Is it possible to create a winter garden in a city apartment?Although standard apartments are not so big to plan such luxury in them. But if you want to have a place at home that will relieve depression, why not try? You are quite capable of creating a picturesque corner that will please you, improve your health and create a cozy atmosphere in the interior. Where to start? What plants to choose? In what environment does a mini garden look best? Where to allocate space for it? The answers are in our tips!
Where to start
Before you set up a winter mini-garden, you should think about what purposes you need it for.
- Do you want to see bright, blooming and fragrant flowers or exotic plants, citrus fruits?
- Perhaps you need a healthy atmosphere in your home, and it doesn’t matter what kind of flowers you have.
- Do you want to adjust the space and harmonize it?
- Or maybe you like neat little plants?
Define what a garden means to you.Are you and your loved ones allergic to flowers? Will you have the time and patience to care for the plants? Our opinion: - Choose unpretentious flowers for your first mini-garden: coleus, guzmania, syngonium, howea, aphelandra, aspidistra, indoor maple. Two or three plants are enough to ensure clean air and a favorable microclimate in your apartment. If you want more flowers, go ahead. But design your garden in such a way that it does not look like an impenetrable thicket. You should not have poisonous plants in your garden. Avoid some types of magnolias and oleander. Oksana Shinkareva, landscape gardening and landscape construction engineer: - When buying plants for a green area, be sure to consider their climate: their living conditions should be approximately the same, otherwise it will be very problematic to provide everyone with the appropriate care. Tropics — plants of the genus Ficus, Asparagus, Anthurium, Dracaena, Aeschynanthus, Dieffenbachia. Subtropics — palms, flowering vines, passion flowers, citrus fruits (lemons, calamondins, oranges, figs), jacarandas, wisterias. Azaleas, honeysuckle, camellias, euonymus, calamus, hibiscus will decorate the garden with magnificent flowers. Desert — cacti and aloe, yucca, milkweed and Kalanchoe, they will help to recreate a truly southern atmosphere of the winter garden. This is an excellent option for people who do not tolerate high humidity. Fruit garden — you will need oranges, pomegranate, Arabian coffee, lemons, crested pineapple, dates. Healing pharmacy - aloe, alamanda, medicinal cherry laurel, black pepper, Kalanchoe.
Economy options
In order to save space, it is better to arrangemini garden in the corner. To create beauty, cover the wall with artificial stone. For harmony, combine tall plants with medium and small ones. Moreover, place tall flowers closer to the wall. This will create the effect of density. For a small space, one or two large flowers are enough. Podiums are considered an excellent solution for saving space. Also use hanging pots, small tables, slides-ladders, console and moving shelves. All this is very relevant for small apartments. Oksana Shinkareva, engineer of garden and park and landscape construction: - Air humidity should be maintained at 50-80% (depending on the natural habitat conditions of the plants). I recommend installing a source of additional moisture, a fountain, an aquarium or a humidifier. This will maintain humidity and prevent plants from drying out on hot summer days, as well as during the heating season, when the air in the apartment is too dry. Plants are very responsive to spraying the leaf blade. But this should be done in the morning or evening hours. If it is a winter garden, then the “artificial fog” installation will be ideal!
The best place for a mini garden
For a winter garden, the best option isthe presence of a window. It is great if you have chosen a room attached to a loggia or with French windows for its organization. This will allow you to get more light, which is especially important for flowering plants. It is better to place them closer to light sources. But not right next to the windows. The optimal distance from the glass for plants will be 30-50 centimeters. Break up the mini-garden along the wall, next to the window. Large-leaved plants or vines are suitable as a background. Use transparent shelves. It is considered the most favorable option for a winter garden when the windows face west or east. The south side is also great, but to prevent direct sunlight from hitting the flowers, use translucent curtains to optimize the climate. Place subtropical plants closer to the window, and a little further - tropical flowers that like more diffused lighting. It is good to install a mini-pond here to humidify the air. It is important to remember that flowers do not like drafts. Oksana Shinkareva, engineer of garden, park and landscape construction: - A winter garden can be set up anywhere - it all depends on the selected plants and their living conditions. The best locations are western and eastern windows, glazed balconies, loggias or bay windows. On the northern side, plants may not have enough light, and on the southern side, on the contrary, solar radiation may be too active. With excessive lighting, shading will be required. And with insufficient - special phytolamps, similar to those used in greenhouses.
How to achieve balance
The principle of a winter garden rests on three pillars:heat, light and humidity. This is due to the fact that the winter garden mainly consists of subtropical and tropical plants. In winter, the air temperature for tropical plants of Africa, Asia, America should be no lower than 18 ° C and no higher than 24 ° C. Subtropical flowers of China, Japan, New Zealand and desert plants of America and Africa can live within 13-18 ° C. Choose plants that are grown in your region, as well as in conditions close to the microclimate of your apartment. When buying plants for the winter garden, always clarify the conditions and feeding regime that were applied to them. This will help to avoid the death of plants. Artificial ponds and fountains do an excellent job of humidifying the air and are suitable for tropical gardens. It is also appropriate to use them in the Japanese style. To make the mini-garden look interesting, combine flowers with large and small leaves. Alternate simple shapes and shades with multi-colored and more sophisticated ones. For balance, the winter garden needs backlighting. This is additional lighting for light-loving flowers. This makes the room look more comfortable. Use LEDs, spotlights. Embed them in decorative elements. You can install lamps and spotlights next to the pots. Oksana Shinkareva, engineer of garden and park and landscape construction: - Plants feel comfortable at an average temperature of +18 to +22°C. In winter, the lower limit should not fall below +12°C.
Winter Garden Style
To make it easier to create a winter garden, it would be niceto define its style. The most popular modern style is the Japanese garden. It combines elegance, restraint and folk exquisite eclecticism. It is practical, does not require special attention to itself, and does not take up much space. If you do not want thematic options, create simply beautiful flower arrangements. They also save space and look very interesting. Pay attention to unpretentious and useful plants such as begonia, cereus, pepperonia, fern, cyclamen, asparagus, clivia. Use caladium and acalypha as bright accents, you can add light pink zephyranthes. Our opinion: - In a limited space, the center of the composition can be one large plant. And next to it, place small flowers in tubs and pots, a small decorative pond and illuminate everything with LEDs or built-in lamps. Plants always look more impressive against a light background. This way you will get a cozy mini-garden. It is worth remembering that tall plants that stand on the floor can visually raise the ceiling. Spreading trees, on the contrary, visually lower it.
pinterest.com
