The chalet style is also called alpine style, and this is no coincidence. It originated in the highlands on the border of France and Switzerland. Despite the fact that the architectural style of the chalet originated in the XNUMXth century, this trend is still developing in modern landscape design.
The Alpine style cannot be applied everywhere. For example, in a lowland with flat terrain, creating a full-fledged mountain garden, with all the desire, will not work. The owners of the uneven terrain are exceptionally lucky!
Slopes and hills, mountain streams and large boulders are all you need to create a chalet garden. The best part is that you can arrange even a small plot of several hundred square meters in this way.
What you need to consider when creating an Alpine style:
- The house should rise above the entire site.
- High walls and partitions are unacceptable.
- Outbuildings are located in the same zone close to each other.
- There must be a natural or artificial reservoir.
- Small architectural forms (pergolas, gazebos) should be located near the house.
- For the decoration of rockeries, mainly conifers and shrubs are used, which tolerate climatic conditions and rocky soil well. Exotic plants do not fit this style.
- No plastic or chrome-plated metal in the decor! Only natural materials such as wood and stone are used.
Armed with a camera, we begin our journey from a large house with a sloping roof, an attic and a terrace. The building is surrounded by tall trees and is located on a hill. Near the house, under a wooden pergola, we see a recreation area with a barbecue and cozy sofas. We go down the stairs to the platform where the fireplace is located, laid out of stone.
Narrow winding paths radiate from the house in thin cobwebs, some of which are strewn with gravel, while others are lined with flat stone slabs. After walking a little down the path, we run into a wooden arbor, entwined with maiden grapes. At the lower level of the site, you can see a lake, to which, merrily murmuring, a small stream rushed.
Examining the gentle slope, you begin to notice some details that are organically integrated by the designer into the natural landscape of the site. Here, next to the boulders, a large snag nestles comfortably, and over there, at a distance, you can see alpine slides and rockeries with conifers.
Having skirted the shady gazebo with soft seats inside, we pass a little lower along the stone stepped path. But what is it? Somewhere not far off, a muffled sound is heard. Let’s hurry there!
And yet one cannot help but admire the mountain style of the chalet! Moving towards the sound that interested us, we involuntarily begin to look around and look closely at the design of the garden. On a large alpine hill, past which we are now passing, coniferous trees and shrubs grow: Christmas trees with blue needles, fluffy creeping juniper and low thuja. Among the piles of stones, you can see islets of thick moss and low bushes of alpine buttercup with small yellow and white flowers. And here is the fern with its spreading frond leaves.
Passing to the other side of the slope, we notice a decorative composition with a long-forgotten broken cart, overgrown with bright wildflowers. An old wooden wheel lies nearby.
When decorating a garden in a landscaped chalet style, you can use cracked ceramic jugs lying on the side. Flowers and herbs are planted next to such a broken vessel. Broken clay pots, baskets and other things that are no longer needed in everyday life may well come in handy for decorating an alpine garden.
So we’re almost there. An indistinct noise builds up. The path, strewn with large river pebbles, made a sharp turn and a magnificent view appeared to our eyes! A waterfall sparkling in the sun cascades down from the top of a stone ledge. An avalanche of clear water crashes down with a crash and scatters as crystal splashes, forming an iridescent halo.
Of course, an experienced eye can see the imperceptible intervention of landscape designers who have graced the slopes on either side of the falls. Here you can find luxurious spirea, barberry, dwarf thuja, euonymus, Japanese quince, junipers of various species and other plants growing in this area. Despite the variety of greenery, the alpine garden seems to merge with nature and looks very harmonious.
By the way, any water sources are an integral part of the Alpine style, therefore such a wonderful gift from Mother Nature as this waterfall turned out to be truly priceless.
If you are not very lucky and there are no natural bodies of water on the site, do not worry! “Dry” streams, with bridges thrown over them, or small artificial ponds will correct the situation. Floating figures of ducks can be launched into the lake or a sculpture in the form of a crane or heron can be installed.
Returning to the house, we go to a cozy recreation area and sit down in comfortable wicker chairs. We take out the camera and look through the pictures taken during the walk with pleasure.
The picturesque chalet-style mountain garden requires no special maintenance. Plants living in rocky soil do not need fertilizers, watering or replanting. And rockeries, alpine slides, reservoirs and compositions with decorative buildings made of natural materials can decorate any landscape.
