Pergolas / Gazebos / Arbors

There are many different types of wooden vertical structures that can be added to a landscape or garden area:

Pergolas
Gazebos
Arbors
Trellises
Fencing

WHY MIGHT YOU WANT TO ADD ONE OR MORE OF THESE GARDEN EMBELLISHMENTS TO YOUR YARD OR LANDSCAPE?

The reasons are many. These wooden structures can add structure, function, variety and beauty in many ways. Just a few are listed below:

Support for vines or climbing plants: Vines and climbers need vertical structures to look their best. You can give them the support they need and really show off their beautiful flowers year after year.
Easier gardening in less space: Consider adding trellises or arbors to your vegetable or fruit garden to make harvesting vegetables, berries, or other small fruits easier. These vertical structures also use less space than a traditional garden so your garden space need not be as large (read: less weeding) OR you can grow more in the same space that you have now.
Add structure and shade to sitting areas: As vertical elements, these structures help create outdoor “walls” for an outdoor “room” that suits a particular use, such as outdoor dining or entertaining. Shade in summer means you get to enjoy your outdoor room more of the time.
Provide privacy: Trellises, arbors, pergolas and fencing can provide privacy from neighbors and road traffic.
Screen unsightly views: You can screen compost areas, trash bins or other service areas in your own yard or block unsightly views of surrounding properties.
Frame offsite views: If your home is situated near a beautiful vista of hills, meadows, lake or stream, wooden structures can emphasize those views allowing you to incorporate them as a “borrowed” feature in your landscape.
Added variety and seasonal interest: The wood of these structures – whether stained, painted or just allowed to weather naturally – adds variety to green garden spaces all year. And, because these are basically permanent structures in your landscape, they add seasonal interest in fall and winter when leaves of deciduous plants have fallen and in early spring before many plants have leafed out – or, in other words, all those times when there isn’t much to see in the landscape. These elements can also be used to call attention to and, depending on their size and design, to give some protection to evergreen plantings during fall and winter.

I ALREADY HAVE A PERGOLA / GAZEBO / ARBOR, BUT IT’S TOO HOT IN SUMMER OR IT’S TOO COLD IN WINTER TO ENJOY OR IT’S JUST NOT AN INVITING SPOT…

Consider adding a plant bed with four-season interest. Your new bed can provide interest during:

SUMMER with deciduous climbing vines that will provide shade in summer.
SPRING/SUMMER/FALL/WINTER with small deciduous flowering trees that can provide bloom color ins spring, summer or fall; shade in summer; brightly colored fall foliage; and/or interesting bark or other features in winter.
WINTER with small evergreen trees or medium evergreen shrubs that can provide a windbreak and some screening for privacy plus greenery for winter interest and Christmas decorations.
SPRING/SUMMER/FALL with several groups of different flowering perennials so that something is blooming at any given time during the growing season to provide a changing color palette. (Or, if you like some colors more than others, use plants that are tints and shades of the same color to give your plant bed a color theme.)
SPRING/SUMMER/FALL/WINTER with medium to large groups of blooming annuals for impact and uniformity. (Generally, the smaller the bloom, the larger you will want to make the group.)
SPRING/FALL with spring- and fall-blooming bulbs to extend the season of blooms. (Use a variety of early- , mid-, and late-spring bulbs for even more blooms in spring.)

For added interest in dreary winter months, consider installing an item(s) such as a:

Colorful planter
Brightly colored bird bath
Simple garden sculpture
Large ornamental stone
Several medium stones
Meandering flagstone path
Stone fire pit
Decorative chimenea

Be careful though not to overburden your new planting with too many of these elements. Remember: Less is more when embellishing your garden. And, the smaller the garden, the less (or no) embellishing needed. You could consider switching out some of the elements at different times of year, too.

Don’t know what to include? Not into the Do-It-Yourself thing? We can help. Contact us or call us at 772-4722 for a FREE ESTIMATE.

For a free consultation on adding a pergola,
gazebo or other vertical element to your landscape,
call or click here to contact us.

We Provide Services to the Following Cities, Towns and surrounding areas in VA:

Blue Ridge, VA
Boones Mill, VA
Botetourt County, VA
Cave Spring, VA
Cloverdale, VA
Daleville, VA

Fincastle, VA
Franklin County, VA
Garden City, VA
Hardy, VA
Hollins, VA
Moneta, VA

Roanoke, VA
Rocky Mount, VA
Salem, VA
Smith Mountain Lake, VA
Troutville, VA
Vinton, VA