Garden mazes are not a new development and go as far back as castle structures. A garden maze is great for those with a passion for gardening.
Building a garden maze addition will be time-consuming and so is ideal for those with time to spare. Also, it will beautify large enough gardens and provide a wonderful ambiance to the gardening area.
Materials
- Lawnmower
- Rope or string
- Plants
- Corn stalks
- Sunflowers or other flowers
- Mulch or gravel
Tools
- Pencil
- Graph paper
- Shovel
- Tape measure
- Chalk
- Wheelbarrow
Instructions
- Choose an open and level spot for your garden maze to be situated.
- After the spot has been chosen and is suitable, determine the type of maze you want to construct. You can build a branching maze that incorporates several paths, but only leads to the finish; an unicursal maze with a single twisting path leading from the start to finish with no dead ends; or an island maze with several paths leading to the finish plus many dead-end paths.
- Create a sketch of the type of maze you’ve chosen, on graph paper; use one inch to equal three or more feet on the ground.
- Come to a decision on the type of plants you will use for your maze. Traditionally evergreen shrubs, like boxwood are used. Corn stalks, sunflowers and other suitable flowers can also be used as an alternative.
- Use a rope or string to make a layout on the ground; ensure the paths are wide enough to walk through and accommodate a lawnmower.
- Plant the shrubs you’ve decided on, to form the maze walls and an outer boundary. Use mulch or gravel around the plantlings to give the path’s definition.
- Along the sides of the paths, dig shallow ditches.
- Trim the plantlings as they grow; this will ensure the maze has a uniform wall structure. Add more plantlings to fill in bare spots and mow grass paths and pull weeds to maintain the maze.
Tips and warnings
- You can create a quick turf maze by cutting paths with a lawnmower and letting the remaining grass grow to form the maze walls.
- Mazes make way for gradual development. Garden mazes can be added to and subtracted from once the basic structure is in place; fine-tuning can be done over time.
- When planting the maze, use your plan for reference, using it to check your plants’ location against the master layout. Be sure to think carefully beforehand and consider all the relative elements so you do not end up re-digging holes. Be sure you have a clear idea of where you want your dead-end paths to start and stop.