Rock garden from coniferous plants. The choice of conifers for the alpine slide

Gone are the days when gardeners were mainly engaged only in beds, greenhouses and greenhouses. Today, many are addicted to creating on their own land plots beautiful and original flower beds because they want to receive aesthetic pleasure. Alpine slides have become very popular, with which gardens are more and more often decorated. At the same time, mountain plants and dwarf forms of conifers are widely used, which allow you to admire the greenery of the flower garden. all year round. In the article, we will consider which coniferous plants to choose for an alpine slide.

Building compositions

For the design of rock gardens, there is a rich selection of miniature conifers, which have a variety of crown shapes - conical, spherical, flat, creeping, ovoid, cushion-shaped. Therefore, before you buy plants for an alpine slide, you need to think carefully about the composition, especially since seedlings of coniferous dwarfs are not cheap.

• Best decorative effect achieved by a single arrangement of vertically growing plants with cone-shaped or ovoid crowns. The dominant plant is planted at the base of the hill or in its middle part. The space between them is filled with lower rounded or cushion-shaped forms. The basis of the rock garden are creeping ground cover species.

• When creating an alpine slide with your own hands, do not overload it large quantity plants, otherwise they will lose their individuality and the beauty of the forms will not be visible. When arranging groups of conifers, you can play on the contrasts of shapes and colors, or make a gradual smooth transition from one form to another. Stones, which are also decorative elements, should not be completely obscured by greenery. As a result of all efforts, the slide should look like a miniature natural landscape.

The choice of conifers for the alpine slide

• Since the alpine hill is a non-monumental structure of immense size, the plants must also be selected so that their proportions correspond to the size of the flower garden.

• Another condition that must be observed when choosing plants is their ability to grow in a given area and in a given climate. The gardener must learn everything about seedlings - what kind of soil they prefer, how they relate to light and shade, moisture and drought, how they get along with their neighbors, how quickly they grow and increase their mass.
• Dwarf coniferous plants are ideal for placement among the rock garden stones: pines, spruces, junipers, thujas. The fact that they grow very slowly, only 3-5 cm per year, turns a big plus. This circumstance makes it possible to preserve the decorative effect of the composition for a long time.

Types of dwarf conifers

Dwarf pines, some species

• Such pines look spectacular in rock gardens. Basically they are low shrubs, which are not afraid of the winds, have frost resistance, and unpretentious care, which is very attractive for use in landscape designs.

• For these plants, you need to choose places well lit by the sun and acidic soils with good drainage. Pines planted on alkaline soils begin to turn yellow. In such cases, gypsum is added to the soil.
• There are about a hundred varieties of these ornamental evergreens. North American pine became the progenitor of varieties Arctis having a conical crown, blue Chappewa, TuckersDwarf and Compacta pines with rounded crowns, varieties Uncle Fogy and Pendula with weeping branches, creeping shrub Schoodic, Wisconsin with a lush cushion-shaped crown.
• Very elegant low-growing cultures derived from weymouth pines. They have silvery thin and long needles, collected 5 pieces per bunch, figured cones of light brown color and a dense crown. These trees endure shade and cold, they are great for decorating the north side of the hill. At the miniature Pumila varieties spherical crown, Macopin has an extensive conical crown, Nana blue needles. The smallest is 50 cm pine Secret.
• The most common in horticulture are two types with mountain pinusmugo, one of which includes dense creeping shrubs with very long needles (Mops, Varella, MiniMops, Ophir). And the other kind is dwarf plants having short needles and a dense dense crown (Gnom, Kobold, Pumilio, Hesse).

• For ten years of the life of the form Brepo, Marie Bregeon and Pygmaea grow only up to 50 cm. They have a compact rounded shape. Extraordinarily beautiful cone-shaped stunted Alpenzwerg pine. It grows no more than 2.5 meters in height. It has dark green needles, which at low winter temperatures turn slightly golden at the tips, so in winter it seems that the tree glows.

To dwarf varieties pines retained their miniature size, it is necessary to periodically pinch the central growth buds and growing shoots, and also not to abuse fertilizers. Otherwise, the plants will grow, and the crowns will become loose.

Types of dwarf firs

In catalogs stunted spruces subdivided into semi-dwarf with a height of up to 3 m, dwarf - up to 1.5 m, mini-varieties - up to 1 m and micro-varieties growing up to 30 cm. The forms of crowns are conical or pyramidal, spherical and cushion-shaped.

