The Beautiful Edible Landscape: Focal Points

Before we move on to discuss the next step in designing the beautiful edible landscape, let me give you an update on the patio and pergola project we talked about in the last post, The Beautiful Edible Landscape: Permanent Elements.

Herringbone interlocking in progress

The paving contractors are making good progress and it is looking great. They compacted another 4"-5" of limestone screening onto the base we had already laid down last summer.  This should certainly provide a really solid and well-drained foundation.  One item of note...if you intend on having your interlocking pattern laid on a diagonal or have designed curves into the edge pattern, it will require significantly more cutting so be prepared to pay a little extra in the labour costs. I had chosen the herringbone pattern in order to provide a subtle design link to the herringbone pattern of tile we had installed inside the house throughout the entrance hall and Kitchen.

The Beautiful Edible Landscape: Permanent Elements

Now that the planning stage for our edible garden is done, it's time for the next step - arranging permanent elements such as patios, pergolas or arbours, fountains, garden sheds, and pathways.  As suggested by the books I've been reading it makes sense to locate these features first, as they will be of a permanent nature serving to better define the space. From a practical standpoint it just seems prudent to install these elements at the earliest stage due to the fact that their construction often results in significant disruption to the surrounding area. This is where a lot of blood, sweat and tears are shed because it often requires major digging and some heavy lifting.