New Japanese Garden WIP

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damienw133
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Re: New Japanese Garden WIP

Post by damienw133 »

MJL wrote: September 29th, 2020, 8:57 pm Yep - loving it.Image
What is you intent with the path?My sense is a light coloured grave/stone will really help define the garden but that’s form a distance and photos ... what is your plan with the path?


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Good question! I still have to really go hunting to see whats available locally, but at the moment i'm planning on using some sort of crushed granite/toppings for the path, ideally with more of a pale brownish colour so that it ties in with the earthy colours in the rocks.

Something like this....
Although i'm also open to mixing different granites to get the right look if one seems a little too dark or too white
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Hillview-Dromana-10mm-Brown-Granite-Topping.jpg
This is the sort of 'soft contrast' that i'm trying to chase...distinct, but definitely not a harsh bright white look
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Re: New Japanese Garden WIP

Post by Jan »

Hi Damien,

I've enjoyed your garden journey very much so "Thank you" for sharing. I look forward to the next installment.

I noticed how the pale gravel in the last image you posted really framed the green moss and rocks making them the stars of the garden so I'd vote for a pale gravel for the paths to give a good contrast to the rock and plantings rather than blending in (just my two cents worth). You might consider putting down geotextile (the felt like kind that allows water to pass through readily) to keep the existing soil and gravel separated. Without this kind of layer the gravel can sink into the soil becoming weedy and muddy, and need constant topping up to try to maintain the "dry creek bed" look.

I put down a thin layer of pale sand with the gravel on top so that the white geotextile doesn't show through. I use it in my little bit of "zen" garden, a narrow strip between the side verandah and the garage that cops extreme winds, little rain, shade and is plant hell. I have placed some weather worn white quartz rock groups, used some blue/green succulents (in place of moss) and pale gravel. It works a treat in my vegy garden too, keeping the shale, road base paths weed free and allowing the moisture to penetrate the soil.

A few flatish rocks used like small weirs/steps/rapids might help with the problem of rain/runoff moving the gravel, as would using larger sized gravel (heavier) that is less prone to erosion while still giving the stream bed look.

Great project that will only get better as it settles in and naturalises,

Thanks,

Jan
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Re: New Japanese Garden WIP

Post by damienw133 »

Thanks for taking the time to write such an awesome reply!

I'd been wondering about the issue of whether to use geotextile or to risk it without, but i think you're right it'd be best to put down a layer of it.
Have you had any issues with mud from your native soil soaking through the textile and discolouring your gravel at all?

As with much of this project it'll probably come down to having to try it and see what happens but do you think granitic sand would work as a base for the gravel? Or would it be too compact and prone to blocking water from soaking through it?

I've slowly been breaking up the slope of the pathway by adding in stepped areas to try to avoid the issue down the track of the gravel being washed away too much.
Its something of an experiment at this point, but in keeping with trying to make things look more natural i've tried to use level but craggy rocks for the steps so that once the sand/gravel goes down the finer particles will settle in the low points of the rock steps and give a bit of a river bed look to it.
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Re: New Japanese Garden WIP

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Another small, but wordy update today....
Its a familiar spot and hopefully people arent getting too sick of seeing it, but i've really been enjoying the changes in the area around the dry waterfall as the japanese maples and sycamore overhead have continued to leaf out more. I think its starting to get a somewhat softer and more natural look to, although there's still a LOT of tweaks and changes left to make.

They're relatively small changes, but i've swapped out an enkianthus campanulatus near the side fence for another japanese maple in an attempt to get faster growth, more screening and an overall leafier, greener more 'waterfall reminiscent' vibe in that area.
It also has the bonus of 'fleshing out' the side of the waterfall a bit more, removing a bit more of the volcano look that i was worried about in a previous update, and adding more visual depth to the whole area.

I've also replaced an evergreen azalea to the right of the waterfall with a deciduous rhododendron schlippenbachii, again, in an attempt to get a looser more naturalistic look to the area as well as another layer of autumnal foliage for extra interest.

With this added shady leafyness however i'm now a little conflicted as to the japanese black pine planted in the side of the waterfall...it'll stay where it is this year so i can see how it responds, but really, i think it'll probably have to come out and be replaced by something more shade tolerant.

As well as those plantings i've added in quite a lot of hares foot ferns throughout the waterfall rockery and the surrounding 'streambank' areas, and have pinned them in place with bits of bent steel wire...just over two weeks later and i've hardly had any wilting, so fingers crossed they might settle in well - its still early days yet, but we'll see.
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If you're still reading....

