If your idea of heaven is a vibrant garden with burst of colour, opting to use landscaping sleepers for your planting is ideal.
Giving you the choice to section off areas of bedding, and create structure and interest to otherwise flat spaces, our range of softwood garden sleepers can be used in any garden revamp or landscaping project.
Sleepers can be used to create planters, borders or raised beds, allowing your garden to bloom.
Creating planting zones in your garden
As landscaping design evolves, more of us are looking to create zones within our gardens that can conjure up a different ambience as you wander through the space. Using sleepers gives you the ability to both establish sections in your garden, while also providing a consistency that brings the theme of your garden together.
Before creating a zoned garden, consider what type of space you would like to have. The garden, just like the home can be divided up into areas for different functions. It may be that you want a space to dine, a place to plant veg, or even an area that’s just for sitting and enjoying being in nature.
In some cases, you may simply choose to create diversity through your garden using different types of plants. By creating sectioned beds using sleepers, you can ensure that your planting is structured and that sections don’t overlap leading to a “messy” look.
Make a small garden look bigger with planters
While you may assume that an open space would make your garden look larger, the opposite is often true. Dividing your garden up into smaller sections and creating more of a journey through the space gives the appearance of a longer garden.
There is a plethora of ways to break up even the smallest of gardens, and one of the simplest is to create depth by using large planters. Build your own planter or flowerbed using wooden railway sleepers.
How to build a raised bed using sleepers
With your area chosen, space measured and your sleepers purchased, choose where you want to insert your raised bed and lay your sleepers on the ground in a rectangular shape. For longevity it's worth using a solid base. While many people lay sleepers directly onto grass or a patio, adding a constructed base can give further longevity to your planters. It's also worth considering that sleepers of any kind are a heavy timber, and you will benefit from creating them at their final destination.
Fasten the sleepers together using structural screws and build in layers to get to the height you want.
Once your bed is constructed, it’s a good idea to use a plastic membrane to protect the sleepers by building a barrier between them and wet soil. This will help to protect your wood in the long term. This can be secured but is often best held in place by the addition of soil.
For a finished look, consider adding mulch bark to your planters. As well as looking good, bark can soften the impact of rainwater so that it is less likely to evaporate at surface level, and instead get to where it’s needed within the soil.
Softwood vs Hardwood sleepers
Both softwood and hardwood are regularly used as materials for garden sleepers and to create raised beds and planters.
Generally speaking, hardwood comes from deciduous tree's which lose their leaves annually. Softwood comes from Conifereous trees, which usually remains evergreen.
While hardwood is the more durable of the two, providing a longer lasting solution to your garden needs, this durability does mean that hardwood sleepers are heavier and more difficult to cut, and tend to come with a higher price tag. Softwood sleepers are lighter, easier to manouvere and cut, and less expensive, meaning they are more readily available for purchase. While softwood sleepers are less durable, they come pressure-treated to extend the life of the timber.
Both types of wood make an excellent option, so the choice is really down to budget, availability, and your preferred aesthetic.
What else can railway sleepers be used for?
For those who really want to bring continuity to a garden design, your sleepers can form the backbone of the entire aesthetic. You can build retaining walls, steps and even rustic garden furniture using wooden sleepers.
Adding planters to raised decking is also an ideal way to block off any steep drops without having to add a fence to the area. They can even provide additional seating if you like to entertain.
So, whether you’re looking to completely change the look of your garden, or simply want to tidy up your flower beds with DIY planters, wooden sleepers can provide the ideal solution.
Check the stock of softwood, hardwood and oak sleepers available from Alsford today.