How to Build a Garden Maze
Garden mazes go back a very long time. Elaborate castle mazes have been around for centuries. The development of a garden maze is a long-term commitment, but one full of fun and complexity right from the start. The hard part is deciding which maze you want to build and from what plants. The rest is easy.
Required Materials
- plants
- soil
- ground cover
- PVC drainage tube
- walkway materials
Required Tools
- shovel
- string
- chalk
- wheelbarrow
- tape measure
- pencil/paper
Instructions
- Layout - Obviously, this is the most critical step in the whole project. Look at the space you plan to use. See where trees may come into play or how other elements already in the space can be used. Go to where you feel the middle of the maze will be and make a mark with your chalk. Adjust the scale of the drawing you are using by converting to paces. Three feet equals about one pace. Slowly pace out your imaginary maze, making marks whenever you turn a corner. If you do not have enough space, simply adjust your scale down a bit. Once you have your correct path laid out, the rest of the maze can be filled in over time. Do, however, have your outer boundaries marked so there is a straight-line reference point for the whole garden.
- Selecting Plants - You can use just about any plant for a garden maze. It just needs to fit to the environmental conditions. Traditional garden mazes use Boxwood evergreens, while others tend toward corn mazes in the fall. The choice of plant material simply depends on your tastes and the sun/water requirements. Dig your plant hole a bit wider than the pot it came in and deep enough that the soil height rises just above ground level (about a quarter of an inch). Add cow manure around the plant, tamping it down slightly to remove air pockets. Form a small dish around the plant to allow for water absorption. Prune the plant, keeping the straight lines of the maze in mind.
- Thinking Ahead - When you are planting your maze, you will want to double check each plant’s location against the master layout. Be sure to think ahead so you do not end up re-digging holes. Have a good idea of where false paths will start and end.
- Paths and Drainage - You can opt for grass if you want an easy path to follow. You may opt for stone for a more difficult trail to follow. In either case, you will want a path that drains. Try adding material to the path so that it rises slightly in the middle. Piling soil and stone around a perforated pitched PVC tube to drain the water away will do the trick nicely. Surround with some added gravel.
- Gradual Development - The big thing about garden mazes is that they can be added to and subtracted from. Once the basic structure is in place, the rest becomes a fun exercise in fine-tuning over time.