As well as those fairly small planting changes, i've continued to develop the 'riverbank' further along in the garden, and have spent much of the last couple weeks moving more rocks to help build up and retain the garden beds around it.
I got another truckload of rock last week but i'm going through it at an alarming rate....its funny how it never stretches quite as far as you think it will...

At this point there's probably another 10 meters or so of rock needed to roughly complete the riverbank area, after which i'll need to bring in more soil to raise the ground level up more to get an undulating look to tie in with the sections i've already done.

I'll undoubtedly need to get more rock after that to fine tune things...but we're getting close to finishing this first stage now!
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Re: New Japanese Garden WIP

Post by MJL »

Not getting sick of seeing these updates! Thanks for taking us on your journey. It already looks rather fantastic but as things soften and the paths are defined by something of a paler colour - I think it will look magnificent.


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Re: New Japanese Garden WIP

Post by damienw133 »

Another small update today....theres another big load of rock coming in the next few days so there'll be more to show off soon!

While i was at the garden supply yard sorting out more rocks today i picked up a bag of 7mm crushed granite screenings as a bit of a test run for the paths...i'm quite liking it, but i think maybe it needs to be a bit more pale and less grey? ....i was contemplating whether putting down a base of compacted granatic sand before i put the gravel on top might help with that?

Otherwise, plan b was to mix through some other sort of more pale coarse sand with the screenings when i'm spreading them out in the hopes it'll lighten up the overall look of it all....i've had a bit of a look for some differently coloured granite screenings, but suppliers for them are scattered pretty far and wide from where i am, so i'm a bit stuck for choice....

Anyways, thats all for now....if anyone has any thoughts or advice i'd love to hear them, otherwise, watch this space! :)
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Re: New Japanese Garden WIP

Post by MJL »

I was thinking a lighter, sandy/paler colour ... but.... that current mix -sort of grey/blue is it? ... it seems a little reminiscent of water which ties in conceptually to the rock waterfall...whichever way you go it will better define the garden and look even better - and it already looks excellent IMO.


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Re: New Japanese Garden WIP

Post by Ryceman3 »

MJL wrote: October 28th, 2020, 8:13 pm I was thinking a lighter, sandy/paler colour ... but.... that current mix -sort of grey/blue is it? ... it seems a little reminiscent of water which ties in conceptually to the rock waterfall...
Agree with MJL I think. The "water" as the path is a nice way to tie it in. In any case, that's the story you can spin if somebody asks about your choice of screenings for the path!
Great garden, so much work has gone in ... you should be proud.
Can't believe you have another big load of rock coming!!?! :shock: :o
Look forward to the update.
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Re: New Japanese Garden WIP

Post by TimS »

Coming along beautifully there. Might be worth throwing some water over the gravel you are using to check you like the colour of it when it is wet too
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Re: New Japanese Garden WIP

Post by damienw133 »

Thanks for the words of encouragement guys!

Its quite a subtle change, but i added in a roughly equal amount of 7mm dromana toppings today in the hopes that the browns in it would tone down the harshness of the grey.

I think its done that and i'm quite happy with how it looks when its wet, but its a bit ....dull...for want of a better word when its dry

With a lack of lighter coloured granite or a suitable lighter stone to mix through i'm thinking i might try mixing through a lighter coloured sand to try to get a bit more soft brightness in there
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Also, just to satisfy my curiosity i also tried a bit of straight dromana toppings in the dry waterfall area ...i think it works fairly well, but if anyone else has any thoughts i'm open to alternative suggestions
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Re: New Japanese Garden WIP

Post by damienw133 »

Its been an exciting week since the last update!

I've been working my way through the latest delivery of rocks...luckily with the lockdowns in victoria eased i was able to go and pick these ones out myself...so there were no monstrously heavy ones like the last lot!
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....The big one near the wheelbarrow was an absolute killer to move....much sweating and swearing was involved followed by a couple days of light duties
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Most of the new load has been used to slightly extend the 'river' and to begin to create the border for the access path in front of the fence.
Eventually that path will be paved with natural and cut stone for a 'nobedan' style look, but thats a ways off yet...I'll also be adding in some extra taps along the fence and in a few concealed spots through the garden to make watering easier.

