It’s important for a cohesive design that your garden and pool work well together. Your pool is simply an extension of the natural beauty in your yard. In order for your pool to blend seamlessly into your backyard, it will require the careful planting of trees, bushes, grasses, plants, and flowers. Landscaping around your pool can make it look more inviting, but there are a few things to keep in mind.
- When planting, keep trees and tall shrubs as far away from the pool as possible. Fallen flowers and leaves can overwhelm your pool’s filtration system, causing issues.
- If you would like direct sunlight to your pool, which most pool owners prefer, do not plant any tall trees on the northern side of the pool.
- It is a good idea to have some form of tile, concrete, or a barrier between your lawn grass and your pool. Grass clipping can be a huge pain to remove from the water.
- If you plan to design a flower garden for your pool area, pick a location that is out of the way of general traffic. The last thing you want is for all the neighborhood children to be running in and out of our flower beds.
- Gardens near the pool need to be slightly sloped away from the edge of the pool- this will prevent hosing and rainwater runoff into the pool. Runoff will cause an imbalance of your pool chemicals. Install drainage in areas where water may puddle and direct away from the pool area.
- If you have shady areas in your yard, consider planting low maintenance plans. Some of these are: palms, tree ferns, ferns, bromeliads, and foliage plants. They like the shade, can grow in the same environment, and can provide a tropical feeling for your pool area.
- Be mindful of water conservation and try not to plant in areas where you will not be able to give the plants proper watering.
- Create a walkway around the perimeter of the pool.
- Consider deep mulching your garden. This is an effective way to restrict water loss. Mulch is known to mediate soil temperature. This allows plants to continue growing into the colder moths by providing nutrients to the soil. It also wards of pesky weed growth.
- Keep the landscaping material around the pool minimal, and heavy enough so it will now blow off or run into your pool. Good materials to consider are river rock and tumbled slate. Avoid popcorn size pieces of lava rock, small pebbles, or mulch in areas where you may have run off or blowing into the pool.
Things to keep in mind when planting by your pool:
- Are there any plants nearby that could be harmed by pool water splashes containing chlorine?
- Pool water and pavement can reflect sunlight and intensify the heat on the plants surrounding the pool. This will dramatically increase water evaporation and salt leaching.
- Be aware of highly perfumed plants that attracted the attention of bees- you may not want to grow these by the pool.
- Large flowering plants oftentimes produce organic matter such as dried flower heads or seed pods. These can easily end up in the pool in windy areas. They could also stain or make the pavement slippery.
- Some plants have ‘spiky’ leaves and some have thorns. Be aware of how close these plants are to the most trafficked area by your pool.
Watch these videos for more information about pool landscaping:
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