• The real finds for rock gardens are mini-spruces that grow to a height of up to 50 cm in ten years and have wide crowns. These forms include Port Alberta Globe (AlbertaGlobe), with a crown diameter twice its height.
• The most popular are undersized e whether Nidiformis (Nidiformis), Echiniformis (Echiniformis). The latter has a slightly flattened shape and silvery needles.
• The well-known forest beauty common spruce (Piceaabies) served as the ancestor of many undersized decorative forms. A spruce shrub with a nest-shaped crown is popular Nidiformis (Nidiformis), growing only up to 40 cm in height, and having a chic light green crown, reaching up to 1 m in diameter.

• Little Gemm (LittleGem) has a dark green crown smaller than the previous spruce. It can be formed into a spectacular standard tree and grown in a rock garden or in a container.
• The graceful shape of a narrow cone has a dense crown WillsZwerg (Will "sZwerg). This plant grows just over one meter in height. It is interesting in that the young growing needles are much lighter than the old ones. Therefore, the Christmas tree, as it were, plays with different shades of green.
• Dwarf forms were also obtained from the species of prickly spruce (Piceapungens). One of them is excellent Glauca Globosa (GlaucaGlobosa). Its conical crown mainly grows not in height, but in width. It has elongated needles of a bluish color, slightly sickle-shaped. Very unpretentious. Well suited for creating compositions in a rocky garden.
• For growing in rock gardens, dwarf forms of Canadian spruce, which have bluish bluish needles, are perfect: Conica (Conica) with a pyramidal crown Laurin (Laurin), Dwarf (Gnom).

• Semi-dwarf spruce Daisy White (DaisyWhite) grows up to 2.5 meters in height and differs from all the others in soft yellow young needles, which change their color to green by summer. Its dense pyramidal crown will look spectacular in rock gardens, surrounded by lower plants with rounded crowns.
• For spruces, fertile, well-drained soil is preferable, giving an acidic reaction. They do not tolerate stagnant water in the ground. Sunny places or light shade are best suited. To give more decorative bushes can be trimmed.

Tui in rock gardens

In nature, arborvitae are conical evergreen trees of the cypress family, having a dense symmetrical crown, and having a fragrant smell. They bloom imperceptibly. The needles are not needles, but flat, elongated scales adjacent to each other. Plants are easily and painlessly cut. Therefore, they are successfully used for decoration of flower beds and hedges.

• Low-growing arborvitae, which retain their decorative effect all year round, are perfect for growing in alpine hills. In addition, most varieties are frost-resistant.
• Most wide use in the regions of Russia received dwarf forms thuja western. This tree is not too capricious, it is winter-hardy and long-lived. AT natural conditions there are still thousands of years of age.
• With dwarf slow-growing forms of western thuja, lovers are happy to decorate their rock gardens, for example, with a spherical shrub Danica. Its light green crown in 10 years grows in diameter to only 40 cm.

• The rock garden thuja western will look original in the role of soloist Filiformis (Filiformis). The tree has a dense crown in the form of a wide cone. It grows up to one and a half meters in height and has long weeping shoots.
• Grade Globoza (Globosa), on the contrary, has a rounded spherical gray-green crown, reaching 1 m in diameter. It is recommended to use it as an element of compositions. And here is a spherical Golden Globe (GoldenGlobe) has a smaller crown, but it has golden yellow needles.
• An ovoid crown will look unusual in the composition Woodwardii, growing up to 40 cm wide and having light green needles.

• In gardens located in warmer regions, forms obtained from thuja orientalis with fan-shaped needles are grown. These forms include golden yellow Aura Nana (AureaNana) with an ovoid crown, dark green columnar Justinka (Justynka). These varieties are not demanding on soil fertility, but do not withstand severe frosts.

Selection of junipers

A huge number of varieties and types of junipers puts gardeners in front of a difficult choice. These plants can have crowns that vary in shape and color. The shape of the crown can be cone-shaped, creeping pillow-shaped, sprawling, columnar. The needles can be golden yellow, green of different tones, silver-blue. And the shape of the needles themselves can be different - scaly or subulate.

• The natural distribution area of ​​​​these plants is almost endless - they are found in both northern and tropical regions. Junipers are unpretentious, can grow on any soil, do not put forward too high requirements for light and humidity, and tolerate winter cold well. For gardeners, this is just a godsend.
• The most widespread for the creation of rock gardens are dwarf and creeping forms of Cossack juniper (J.Sabina): sprawling green shrub Tamariscifolia (Tamariscifolia), white-motley Variegata (Variegata), blue-green Rocker Jam (RockeryGem).

