Both practical and aesthetic, the pergola will bring a unique charm to your home while optimizing shading in the garden or terrace. Relatively simple to build and therefore inexpensive, it allows you to create a relaxing space reminiscent of nature. If you are looking for a solution to enhance the exterior of your home with a pergola, find out what you need to know to successfully complete the project.
A plant pergola: a piece of nature in your garden!
Ideal to enhance the aesthetics of an outdoor space, garden, terrace or driveway, the plant pergola offers many advantages, both for you and your home. In reality, it is an arch made up of posts (or vertical pillars) supporting crosspieces and an open lattice ceiling. Often, climbing plants intermingle on the trellises, creating a beautifully shaded space where you can relax or entertain guests on sunny days. Often confused with arbors, which are smaller, simple structures, pergolas are larger, open and generally juxtaposed to the house or building.
It is this open side of the pergola that gives the structure its unique charm, as light passes through its green roof. Being a very decorative design idea, the construction of a planted pergola makes a classic terrace more modern and elegant. It can also be very appreciable in a garden, especially to enhance the beauty of the plants. You will have the opportunity to establish a multitude of varieties of vegetation and thus bring a little piece of nature back home. Attractive in itself, a pergola can also support the essential elements of landscaping such as climbing flowers, vines or ivy. The most important thing is the visual effect produced.
A low-cost layout for an exceptional result
If plant pergolas are currently being used in many homes, it is certainly due to the fact that they allow you to enjoy your outdoor space in all seasons. During the summer season, the structure protects from the sun and provides shade. During the winter season, the trellises supporting climbing plants can reduce the cold outside. However, to get the most out of your pergola on both winter and rainy days, consider installing a bioclimatic pergola.
The installation of a pergola is also the best solution to enhance the beauty of your outdoor space without spending a large budget. Generally easy and simple to build, this structure is also inexpensive and affordable. Although some installations may cost more than others, you will have no trouble finding a durable and aesthetically pleasing model that fits your budget.
In addition to its affordable price, the durability of the structure should also be noted. With the right choice of materials, you will be able to enjoy a shady space in the garden without worrying about maintenance or deterioration. This is particularly the case with a vinyl pergola, which does not require as much treatment as a wooden pergola. Another advantage of a planted pergola is the choice of plants. Some climbers need little help to climb up the poles and to invade the trellises, saving you hours of gardening and maintenance.
How to choose your plant pergola and how to make your plants climb?
In order to meet the architectural style everyone is looking for, plant pergolas can be built in different materials, but the most common are those made of wood, aluminum or wrought iron. The choice being quite vast, the material to be used will depend on your desires and preferences: aesthetics, style (classic, modern, country, etc.), location, budget...
A noble material, wood guarantees an elegant, warm and durable pergola. However, for the structure to be solid, the layout requires special care and treatment every 5 years (annual maintenance, varnishing, anti-termite product...). The installation of wooden posts also requires large sections. This is why the creators prefer metal structures if it is a custom-made pergola. Aluminium and wrought-iron structures allow for more airy designs, with posts a few centimetres in diameter.
Plants usually climb up the posts and then form a beautiful plant cover above the terrace, but a few precautions should be taken to make them climb properly. In order to guide the vegetation towards the roof, think of creating a grid with the cross-pieces, but also of stretching wires that go down every half meter to accommodate the branches. It is also possible to create a vertical plant partition.
Tips to find a pergola adapted to all desires
You prefer to have a flowered or fruit pergola? Will the plants be fragrant or fresh? When it comes to creating a plant pergola, the choice of vegetation requires a great deal of thought. If the choice often varies according to your tastes, certain elements must however be taken into account in order to obtain the desired result.
In order to find the ideal climbing plants for the pergola of your dreams, start by determining the foliage of the vegetation: evergreen, deciduous, etc. To take advantage of the light in winter for example, foliage that falls during cold days will be preferable.
It will also be necessary to define your preferences in terms of flowering. If it is possible to plant varieties with flowers and fruits, specialists recommend vegetations with leaves only to dress a pergola. Flowers and fruits attract bees or wasps, which can be risky. Other factors such as the growth of the plant (fast or luxuriant), the climate of the region or the type of soil can also influence the choice of climbing plants. To make sure you are not mistaken, seek the advice of a specialist: pergola creator, florist, gardener or landscaper, etc.
Usually, an open pergola only covers half of the ground, but if you want to enjoy a structure that is sheltered from the cold and rain, you will need to invest in a bioclimatic pergola.
What are the best varieties of plants to dress your pergola?
As there are many varieties of climbing plants, specialists advise you to choose according to their need for water and sunshine, but also according to their resistance to frost. To better guide your decision, discover some varieties that can be advantageous.
. Virginia creeper provides grapes and lush foliage.
. The golden hop has a very fast growth with generous and well colored foliage.
. Wisteria gives a nice visual aspect with its flower clusters, grows very fast and becomes invasive.
. Jasmine has an evergreen foliage and a nice flowering, very fragrant.
. The kiwi is a rustic shrub with lianas, colorful foliage with its fruits to pick.
. The honeysuckle, covering and rustic, resists cold and sun.
. Climbing Hydrangea is a fresh and aesthetic plant, ideal to dress one side only.
. Clematis is ideal to enhance the foliage of a rose or a vine.
In order to succeed in your project, do not hesitate to entrust the planting to a professional gardener. He will then be able to advise you on the gestures to be carried out to take good care of the plant. If you wish to plant it yourself, do it in autumn or spring.
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