plastic!

Backfill question

The fireplace of the original shape, cast from concrete— is an absolute success of the architects who designed this garden. But I would like to note something else — gravel filling. Such a coating is simply irreplaceable for gardens in our climate. Unlike sand, small river pebbles dry out quickly after rain. It has a pleasant tactile effect — it is convenient and useful to walk barefoot on it. Besides, the pebbles rustle so great under your feet!

The white sail is lonely

In this patio, the authors of the project “sang an ode” to symmetry, straight lines and simple shapes. The ideal plane of the lawn, a smooth wall of clipped shrubs, horizontal steps and wooden flooring… At the forefront are the rigor, rhythm and uniformity of all details. Even the canopy is sewn from even strips of white cloth!

Film session

The image of your garden can be built on changing lighting scenarios. The authors of this project combined two types of lamps: static – burning billboards with frames from American films and dynamic – upward-pointing halogen lamps embedded in a concrete podium. By the way, take note of this technique: when plants are planted in recesses (as here), they seem bushier and more lush.

Behind bars!

The problem of zoning is relevant in both large and small gardens. One of the ways to isolate yourself from prying eyes is to put such a wooden lattice in the patio. Unlike a blank wall, it does not prevent the penetration of sunlight and at the same time creates a sense of intimacy.

Undercover games

An alternative to the usual lawn is a “curly carpet” of perennial creeping groundcover plants. They can be both blooming and evergreen. In our climate, apical pachysandra or nettle-leaved mycenia take root well.

Field kitchen

The tradition of building full-fledged kitchens in the garden came to Europe from America. In the States, it is common to have a dining table, stove, refrigerator, grill and wine cabinets on the street. In this project, a rectangular pergola hangs over the summer kitchen – it protects the cook from the scorching sun. In our climate, I would advise to cover the structure with roofing copper.

Bright canvases

Partitions of bright colors in any weather create a festive mood in the garden. In this case, they are slabs cast from concrete and painted yellow, illuminated by halogen lamps that are mounted directly into the floor (such lighting accentuates the texture of the wall). In principle, if the garden area allows, nothing prevents you from building a whole maze out of such blank slabs.

Making a copy!

A patio is often referred to as an open-air room. Some take it literally. This green living room has everything you need. Even painting over the sofa. Only instead of a concrete wall there is a hedge, instead of upholstered furniture there is a cast plastic one, instead of a carpet there is a green lawn. The designer’s find is mirrors: these light traps echo the shiny water surface of the pond and fill the garden with the sun.

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