• Of junipers horizontal interesting variety Andora Variegata (Andorra Variegata) only up to 40 cm high and with a wide cushion-shaped crown. Its unusualness lies in the variegation of needles: in summer it is bright green with white speckles, and in winter it acquires a purple-violet hue. A beautiful blue carpet creates a creeping grade Blue Forest (BlueForest). Its shoots directed upwards give the crown additional volume. Blue Ship (BlueChip) considered the most elegant creeping variety. A dense silver-blue carpet of its shoots low temperatures becomes purple.
• In the solo role on the hill can be dwarf forms of medium-sized juniper. For example, grade Gold Coast (GoldCoast), growing up to 1 meter in height and up to 2 meters in width. This plant is decorative with its spreading golden yellow rounded crown. The same parameters are Gold Star (GoldStar) but he is more resilient. Variety Mint Julep (Mint Julep), on the contrary, it has a bright green weeping crown, reaching up to 2 m in diameter.

Junipers are planted in rock gardens, given the vastness of the future crown. Green varieties are placed on either side of the hill, golden yellow - it is better to land on the western or south side, and silver and gray - on the northern or eastern slope.

Today, a fairly extensive range of dwarfs is offered for sale. coniferous plants suitable for placement on alpine slides. Evergreen conifers enliven the site in autumn, winter and spring, while deciduous shrubs and trees are at rest. The variety of shapes, textures and sizes of prickly beauties allows them to harmoniously fit into different landscapes.

Alpine slide is a fashionable attribute of the arrangement of modern garden and park areas. Do-it-yourself rock garden device in the country: step-by-step photos, diagrams, selection of plants.

Choosing a place for an alpine slide

When choosing a place for an alpine slide, it is important to provide for the following conditions:

In landscape design, there are many styles of garden design, including elements of a desert landscape, rocky gardens, ponds and bridges, which must be in harmony with the erected hill.

Making a slide with your own hands is most preferable when decorating a garden. By doing the work yourself, you can avoid high costs for the services of a landscape architect. Having step-by-step photos and schemes for arranging the slide, it will not be difficult to do the construction of a rock garden with your own hands.

It is very important to do it right preparatory work so that the slide is stable

Alpine slide - preparation

First you need to determine the place on the site where the slide will be located. Should not grow nearby perennial shrubs and trees, which may over time shade the plants on the hill. A place open on all sides, accessible for viewing from all corners of the garden, must be dry. High level ground water adversely affect the durability and strength of the base of the slide. In this case, the groundwater level must be lowered using special drainage.

Do-it-yourself drainage under an alpine slide (step by step guide).

Do-it-yourself alpine slide arrangement scheme

While natural soil shrinkage occurs, you can draw up a diagram, determine the location of boulders and stones on the hill, select the type of vegetation for planting. To create a rock garden you will need:

• natural stones, including - pebbles;
• coarse sand;
• ornamental plants and flowers, including – miniature trees and shrubs;
• moss-sphagnum.

Scheme: arrangement of an alpine hill

The scheme and detailed plan according to which the rock garden will be created should take into account that the construction of the slide is carried out at a height of 1 to 3 m.

Advice. With a rock garden height of more than 1 meter, a slide core is required.

Alpine slide is a very unusual element of the garden, changing its appearance several times during the season.

Scheme: alpine slide in layers

Stones for rock garden - choose the right one

Usually, when building a slide, natural stones of rock are used: basalt, granite, sandstone, limestone, as well as rare rocks characterized by low porosity and strength. It is undesirable to use tuff, shell rock and dolomite for slides. These rocks highly absorb water, as they are porous, so the stones quickly collapse.

Stones for an alpine slide must be durable, of different sizes

The shape and color of the stones are of great importance. It is worth avoiding rounded stones, as well as overly acute-angled boulders. Stones of different colors look harmonious only on alpine slides of a certain type. The classic version of the arrangement of the slide involves the use of stones of the same breed, but different shapes.

Scheme: deepening stones for an alpine slide

The stones are placed on the hill in such a way that the edges in the viewing area have the most attractive shape. It is necessary to disguise stones with defects, arranging them in the most favorable way. Stones should be laid taking into account the size and weight, following the most harmonious appearance of the created slide. Stones should be placed randomly, most naturally, so it is better not to use stone blocks and artificial boulders made in an industrial way.

Do-it-yourself Alpine slide - selection of plants

The arrangement of an alpine slide, especially the selection of plants, requires additional knowledge about plant varieties and agricultural technology. Plants are selected depending on the type of slide. Rocky hill for sunny places requires certain, drought-resistant plants. The classic version of the rock garden provides for the planting of miniature trees and shrubs, perennial herbs and flower crops.

Example #1. Making an alpine slide with plants

Perfectly proved themselves when planting in rockeries: fescue, lavender, rock beetroot, geranium, stonecrop, iberis, young, backache. Feel great on rocky hills finely bulbous plants planted in small groups: crocuses, scilla, miniature hyacinths, undersized tulips and hazel grouses. Small-bulbous plants bloom in the spring, when there are still few plants in bloom and the hill looks unpresentable. Everything changes when bright, blooming crocuses appear from under the snow.

