A TERRACE FOR OUTDOOR LIVING

Press, Volume CIII, Issue 30541, 9 September 1964, Page 12

A TERRACE FOR OUTDOOR LIVING

When moving into a newly-built house one of the first thoughts is “We must have a garden.” But the problem is where to start.

One of the best answers is to start around the terrace. Or, if the house has no terrace, why not build one? The terrace can be used in good weather for outdoor dining or just lounging. The selection of plants to surround it can provide privacy, colour, and protection from weather.

A lawn extending away from the terrace is an important part of the overall composition, and the house walls can form a background against which the garden can start. Let the terrace paving form additional guide lines for planting.

The terrace itself may be of concrete, bricks, gravel, or even sealing. It may be started with a gravel-surfaced area bounded by bricks, and gradually converted into a solid surfaced area using the gravel as a surface finish for concrete or a bedding for bricks, stones, or blocks. Generally speaking, gravel is not very desirable for a terrace, as not only is there a danger of the gravel getting on to the lawns and damaging mowers, but it is often carried into the house, particularly by some types of shoe soles.

If one side of the terrace is top open, additional privacy and weather protection can be obtained by backing, up the garden with either a screen fence or a low fence of concrete block. A fence of such a heavy material as the latter should not be too high, to avoid it overpowering its floral surroundings by virtue of sheer bulk.

Whatever plan is finally decided, Careful note must be taken of the position of the sun, and to the selection of plants that will not, as time goes on, grow to such an extent that they throw much of the terrace into shade, although some shade may be desirable.

To provide this patch of shade, a good selection for one side of the terrace might be.a shade tree at the corner furthest away from the house, and an underplanting of shrubs

and ground covers.. If a screen fence is to be used, there may be some scope for the use of vines. To cover the blank house wall use may be made of a suitable ornamental shrub: a nurseryman will advise on either manure or fertiliser the best choice. Taller growing shrubs may be placed between windows.

Within the limits of a moderately - sized terrace, use can be made of a shade tree, a flowering tree, a variety of shrubs, ground cover plants, flowering annuals and perennials, bulbs or roses, and possibly vines. Shrubs that have spreading root systems, for example hydrangeas and azaleas, need wide pots, Others, such as some vines with long tap-roots, need deep but narrow pots. Tubs or pots left outdoors lose their soil nutriment comparatively quickly,

and this has to be replaced regularly by the use of weak liquid manure or a well-balanced fertiliser in small ■ quantities. Before either manure or fertiliser is applied the soil should be moistened. Many of the creepers will do well in tubs, but good drainage and good waterretentive soil is essential. When choosing trees for the surrounding garden, though, it is wise to remem- ■ ber they will grow considerably as the years pass, and some types may wreak havoc with any nearby drains. Here again, it is wise to seek the advice of a nurseryman. The scope for imaginative use of a wide variety of plants around a terrace is considerable, A really attractive refuge can be built with a little thought: and a layout may be arranged that is not only decorative but very useful during -the summer months.