How to incorporate a trampoline in your garden design
Trampolines provide hours of entertainment but lets be honest they are not the prettiest things to have in your garden. One of my biggest bug bears is a back garden which is a rectangle of grass with a big trampoline stuck in the middle of it. Okey its great fun for the kids but I think a garden should be beautiful for adults too.
You van of course dig your trampoline into the ground, an aesthetically pleasing option but it is a lot of work! You need to dig a massive hole (there is no access into my garden for a digger) build a retaining wall and then hope you don’t have just created a massive pond under your trampoline or a snake pit if you happen to live in a warmer climate then I do.
Let me show you a way easier way to have a trampoline in your garden but hide it away with some clever planting
First thing you have to consider is where you are going to place your trampoline. I have a wide border on the side of my garden where we took a big hawthorn tree out last year and dint replace it with anything. It is not completely visible from the back of the house, so not in your direct eye line, the perfect spot for the trampoline. I cleared the border first as it got taken over by weeds, and a few anemones that i replanted elsewhere, made the border wide enough to fit the 8ft trampoline and then it was time to build the Plum Space Zone II Springsafe trampoline. It has a innovative Springsafe 3G enclosure which sits inside the trampoline frame then curves to provide maximum jumping space. The trampoline frame is made from steel galvanised inside and out for long-lasting rust-free protection and increased strength whilst the zinc coated steel springs and durable jumping mat provide the ultimate bouncing experience. I went with the 8 ft trampoline as its the smallest trampoline for bigger children, so a higher weight limit. Very also sells 10, 12 or even 14 ft trampolines, amazing but that would take up to much space in my medium sized garden.
As you can see above the cardboard box got put to use to while I was putting the trampoline together. It made for a perfect boat for colouring in :D
Next up the fun part, planting around the trampoline to hide away the big black object. Did you know Very.co.uk sells lots of plants too? I know me neither!! They have an amazing selection of good quality shrubs, trees, flowers and grasses all with very fast delivery and carefully packaged. All the plants arived in great condition.
I want to create a little priarie garden around the trampoline so went for tall grasses like cortaderia pumila and phormium falmingo. Flowers like echinacea, himalayan blue poppy, allium, lots of summer flowering bulbs and plants like heather, ferns and a wild card banana plant. I don’t know if the banana plant will be happy there but I thought lets try. I sprinkled some wild flower seeds around the trampoline too and now its just a waiting game. Come summer the grasses would have grown and will hide the trampoline from sight. The flowers will mimic a mini meadow and the otherwise rather ugly trampoline will be a very pretty part of my garden.
To make getting into the trampoline a bit easier I put a tree trunk/slab down, this will fit in with the meadow/prairie look a lot better then a plastic step.
You need to come back in the height of summer to see how the plants have grown! I will also be showing you other ways to use your trampoline that just bouncing around on it. Kiki has been on the trampoline from the day it was installed and has taken to it as her private den for drawing and crafting too :)
Have a look at the video below to see me install the trampoline and plant my priarie/meadow.
I’ll see you in a few months for a plant update :D