Example #2. Plants for an alpine slide

To create a highly decorative slide, it is necessary to provide for the planting of perennial plants that have different periods flowering. Then the slide will look unusual and decorative throughout the entire period. A riot of colors of flowering plants will please the eye from spring to autumn.

It is especially important to consider the height of the plants used when planting in rockeries. Too tall specimens should not oppress undersized varieties, thereby affecting their full development. Bright plants should be placed in the foreground, in the viewing area.

The composition is based on miniature trees, especially conifers: spruces, junipers, cypresses, pines. These plants have different shape crowns and look great on an alpine hill.

Decorative flowering shrubs used for arranging an alpine slide: rhododendrons, erica, blueberries and lingonberries.

From perennial crops perfectly complement the alpine hill: bergenia, astilba, daylily (undersized), drooping reeds.

Alpine hill surrounded by lawn

Tip: when forming rockeries, preference should be given to decorative deciduous plants that retain their beauty even in the absence of flowers.

How to properly care for rock garden?

In the first year, it will be necessary to backfill the soil several times, which is washed out during irrigation and precipitation, and also, if necessary, to strengthen the stones. View various videos and photos taken by professional landscape designers will help to complete these works correctly. The soil is poured neatly and compacted.

The soil should be evenly distributed between the stones

Plant care consists in timely watering, removing faded flowers, damaged leaves, pruning. During the season, plants should be fertilized with appropriate fertilizers several times. Do not use nitrogen fertilizers, they cause rapid plant growth, which should be avoided when planting on a hill.

Advice. Do not overfeed plants on an alpine hill. Plants should not be overgrown.

Plants are watered carefully with a hose or watering can with a spray, while making sure that the soil does not erode.

It is desirable to strengthen loosened and falling stones.

Various small reservoirs will look very beautiful on the alpine hill

If necessary, plants are treated with pesticides. Diseased plants that cannot be cured must be removed with the replacement of the soil at the place of their growth.

When transplanting plants, you can use a special drug, epin, to relieve stress.

Alpine slides in landscape design

An alpine hill that does not require painstaking care will be a wonderful decoration for the entire summer cottage

The design of park areas increasingly includes the creation of decorative rock gardens. Rockery serves as a continuation of rocky gardens, perfectly harmonizes with ponds, bridges, decorative lanterns, lawns and vertical gardening. Creating an alpine slide with your own hands on suburban area, perfectly decorate the territory, bring charm and variety to the landscape design of the site.

How to create an alpine slide from scratch: video

Alpine hill: photo

Rock gardens cannot be imagined without conifers, but some gardeners go further and create compositions entirely consisting of conifers. The desire to use them is understandable - conifers for an alpine slide are simply ideal, they are decorative, unpretentious, retain an attractive appearance all year round and allow you to create a spectacular corner in the garden, even if there is not too much time to take care of the plantings. The main thing is to observe the naturalness and imitation of the natural mountain landscape.

Features of the construction of an alpine hill from coniferous plants

The advantages of an alpine hill from conifers include the fact that you do not need to select plants according to the timing of flowering and you can almost immediately make the hill the way you intended. Minus - coniferous seedlings are not cheap. A compromise option is to plant young plants, hoping that they will grow, but for now, decorate voids with stones or ceramic elements.

When planting conifers, you need to remember that they need space

Choosing a place, taking into account the conditions necessary for conifers

In all the photos of the alpine hill of conifers, it can be seen that it looks spectacular if you choose a place that is viewed from different sides, preferably sunny. Some types of spruces, pines and arborvitae tolerate shading well, but junipers will suffer from a lack of light. Plants with colored needles must be in the sun. When creating an alpine hill from conifers in the country, it should be borne in mind that most of these plants:

• photophilous;
• need space for normal development;
• usually grow well on sandy-clay or even stony soils;
• unpretentious, but do not like high level ground water.

Unpretentious thuja will decorate any rock garden

Creating drainage and forming a slide

Since coniferous trees for the alpine slide do not like excess moisture be sure to do drainage. To do this, remove upper layer soil and cover the hill with crushed stone, pebbles, small construction waste. The height of the drainage is from 10 to 20 cm. The soil layer is poured on top and the laying of stones begins. The stones are laid parallel throughout the hill. First, choose a place for larger ones, then put small ones.

So that the hill does not warp, there should not be cases when the stone lies on the lower cobblestone with one end, and presses on the soil with the other. Coniferous trees and shrubs have developed large roots, so pits are made between stones for their planting. The voids are filled with soil. After the construction of the hill, you need to let the soil settle, so it is better to start planting after a while. Ideal option: in the fall - to build, and in the spring - to plant.

