Article Number 707


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How to create a planting bed

The information in this article applies to:
Landscaping & Deck Designer
Home Designer Suite
Home Designer Deluxe
Architectural Home Designer
Home Designer Pro


QUESTION
I would like to create a custom garden like the ones I see in the Architectural Blocks library. How can I accomplish this?

ANSWER
The Terrain Feature tools allow you to create a wide variety of custom planting designs. The following article describes how you can create a formal garden area with paths, multiple planting beds, and benches.



The picture below shows the placement of these straight wall sections as a preliminary setup for placing a curved wall next to the stairs and a curved wall under the stairs.

To create paths and planting beds

  1. Begin by opening a new plan. The Default template plan works well for the purposes of this tutorial.

  2. The first step is to draw the paths through the garden because they will help us position the planting beds. Click the Terrain Feature Tools parent button, then select the Feature Region child button. Click in plan view and drag to create a rectangle without worrying about its exact size or shape: it can be edited after it is drawn.

  3. Click on the rectangular terrain feature to select it and then double-click the Open Object edit button.

    • On the General tab of the Terrain Feature Specification dialog, specify the height of this terrain feature. For this tutorial, select a height of 0.

    • On the Materials tab, select the Terrain Feature subheading and then click the Select Material button. Browse through the Materials library category and select a material for your garden paths, such as LargeGravel, located in the Decorative Rock folder in the Landscaping library.

    • Click OK to close the dialog and apply your changes.

  4. With the terrain feature still selected, use the edit handles and temporary dimensions to resize the feature to the correct size for your path. For this tutorial, the path will be 12’ long and 2’6” wide.

  5. To create a second path identical to this one, select the path; click the Copy/Paste edit button; and then click again in plan view. Use the Rotate handle to rotate the feature 90 degrees, and then use the Move handle to position the path so that it forms an intersection with the first one. The resize handles can be used to make them perfectly symmetrical.


  6. Next, we’ll create our planting beds. Using the Feature Region tool, click and drag to create a square. Again, don’t worry about the exact size and shape: after the square is created, use the edit handles to position and resize it precisely.


  7. Click and drag the outer corner handle of the square to reshape it into a triangle.


  8. Click on the triangle near its long outside edge to select it and then click the Change Line/Arc edit button to convert the edge from a straight line to an arc. You can adjust the shape of the arc using the edit handles; but for this tutorial, the default arc will work well.

  9. With the triangle selected, click the Open Object edit button. On the General tab of the Terrain Feature Specification dialog, set the height to 4”. On the Materials tab, browse and select a material for the planting bed surface such as Bark(mixed), located in the Bark folder in the Landscaping library.

 

To create lawn edging

  1. If you like the appearance of lawn edging, now is a good time to place some around this planting bed. Click the Library Browser button and then browse to Chief Architect Libraries> Exteriors> Landscaping> Lawn Edging (Fixtures (Exterior) category in Home Designer version 8 and prior program). Brick lawn edging is located in the Landscape Fixtures library.



    Select it and then click in the plan to place a unit of edging.




  2. Select the edging and click the Open Object edit button. In the Fixture Specification dialog, specify the size and material of the edging and click OK to close the dialog. For this tutorial, we use the default size and Sandstone(mauve) material found in the Concrete and Stone category.


  3. Select the customized edging and double-click on the Copy/Paste edit button. When you double-click Copy/Paste, you can click to paste as many copies of the selected item as you like. Click in plan view to create as many brick edging pieces as you need. Use their edit handles to rotate and move them into position.


  4. By now, quite a bit of work has been done in this plan. If you have not done so already, you should select File> Save so that your work is not accidentally lost.

  5. When you have created a planting bed that suits your needs, group-select the entire planting bed and make copies of it for the other three corners of the garden. To do this:

    • Press the Shift key on your keyboard and then click and drag in plan view to draw a marquee around the planting bed, being careful to include all of the objects associated with the bed, such as edging.

    • If you select an object that you do not want to copy, press the Shift key and click on that object to remove it from the selection group.

    • With the bed group-selected, double-click on the Copy/Paste edit button and then click in plan view to place three copies of the bed near each corner of the garden. Group-select each of these and use the Rotate and Move edit handles to reposition them.

    • If you have difficulty positioning a bed precisely, click the Accurate Move edit button to slow down the speed that the selection set moves the next time you use the Move handle.


To add height and plants

  1. To make this garden a bit more dramatic, elevate it a few inches above the surrounding terrain. Click the Terrain Tools parent button; select the Raised Region child tool; and then click and drag in plan view to draw a circular region around the garden area. With the circular region selected, click the Open Object edit button and specify the region’s height to be 4”.


  2. Use the Round Garden Bed tool to create a terrain feature approximately the same size as the raised region and give it the same material as the garden paths on the Materials tab of the Terrain Feature Specification dialog.

  3. An additional ring of ground covering can be added to further define the garden area and provide an area in which to place a couple of garden benches.


  4. To place plants in the garden, click the Plant Tools parent button and select either the Plant Chooser or Plant Library child tool. The Plant Library contains over 1,200 plants which you can browse through and select; and the Plant Chooser allows you to search for plants based on attributes that you specify.


  5. Furniture, recreational items, decorative pieces, and many other objects can be found in the Library Browser. Select an object such as a Garden Bench and click in plan view to place it there.


  6. To see what your garden looks like at any time, click the View Tools parent button and use either the Camera or Full Overview child tool to create a 3D view.


MORE INFORMATION
How to use terrain features and regions

How to create a pond and stream

Last updated on: 09-14-2009