Ornamental Fountain

The word 'Fountain' is derived from the Latin word 'fontis' which means spring. Fountains add life to your home and joy to your life. Fountains may be wall fountains or free standing. These are available in variety of designs and materials.

The most common fountains are made of copper, bronze, concrete, stone, resin and fiberglass. Let us discuss about each fountain and pick your fountain. Bronze fountains are high end fountains, somewhat costly but they are long lasting and durable enough to be moved from house to house. Copper Fountains have elegant look made of copper with glass and slate. These fountains are bit too expensive. Concrete fountains are inexpensive and long lasting fountains, but it's not portable. Resin and fiber glass fountains are easy to handle than concrete fountain.

The fountains are placed both indoor and outdoor; it gives beauty and seizes attention of all. Many fountains are normally seen in small, artificial decorative ponds, basins and formal garden pools. Wall fountain are trendy with homeowners across all cost-effective segments. These fountains are easily available, easy to install and require less maintenance. Among the wall fountains, steel wall fountains are lightweight and do not stress the walls too much. Wall fountains made of copper are exceptionally stunning and hardy.

Fountains will create calm atmosphere and also soothes the mind of listener. The pleasant flow of water will enhance the serenity and peacefulness of your outdoor areas. Choose the right ornamental fountains for your landscape depending on some features. Consider the size of the fountain you crave, since it has to fit well in the available space. Other than size, materials used, color and price also taken into account.

Keeping most general features in mind we have to choose our fountains. The chosen Fountain should be durable, long lasting, easy to clean and install and it should be decorative.

Ornamental Grasses Highlight Your Landscape

When the average person thinks of grass, they think of the short, green stuff that covers our lawns. But there's a vast variety of grasses out there that you can use as "ornamental" grasses, to give your lawn a unique look.

Grass comes in all sizes. There are ground-hugging grasses, there are shrub-sized clumps. There are upright tufts of grasses, there are "mop-top mounds" of grasses, there are "arching fountains" of grasses.

"True grasses" include lawn grasses, cereal grains, and a few "showy" pieces such as bamboo. Yes, bamboo is a grass. However, even though they're not true grasses, cattails, rushes and sedges are also termed "ornamental" grasses.

Stem Stylings
True grasses all have narrow leaves, and their cylindrical stems are hollow. Cattails have those distinctive brown, cigar-shaped flowering structures, and solid stems. Rushes have solid stems. They also don't have the nodes that grasses have. Sedges don't have nodes. They have solid stems - and the stems are triangular but cylindrical.

When you're planning your ornamental grass garden, you must know how the grass grows. Some grasses are clump-forming - they stay where they've been planted. Creeping grasses, also called runners or spreaders, do exactly that...they grow over the ground.

For your beds and borders, you'll want to use clumping grasses. Your creeping grasses will be splendid on any slopes.

Growth Cycles
Various grass species have different growth cycles, just like flowers. Annual grasses die after one growing season, while perennials will come back year after year.

Now when you get to your perennial grasses, there are two basic types of those: cool-season and warm-season. Cool-season grasses start growing in the late winter or early spring. Examples of these are fescue grasses and golden wool millet. Warm season grasses include evergreen miscanthus, pampas grass and fountain grass.

Ornamental Grass Colors
Ornamental grasses run the gamut from bright red and cold to copper, bronze, steel blue and silver. Some stay the same color all the time (when healthy), others change color according to the season - so it's quite a delight to plant these and be able to track the seasons as their hues change.

Shady Sides
If you've had a problem growing grasses in your landscape because there's shade everywhere, don't despair - simply choose those types of grasses that do well in shade! However, there's another contingent you have to deal with - is the soil in that shade evenly moist, or is it dry. The grasses might like the shade but the wrong soil will not do them any good, so make sure you have the right kind of soil for the grasses you choose.

Grasses that flourish in the shade include oat grass and sea oats, crinkled hair grass, snowy woodrush, and golden wood millet.