Combining different types of conifers is a real art

What types of conifers are suitable for rock garden

For coniferous rock garden fit trees and shrubs small size or dwarf species. Creeping varieties must be present. The combination of different crown shapes and needle colors creates interesting solutions. There is a green, bluish and yellowish shade of needles. Some are bright yellow in color.

Miniature cypress ideal for landscape compositions

Names and photos of the most suitable species

For middle lane from conifers for an alpine slide it is worth choosing:

• thuja - plants with a dense crown, which tolerates a haircut well. Most of the varieties common in Russia come from the western thuja: Danica with light spherical crown, Filiformis resembling a cone, Golden Globe with yellow needles. Thuja propagates by cuttings, but it is better for inexperienced gardeners to buy a ready-made seedling;
• cypress trees - fashion idea for rock garden from Europe (hedges from this plant are popular in Britain). Not all varieties are hardy. The easiest way to grow Lawson's cypress and pea. It is better to overwinter low plants that can hide under the snow. Cypress trees love to spray, but the water should not be icy;
• spruces - many undersized varieties have been bred: dwarf - up to 1.5 m, mini-varieties - up to 1 m, micro-specimens - up to 30 cm. For example, the Albert Globe variety with a crown resembling a ball squeezed from above grows by 50 cm in 10 years. Very beautiful spruce Nidiformis with silvery needles. Attractive varieties of Canadian spruce with small gray needles and a pyramidal crown;
• pines of all kinds are valued by gardeners. Dwarf and slow-growing varieties have been developed. Fluffy bushes of Scots pine Watereri or mountain pine Cobold with emerald needles fit perfectly into the landscape of rock gardens. The slow-growing dwarf Globosa Viridis reaches a height of only one meter and is suitable for small garden;
• junipers of all kinds. Pyramidal plants are planted both singly and in small groups, creeping ones are arranged so that they have room to grow. They cover the ground and contrast with more high grades. In winter, many junipers need shelter with spruce branches.

Juniper Dahurian

Coniferous plants for the alpine slide, the photos and names of which were given above, are suitable if you take specially bred dwarf varieties. To prevent them from growing, you need to pinch new sprouts and pruning in a timely manner. Fertilizers should not be abused. It is also undesirable to allow animals to "mark" the trunks of "babies". If this happens, rinse the affected area with water.

Creating an alpine slide is a fascinating process that requires not only imagination, but also attentiveness. Even one incorrectly selected plant can spoil the whole impression, breaking the harmony between the other inhabitants of the rocky garden. Therefore, you need to do right choice from an extensive list of plants suitable for composing an alpine slide.

To make the alpine slide look attractive throughout the season, you should select a place for planting plants, taking into account their flowering time and the principle of layering:

1. The top of the hill. It is more open to the sun's rays than the tiers below; therefore, it is rational to plant plants here that love sunlight and not in need of in large numbers moisture.
2. middle tier- a place for plants that feel good in partial shade. Here, the average soil moisture, so the middle of the alpine hill can be called universal: milking most flowers here ideal conditions which gives you a wide range of choices.
3. The foot of the hill- logical ending landscape composition. The plants planted here should be combined with the rest of the rock garden and choose those that love moisture and tolerate shade. After all, most of the sun's rays will go to the neighbors from above.

To provide continuous flowering from early spring to late autumn, flowering plants should be selected according to the principle of rotation. Evergreen shrubs and dwarf trees will look great in winter, looking out from under the snow.

Creating an alpine slide is a fascinating process that requires not only imagination, but also attentiveness

Plant layouts in rock gardens

Before you start creating an alpine slide, you need to create a graphic scheme. It will reflect the general idea of ​​​​the composition, help to generate new ideas and even before planting the plants to find possible errors.

First of all, stones are designated. The largest should be at the base, and the rest should create a gentle slope so that there is room for soil and plant roots. You can experiment by coming up with terraces, sharp cliffs, a pond and other interesting solutions.

Here are a couple of examples of circuits:

1. spicy hill, on which fragrant flowers are located: oregano will occupy the top, heather, hyssop, monarda and medicinal sage will feel good on the middle tier, and basil, bright nasturtium and fragrant thyme will sit at the very base.
2. Coniferous hill: thuja, planted at the top, looks great in the environment creeping juniper middle tier (you can use different types) and weeping cypress. The rock garden is completed by dwarf spruces or pines, the soil under which is disguised by a saxifrage carpet.

Each site owner has the opportunity to create a unique design landscape slide. After drawing up the scheme, you can start laying stones and soil, and then planting plants.