Aside from moving rocks i also finally dug out the patch of rhododendrons that were previously planted along the fence in readiness for replacing them with a sasanqua camellia hedge to give a nice dark green backdrop to the rest of the garden + a little extra privacy.
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In another exciting development i've finally found a suitable candidate to make into a water bowl for a tsukubai area...its from the base of a probably 16th or 17th century Japanese stone pagoda, the rest of which is long since lost.
photo_2020-11-03_21-22-15.jpg

There's a long tradition in Japan of repurposing stone objects such as lantern components and architectural fragments into water bowls and stepping stones and after seeing this fantastic example using a similar pagoda base at the Adachi Art Museum i was desperate to give it a go myself!
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I'm still a ways off working on that area so it'll have to wait a while...in the meantime i've just plonked it on the path and have used a low point in it to 'fill it' (all 10mm of that low point) with water get a bit of an idea for how it might look...i think it fits in fairly well
It also matches in quite well with the gravel mix i was able to sort out ...in the end it was a mix of grey 7mm granite toppings + 7mm dromana toppings, both washed to get rid of the worst of the fines which i think should make for a fantastic moss growing media to use elsewhere.
photo_2020-11-03_21-21-46.jpg

This area isnt too far off being done bar the rest of the gravel for the path, but i bought a few more plantings to help soften things a little more and to add a splash of extra colour here and there. I'm planning on keeping the flower palette fairly limited to very soft off whites, pinks and soft purples to keep to a fairly subdued look.
I'm still a little torn on the best way to hide the neighbour's ugly steel fence, though at this point the favourite option is some cheap brush screening wired to it as a temporary fix + a sasanqua camellia and a few other plantings to ultimately cover it up

Anyways, thats all for now! There'll be more coming soon, so for those still following....watch this space!
Cheers!
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Last edited by damienw133 on November 3rd, 2020, 10:38 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: New Japanese Garden WIP

Post by Raging Bull »

:crikey: Damien, you must look like the Incredible Hulk by now after getting all those rocks in place. Great job and a huge amount of perseverance and dedication to have done what you have there. :tu: I always look forward to the next instalment of you labour of love.
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Re: New Japanese Garden WIP

Post by damienw133 »

Raging Bull wrote: November 3rd, 2020, 8:55 pm :crikey: Damien, you must look like the Incredible Hulk by now after getting all those rocks in place. Great job and a huge amount of perseverance and dedication to have done what you have there. :tu: I always look forward to the next instalment of you labour of love.
Haha, who needs the gym when you've got a few truck loads of rock handy :D

Thanks so much for the support though, i was a bit hesitant to post so soon after the last one lest the progress be a bit underwhelming.
At the moment a good day is getting 10 rocks placed and back filled, so its pretty a slow burn from one day to the next
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Re: New Japanese Garden WIP

Post by Jan »

Looing good! Going gangbusters.

No, I've had no problem with the gravel being discolored by the soil beneath the geotextile.

As for the choice of path gravel, I'd go pale - just look at the path in the image you had of the Japanese water bowl. The pale gravel really makes the plantings pop.

Outstanding effort, and you've offset the price of rocks, etc. by the savings made on the gym. A true DIY workout. Looking forward to updates as it progresses. :cool:
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Re: New Japanese Garden WIP

Post by damienw133 »

Thanks Jan,

Progress has been a bit of a mess at the moment...lots has been done, but theres not that much to show off just yet...changing some of the drains in readiness for the new concrete sleeper retaining wall near the house has consumed a bit of time, along with todays major job - pruning a lot of the hanging overhead branches from the liquid amber and removing most of the branches from a soon to be removed self seeded black wattle to let more light in

.....It was quite the physical and mental gymnastic act trying to cut off big branches over that wired up pine and the mossy embankments without any of them falling on it or brushing it on the way down - in the end it all went well with only 1 of the smaller branches spearing into the moss and leaving a 20 cent sized dent for me to fix, so i was pretty happy about that....one more job ticked off!

As far as actual gardening goes, the last big bit of progress to show off has been building up the soil level in the 'ridge' parallel to the front fence.
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I've started to plant it up with a lot of mondo on the steepest areas to reduce erosion and have added in a few different kinds of asarum in some of the spaces between the rocks as well as some autumn ferns, liriope, variegated liriope and some deciduous rhododendrons - in this case another rhododendron schlippenbachii and a mystery no name rhodie with very similarly coloured soft pink flowers and slightly larger fuzzy leaves.

While i finalize the exact placement for them i've just plonked some japanese maples in their pots in a couple of spots and have since added a couple more enkianthus as well...the plan is to use the height of this area relative to the garden in front of it to create a deciduous backdrop for the plantings and rocks in the rest of the garden. Once a few more of the existing problem trees have been removed and more light introduced i'll also be adding a couple of japanese red and black pines as well.
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There'll be some more exciting updates coming soon, so stay tuned!
The retaining wall is hopefully going in early next week, after which i'll be able to really start on some fun areas

Cheers!
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