Decking in the garden. The versatility of Decking.

The reasons for including a deck in your garden are numerous and will depend upon the use that you want to put it to, how much time or enthusiasm you have 'proper' gardening, and the realistic fact that you are unable to move house, so have to make better use of available space.

Decking has at last gained in popularity in UK gardens. Little wonder, for Timber Decking is so versatile and user-friendly. Those who think that decking is dead or at least old-fashioned - probably do not have a deck. Those with a well planned and constructed deck either in their garden - or attached to the house, will value the additional usable space and versatility of use that a deck can bring.

There is normally still plenty of room for growing plants around the deck, in the rest of the garden, or in or on the deck itself. The latter either in purpose made planters built into the deck or in patio containers.

Versatility of Decking.

Decking can be installed in a variety of shapes - decks don't have to be rectangular. They can have straight edges, curved edges, and even be laid as a circular deck. (The latter two styles will involve cutting and some wastage.)

All of the images can be clicked for enlargement.

Foundations and bases are important!

and worth it when this is the result!

Balustrades can be made from trellis for the climbing plants.

A substantial amount of work was put into this deck base.

But the end result, made for some lovely summer evenings!

A garden deck can make use of a space that would otherwise be too time-consuming or difficult to utilise - such as an embankment at the bottom of the garden or steep area next to the house. Renewing an old or unsafe patio is a typical good use for a deck, and is normally more cost-effective than building a patio, together with being more user-friendly for more of the year. A garden deck can also serve as being the actual base of your gardening interest or design. There is nothing wrong with that, and there are some splendid examples of gardens that have been completely transformed by the inclusion of a deck. You could also say that many decks have been transformed by the extra planting and work to bring the garden in a spart of the deck feature!

Turn this

Into this!

Thanks to www.thetopdeck.co.uk for this feature

Click to enlarge

User-friendliness

Decking patios are warmer in the winter than paved patios, and also cooler with less glare than paved patios in the hot weather. Decking can often be constructed with minimal disruption to existing ground levels, and can of course, be a great 'leveller' where there are a number of levels within the garden or over the existing patio. Decks are very suitable for children's use - especially if balustrades/railings are utilised as part of the scheme. As can be seen in the pictures on left - there will be plenty of scope for versatile container plantings.

Durability:- Proper timber decking is either of hardwood (that usually needs follow-up treatment) or - more normally - treated softwood of various types. The softwood timbers are tanalith treated - giving them a guarantee against rot of fifteen years! Slight movement of the sub-soil - a problem with clay soils - will be absorbed by the structure of a professionally-constructed Deck. (The same is not true of paved patios!)

1 - Building a Deck : 2 - Versatility of Decking : 3 - What Decking Timber : 4 - Designing the Deck - The Plan :
5 - Building the Decking Sub Base Frame : 6 - Deck frame base images :

Further Decking images