Gallery: plants for the alpine slide (25 photos)

What plants are suitable for an alpine slide (video)

Names and descriptions of perennial flowers for alpine hills

Perennials form the basis of the alpine slide. Therefore, their choice must be approached responsibly: the appearance of the composition depends on which plants will be chosen. You can introduce new colors and accents annually by planting annual plants.

Armeria maritime

A compact plant whose bushes form fluffy green cushions narrow leaves. Above them rise numerous inflorescences (about 10), which are lilac balls. Outwardly, the armeria looks like a decorative bow. hardy plant, unresponsive to high humidity soil. Therefore, the armeria will feel good at the top of the hill or on the slope of the middle tier.

Dicentra exceptional

This plant is popularly called broken hearted» for the original shape of the flowers. Usually dicentres are a large bush, but the Exceptional does not exceed 25 cm in height. It goes well with coniferous and creeping plants, so it will be an excellent highlight of the rock garden. The green-gray foliage of the dicentra is exceptionally similar to the leaves of a fern, and flowers in the form of disconnected halves of the heart can be white or pink.

Dicentra exceptional

gypsophila

The plant belongs to the clove family. It has an erect or creeping stem with a small number of small lanceolate leaves, crowned with panicle inflorescences with small white (rarely pink) flowers.

bulbous flowers

These are crocuses, daffodils, snowdrops and blueberries. They appear immediately after the descent of the tender cover, reviving the landscape in a spring way. For variety, you can plant varietal Greig tulips with beautifully shaped flowers reaching 30 cm in height, and Kaufman tulips.

gypsophila

rejuvenated

stone rose, as it is also called young, is distinguished by excellent endurance. At the same time, the plant is very beautiful: its fleshy angular leaves are collected in rosettes. They can be both quite miniature and up to 10 cm in diameter. The color of the leaves varies from gray-green to burgundy. A stone rose is suitable for decorating the slopes of an alpine hill. Looks spectacular young, growing in the cracks between the boulders.

Primrose

Primrose (popular name of primrose) is a perennial herbaceous plant. Its advantages: early flowering, variety of shapes and colors of flowers, pleasant smell. Primrose is undersized (height 10–30 cm), with single landing forms a small shrub with leathery leaves and bright inflorescences that attract bees. If you plant primroses close to each other, you get a motley carpet.

Edelweiss

In the people, the plant is also called the mountaineer. It loves the sun and grows wild on the well-lit sides of mountains. Therefore, it will adequately take a central place on the hill - its top. In summer, edelweiss will surprise you with beautiful star-shaped flowers.

How to make an alpine slide with your own hands (video)

Creeping and ground cover plants for an alpine slide

Ground cover plants are an integral component of the alpine landscape on the site. They decorate the soil and make the slopes of the hill truly alive.

For example, this:

1. Antennaria(). A low-growing plant whose peduncles do not rise above 15 cm. It has small leaves with a silvery tint and pubescence create a dense carpet on the ground up to 5 cm thick. Basket inflorescences white color, so the cat's paw cannot be called a bright plant that attracts glances. But it is very durable!
2. periwinkle. Forms an evergreen rug that blooms from May to September with delicate blue flowers scattered among leathery small leaves. Suitable for growing under the sun and on a shady slope: the plant is unpretentious to light.
3. Alpine dwarf A low plant that forms a decorative turf that does not exceed a height of 3 cm. In May and June, inflorescences up to 15 cm appear on it, which are brushes with numerous white flowers.
4. Saxifrage. One of the most popular ground cover plants. Their flowering time is in the middle of summer, and the color of different types differs: from snow-white to maroon. He loves light, so you need to plant on the western or southern slope of the alpine hill or closer to its top.
5. Aubrieta. Covers the ground with a lush carpet. It blooms profusely throughout the spring, and during this period it is covered with pink and purple flowers. It loves sun and loamy soils, although it grows well in any soil.
6. Awl-shaped phlox. A plant 15–17 cm tall, named for its narrow and pointed leaves at the ends. The shoots are densely covered with numerous inflorescences of pink, white or lilac color. Flowering begins in May-June, and it continues in early September.

On the same hill, several types of ground cover plants coexist if they are in harmony with each other. Given their flowering time, you can make sure that the soil is covered with a bright carpet from spring to autumn.

Ground cover plants are an integral component of the alpine landscape on the site

Shrubs for alpine slides

It is not recommended to use deciduous shrubs in landscaping alpine slides, because their leaves, stuck in the cracks between the stones, are difficult to remove, and the composition will look untidy. It is better to opt for small evergreen bushes.

