Cheap Beach House Garden Improvement
There are many perks when living in a beach house in Florida (not just great Miami Movers). You have an easy access to the beach and you can brag about your home, too! Due to this, Florida real estate has blossomed in recent years. But have you ever thought about ways in which you can improve your garden when living in a beach house? In this article, we talk about some easy, cheap beach house garden improvement that will give your home a dose of flare. Dazzle your guests with a fabulous new garden, and we will tell you how to do it!
The Vibe of your Cheap Beach House Garden Improvement
There is a certain vibe that’s great for beach house gardens – and it’s, you guessed it, the beachy vibe. The atmosphere should be relaxed and natural, just hinting at the ocean nearby. People usually use beach houses to relax and unwind, so creating such an environment is advisable. Think about this when picking your plants and furniture, as well as decoration.
Plants are a Cheap Beach House Garden Improvement
When someone says “garden,” your first thoughts are usually of plants. Now, having and keeping a beach house garden is a bit more trying than with the regular gardens. You need to take care of the plants, but you need to think about natural conditions as well. You will not use your regular garden plants here because of some major differences.
There is a high exposure to salt and sun, the soil is sandy and thus it’s harder for it to hold water and minerals, and then there is a lack of sun in the winter months. This is why it’s extremely important to pick right plants, that can succeed and thrive in their surrounding.
It’s also a great idea to plant them together so they can be protected even more from the elements. Also, the soil should be treated with layers of organic material. You should do this at least once a year, to help feed the plants. Since water is hard to keep in sandy soil, mulching is also a necessity.
Trees and Hedge Plants
In order to give your garden a beachy vibe, we recommend keeping it a bit scruffy. Well-kept gardens with trimmed grass and hedges are a suburban thing, and we are bringing the wilderness and untameable nature of the ocean by incorporating a lot of drought-tolerant plants in the garden. Since the plants are exposed to winds, it’s a good idea to protect them by using some hedges and trees. Keep in mind that these need to be coastal, in order to better retain water and nutrients from the sandy soil.
One of the best trees you can use is Coast banksia (Banksia integrifolia). This tree is a great buffer for your plants. You can add a mixture of eucalyptus as well to shield them from the wind even better.
As for some bushy shrubs, look no further than Coastal rosemary (Westringia fruticosa), woolly bush (Adenanthos sericeus), diosma (Coleonema) and hebe (Hebe). Another great addition are the succulent plants, like pigface (Carpobrotus), blue chalk sticks (Senecio serpens) and agave (Agave). And as long as you are using succulents, you should consider using grass such as coast tussock grass (Poa poiformis), fountain grass (Pennisetum setaceum) or orange sedge (Carex testacea).
Paths as a Cheap Beach House Garden Improvement
Sometimes, you already have all the plants you need in the garden, but you still require something more. This is where other elements, such as paths, come into play. However, since beach house gardens are usually, well, beachy, regular sand and stone paths just don’t work here. There are a couple of ways you can go here, but we recommend either crushed seashell blend or granitic sand.
The crushed seashell blend is exactly that – tinily crushed pieces of seashells. These are great for either paths, driveways or lining around your plants, but be careful how you walk on the when not wearing shoes.
The granitic sand (decomposed granite or grit mulch) is great for all things mentioned above but has another important use. If you have problems with weed, it works great as mulch once it has hardened. When it hardens, it has a white color with a sandy shine to it, so it is a great cheap beach house garden improvement.
The Porch is Quite Important, too
A lot of people focus on their cheap beach house garden improvement, they forget another important element of their yard – the porch and the deck. This is a sort of “transition area,” where you or your guests will be moving from the house to the garden. That’s why the deck should have both interior and exterior elements of your house.
For coastal homes, builders recommend recycled plastic instead of natural timber. This is because timber and natural materials tend to need more care when exposed to natural elements, while plastics fare better against the weather.
However, in order to keep the vibe as natural as possible, we recommend you use some natural feature elements. These can vary from sandstone blocks to granite sculptures, depending on your price range. You can also get figs, sticks, and plywood from the beach and use them as focal points as well. The important thing to remember is those feature elements are the ones that draw a person into the garden, and also control where their gaze goes, so be creative with these.
Is Furniture a Cheap Beach House Garden Improvement?
When it comes to furniture, you’ll be happy to know that many beach houses don’t need much of it in the gardens. In order for your garden to look natural and relaxed, remember the saying – less is more. A fire pit and a couple of pillow near it, or a couple of Hampton-style chairs for sunbathing are all you need.
Hopefully, this guide has helped you in adding a cheap beach house garden improvement to your life. There are various other helping home improvement tips you can find on the website, so feel free to browse through.