My DIY, Low Budget Hidden Garden Path Project
I have been working on this whimsical idea for a hidden garden outdoor space for two years.
Two years from now, I expect I will still be tweaking it and adding different materials and other DIY projects to increase the visual interest and fun.
Read along as I share how this hidden garden path got started, including the recycled materials and creative ideas used to transform a barren, uninviting space into a more interesting one.
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This project was first conceived after our new decks were built, approximately two years ago.
At the front of the house, the deck was originally a maze of eleven platforms and twisted stairs, but it has since been transformed into a more modern two-story deck. The builder is still sharing inspirational images online because it is an impressive deck that completely altered the front elevation of our home.
The design of the new deck also created an open area that exposed the previously barren and unattractive space underneath the old deck.
Once hidden by all the older deck levels, the now two-story deck exposed an open space that lacked character and charm. It was an eyesore, to be honest. One that was in desperate need of a creative vision.
How this project got started
It didn’t take me more than a day of looking at it to start reimaging it as a more charming and possibly kid-friendly area. My imagination quickly latched onto ideas for a hidden garden area with a sandbox, a swing, colorful lights, and playful garden structures that would spark a child’s imagination to run wild.
The next day, armed with a garden rake and a vision of fun in my head, I got to work cleaning up the neglected space. It was hot, buggy, hard to breathe, and it smelled musty. Did I mention bugs were feasting on me the whole time?
Added to the nearly nonexistent airflow in the space was the heat from the laundry room dryer vent, which was installed beneath the original deck. The space was too uncomfortable and not high enough for an adult to stand upright and supervise the kids’ play.
After two days of working, I realized my vision had to shift.
Rethinking the idea.
The idea of a kid-friendly play area was easily discarded once we realized that the space was just not suitable for a kids’ playground. Not to mention the spiders and bugs didn’t know we were trying to evict them, so they were still very determined to stay put.
But that didn’t stop me from daydreaming about a whimsical garden scene underneath the deck to greet our guests instead of a moldy-smelling eyesore. So, I pulled out my garden books, searched for ideas online, and started over.
My first project was to create a decorative and whimsical pathway to the water faucet located on the back wall.
For weeks, I collected Pinterest Pins for cheap DIY garden path ideas, inexpensive stepping stone walkway ideas, and all decorative images I could find for how to create stone paths that also served as a decorative element or focal point.
We were on a tight budget after paying for the cost of two new decks.
That first year, the available budget we could afford for the project was quickly consumed by the more than 20 bags of mulch needed as ground cover over the dirt floor to combat the smell. Thankfully, the mulch worked.
I planned to find a way to repurpose as many materials as possible that we already had, so I put some leftover deck materials and bricks found on our property (from previous owners) to good use.
The type of edging used to create the borders of the path is a combination of repurposed bricks and large rocks found in our yard, placed over the edges of a fabric weed barrier. Concrete footers dug up from deep underneath the original decks serve as steps into the hidden garden area and onto the new path.
This created the foundation to work from, allowing us to tackle the next steps in recreating our new outdoor space.
Creative stepping stone ideas were the next step in the design process.
Last summer, a year after the new decks were finished, my husband and I built a small deck in the corner of the backyard for a sitting area near the fairy garden that the grandkids enjoy so much. That area is still a design in progress, too, but from it, I collected the small cutoffs of the deck boards to repurpose as child-sized stepping stones.
But first, I had to give them some character.
Each small board was treated with a layer of watered-down paint in colors of orange, blue, yellow, and green. They offer just a hint of color to the area’s first whimsical path idea.
Surrounding the stepping-stone boards, laid out in various patterns, are rocks and glass pebbles. The path has a slight slope, so large natural stones are installed near the opening of the area to keep them in place, while smaller stones are placed at the top, closer to the wall.
Frequent trips to Dollar Tree always included picking up about 5 to 10 packages of black and white stones and clear glass beads. These were slowly, very slowly, added in and around the wood blocks and other slightly larger natural rock unearthed in our front yard flower beds. After heavy rains and the winter months, we can easily pull up these fist-sized rocks that get exposed every year. Every few weeks, I would gather them up and add them to the pathway.
Budget mistakes were made.
I made some budget mistakes on this project. I thought that purchasing the smaller bags of decorative rocks at Dollar Tree over time was the most inexpensive way to achieve the look I wanted. However, it gave me time to continue refining the path’s design, so it took more bags than I had expected. Next time, I will just spend the money up front for the larger bags of rocks at Home Depot.
The end-of-summer sales at Hobby Lobby the past two years have allowed me to purchase decorative sunflower-inspired concrete pavers to add to the pathway. As well as the metal yard decorations displayed on the other side of the path. Large flowers, rabbits, lizards, farm animals, bugs, and even dinosaurs have been incorporated to create a whimsical, hidden garden underneath the deck.
Little by little, my vision is coming to life.
In the last week, I finally bought two large bags of stone pebbles from Home Depot and painstakingly filled in the gaps amongst the paving stones and rocks. Small painted decorative rocks from a previous blog project have been added to the pathway as fun little accents.
I wish I could tell you that slowly completing this hidden garden pathway, one rock or one bag of rocks at a time, was an easy way to do it, but I don’t entirely agree with that myself. It took patience, budgeting, waiting out the weather, facing my fear of spiders every time, and determination to use a little creativity to transform an ugly space.
Pin For Inspiration
The garden path is finally finished for this hidden garden, but the project will continue.
By next summer, I plan to add potted plants and succulents to the space. Since this area gets little to no sun, it will be a learning journey to find plants that will thrive underneath the deck. This is something on my winter reading to-do list: finding native plants for my area that will thrive and flourish in a hidden garden.
If anyone has some excellent, low-maintenance plant suggestions to complement my hidden garden design, I would love to hear them.
Ecclesiastes 3:11 “He has made everything beautiful in its time”
Other posts to enjoy:
Painted Border Stone Art for Kid’s Fairy Garden