For example, cotoneaster horizontal whose branches grow parallel to the ground. They are decorated with small leathery leaves, which acquire a crimson color with the onset of autumn. After flowering, small red berries appear, remaining on the branches all winter and giving the cotoneaster a special charm.

An interesting solution would be to use boxwood barberry. Its bush grows no higher than 50 cm, it represents a spreading crown of numerous branches. A very unpretentious plant that tolerates frost and drought well. Loves the light, but when grown in the shade retains its decorative properties.

In landscaping alpine slides, it is better to opt for small evergreen bushes

Dwarf plants for rock garden

An alpine hill is a miniature repetition of a mountain landscape, so for naturalness, you need to use small plants. large bushes will occupy half of the composition and divert attention from other inhabitants of the rocky garden.

You can use dwarf varieties of herbaceous plants(for example, annual marigolds or alpine aster). It is desirable that their height does not exceed 30 cm. And, of course, dwarf conifers are the regulars of rock gardens: spruce, pine, etc. Thanks to them, the hill really looks like a reduced copy of the alpine relief.

Ephedra for alpine hills

To create an alpine landscape, use undersized species and varieties of conifers:

1. dwarf firs, whose height does not exceed 60 cm. They lend themselves well to shaping and require almost no maintenance. The shape of the crown in different varieties can be sprawling or pyramidal.
2. Juniper. Species look spectacular, the branches of which grow parallel to the ground. The needles of the plant often have yellow tint, and the branches are decorated with small cones. Juniper in the wild can be seen on the slopes of the mountains, therefore it is undemanding to the soil and grows well on stones.
3. thuja- a shrub or tree of a pyramidal shape, less often it is cut in the form of a ball.
4. Mountain pine "Pug" grows very slowly and by the age of 10 has a crown with a diameter of up to 50 cm, which allows planting a tree on an alpine hill. Green needles have a pleasant blue tint.
5. cypress: its decorative dwarf varieties will effectively decorate the rock garden slope. You can choose a bush with golden, silver or traditional dark green needles. And the Philifera cypress has hanging branches, which looks like a coniferous cascade.

An alpine hill is called an artificial or natural mound of earth, a hill where evergreens grow, herbaceous plants and shrubs are decorated with stone elements.

This element of garden design got its name due to the fact that it is planted here. alpine plants, which in their natural state grow in mountainous and foothill areas.
Read a detailed illustrated article on how to make an alpine slide with your own hands.

To learn how to make a palm tree from plastic bottles, read .

Basic rules for plant selection

A flower garden with a rocky garden is increasingly common in modern garden plots. It is not difficult to create an alpine hill or rock garden, it is enough to know the main plants that can be planted on a hill, as well as the principles of their placement.

In addition, the rock garden is easy to care for. The stone composition looks beautiful and original if you add several types of alpine plants to it.

We offer you the basic rules for selecting plants to create a decorative rock garden:

1. When creating a composition, it is worth Special attention give to low-growing plants. It is important that in size they correspond to the size of the slide, look harmonious.

2. Choose plants that will tolerate the local climate well. If the slide will be created on sunny area, then light-loving plants should be planted, and vice versa.

3. The intensity of tillering and growth of green spaces should also be taken into account. If you plant plants that grow well, close to undersized ones, small plants who love the light, then you will deprive them of the opportunity to grow and please the eye. For example, beautiful and unpretentious soapwort, yaskolka, obrietta, rezuha will negatively affect plants in the neighborhood.

4. Plants on the hill should be combined with each other in appearance, growing conditions, development and growth rates, flowering period.

Types of plants to create an alpine slide

Alpine slide is created for a long time. When choosing plants for an alpine slide, give preference to cinquefoil, spirea, conifers, which grow rather slowly, but create a dense layer.

Tall herbaceous and woody plants look best next to large stones, and experienced gardeners are advised to avoid symmetry when planting such plants.

To eliminate the gaps between perennials, which at first cannot fill the entire space of the rock garden, such places should be planted with annual flowering plants: gazania, large-flowered purslane, marigolds, gypsophila, marine lobularia and others. These plants love the sun and are unpretentious to the constant receipt of moisture, so they will fit perfectly into the overall look of the slide.

A properly created alpine slide will turn any site into a small natural wonder.

Each gardener must answer for himself the question: in what colors does he want to see an alpine hill? It is also important to create a slide plan on paper - schematically draw the shape of the slide, mark the location of the stones in the figure, and also paint over the rock garden sections with different colors to see the whole picture.

Dwarf coniferous plants look beautiful on the alpine hill, which will favorably highlight your hill all year round. Popular dwarf spruces can have several shades and favorably emphasize the element of landscape design. The same group includes juniper - an unpretentious plant in care, cypress - a coniferous plant with a golden top, as well as thuja.

