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Landscaping Ideas for an Envy-inducing Rock Garden

Sujata Iyer
Rock gardens are a convenient option for those looking to redo their gardens. Here are some rock garden landscaping ideas that you can try out.
Imagine you have moved into a new house recently that has a backyard and you are dying to transform it. It's just the right size. Not too big, not too small. But that is one of its problems too. If you don't want a full-fledged garden as you know you would not get the time to look after it. So instead opt for a gorgeous rock garden.
So here are some ideas for rock garden. Read them, and the next time you think of re-doing your backyard, surely you can use one of them.

Ideas for Rock Garden Landscaping

Creating a rock garden does not mean that you collect a bunch of rocks and dump them in your yard. Yes, it is a less messy landscaping option than normal gardening, but it is just as time consuming and involves the same amount of effort and dedication to make it look picture perfect. Here are some ideas for a pretty rock garden that are not too difficult.

Waterfall

Nothing like water to beautify your garden. Flowing water, to top it, will only further enhance the look! Note that this idea is for a small portion of your garden. So, begin with getting the right size and shapes of rocks.
You'll need rocks that have a smooth finish for this idea. Different sizes is what we would suggest. Use medium-sized rocks to make a border for the area that you're going to use for the waterfall. Make a slope towards a corner with mud. Then place the rocks randomly or according to their sizes on the mud slope.
You get ready-made waterfalls and waterfall pumps in gardening or interior decorating stores. Place one of those and camouflage it with similar colored rocks. Your corner waterfall is ready. Incorporate this idea in a Japanese garden and it'll have a breathtaking effect.

Flowers

Relax! We are not going to ask you to carve flowers in rocks! Our suggestion is to complement some dull rocks with vibrant flowers having bright colors!
So, what you can do is, systematically fill your garden with smooth or crude rocks all around in such a way that it looks random. Leave patches for planting the flowering bushes and shrubs. Or you can work the other way round. It does not really make a difference because it isn't really messy.
Then plant the shrubs and bushes in the patches. Go for evergreen flowering shrubs, so that your garden looks colorful all year round. Arrange the bushes in such a way that it depicts a star. You can pick a word or a shape too!

Cactus

This is one of those creative rock garden designs! You don't have to worry about watering the plants often. Pick some pretty varieties of cactus to adorn your rock garden. Cactus is extremely hardy and does not need to be watered regularly.
There are different types of cactus that you can choose from. Some of them bear tiny colorful flowers too. You can have them potted in your rock garden or you can create a desert like theme. Plant cactus plants around the edges of your garden if you have kids.
They might prick themselves by touching the plants. For this idea, it would be better to use small smooth rocks in pale brown or cream. It will give the garden a rusty look, and that's exactly the point.

Greens

Here's another idea which is quite the opposite of the previous one. This one will give you a lush green backyard punctuated with pretty white rocks, or vice versa. You can begin by laying down grass in your entire garden.
Pick some spots for rocks. Establish a pattern when you leave the spots bare so that when you finally fill in the white (smooth finish) rocks, there's an elegant look of finesse to it. The exact inversion can be done too. Fill your garden with smooth rocks and leave spots bare for grass.

Pond

Having a pond in your rock garden is another fabulous idea. Design the garden with rocks of different colors, shapes and sizes. Reserve a corner for a small pond which is small enough for a bike to fit in, but please, not your boat!
You can surround the pond with small flowering bushes to prevent anyone from going into it (yes, kids tend to try that). Or, if your garden is really big, you can have a pretty picket fence around the pond, with a gate for entering to clean it. A Koi pond will be a superb option for a big rock garden!
So, these are some rock garden ideas. We are sure you'll have some fabulous ideas as well. Many people would love to read about them. So why not share them too?