Giving preference to deciduous plants on an alpine hill, exclude species with falling leaves, which will only spoil the overall look. Among the evergreens deciduous plants for an alpine slide, iberis is often used - a plant with white, purple or pink flowers in umbrella-shaped brushes.

The dryad looks beautiful due to white catchy flowers, as well as horizontal cotoneaster, which begins to blush in autumn and stands out favorably among other inhabitants of the alpine hill.

To make the alpine hill look harmonious and beautiful, it is worth planting shrubs and conifers one at a time, and filling the gaps between them with undersized plants.

Between the stones, along with coniferous plants, carpet plants should be planted, which in a few years will braid the hill with a beautiful canvas. These include rocky beetroot, which is distinguished by gray-green leaves that retain their color all year round. Burachok blooms with small bright yellow flowers in panicle inflorescences.

You can give preference to a short-stemmed carnation, which blooms richly with bright beautiful flowers. Saxifrageforming dense rosettes from their rosettes beautiful pillows, are a mandatory attribute of the alpine slide. Different kinds saxifrages can bloom both in the shade and in the sun.

If you want your rock garden to start pleasing to the eye in early spring and retain color until late autumn, tuber-bulbous and bulbous plants should be planted.

Early color will provide blueberries, snowdrops, chionodoxes. But until late autumn, autumn crocuses, late tulips, birdmen, colchicums will please the eye with their flowering.

The Alpine hill will be perfectly complemented by a small "mountain" waterfall

The principle of tiered planting

To make the alpine slide a real decoration of your garden, you should follow the rules for planting plants, depending on the tiers. So, let's start with the top tier.

top of the hill

The top of your garden decoration is more open to the sun's rays, so it is advisable to place light-loving plants here. In addition, there is practically no moisture left at the top, so the top of the rock garden should be framed by plants that require the least moisture.

To ensure the flowering of the top of the alpine slide all year round, choose ground cover plants that will bloom one after another. Browse through various plants for an alpine slide, photos and names of which will help you make your choice.

For example, in May-June, the top of the hill will be covered with fluffy iberis, and throughout the summer and autumn, the upper tier will delight you with flowering cushion-like bushes. perennial carnation that lives in mountainous areas.

If you want butterflies and bees to always hover over the top of the rock garden, you should plant plants with a pleasant honey aroma, for example, creeping thyme, which forms a carpet on the surface.

Alpine edelweiss is one of the main elements of the top of the hill. This plant loves the sun very much, and in natural environment lives on rocky slopes high mountains, however, for excellent plant growth, it will be necessary to prepare the soil mixture.

If you want to grow unpretentious plants on top of an alpine hill, then the best choice will be young.

We form the middle tier

In the middle of the hill should be plants that love the sun, but at the same time tolerate the shade well. In this place of the hill, the soil is more humid, so there will be a lot of variations for planting.

To ensure lush flowering in May, plant styloid phlox, blooming in blue, pink and white flowers. As a background plant for such bright colors three-vein anfalis, woolly chistets, Schmidt's wormwood can act.

If you prefer to decorate the middle tier of the slide not only with flowers, but also with green foliage, then universal choice there will be a brietta. This plant not only blooms beautifully from the end of May, but also has decorative foliage.

In our latitudes, geyhers, alpine aster, armeria bushes, bulbous plants, primroses are perfect for the middle tier.

To learn how to properly lay turf, click .

Create the foot of the hill

The lower tier of the slide serves as its foot, a logical conclusion. This is where the slide should connect with the rest of the garden.

The lower tier of the rock garden must be filled moisture-loving plants who feel at ease in the shade. Shrubs and tree-like plants are well suited for this, which will be an excellent accent.

To make the foot of the hill bright, you can plant lyatris with spike-shaped flowers, as well as saxifrage in the form of bushes. Having planted rhododendrons and dwarf conifers at the foot of the hill, you will be satisfied with the result.

On the choice of plants for the alpine slide, see the video:

Examples of creating an alpine slide

Consider some examples of simple alpine slides.

A small alpine slide, consisting of fragrant plants, looks good.

Plant an oregano at the top to attract insects. Decorate the middle tier with the help of a beautifully growing hyssola, monard and sage. And decorate the lower tier of alipinaria with thyme, basil and nasturtium.

This combination of plants will create beauty in your area, and the combination of fragrant herbs will improve your mood.

Alpine slide scheme will help create beauty on your site

For lovers of a wide variety of plants, an alpine slide is suitable, on top of which coniferous plants, such as thuja, are planted. Near it, the coniferous ensemble can be supplemented with mountain pine and prickly spruce.