Northern California homeowners Collette and Matthew Ricks wanted a safe place for their children to play in their large unlandscaped backyard. With the help of designer Gary Lazar, they came up with a plan that included a play structure set on a 20' x 30' bark bed, a balance beam and a dirt box for digging, all surrounded with beautiful low-maintenance plantings.
When deciding where to place a play structure in your yard, says Lazar, it's important to consider these points:
- First, choose a site that's safe, one that is roomy enough for children to run around in and free from sharp rocks or branches that could hurt them.
- Choose a space that the play equipment will fit well in.
- Position the structure so that it is visible from the house, but don't place it in the middle of the yard where it will dominate the space; instead place it off to one side.
Play structures can vary in size and price, from $300 to $7,000 and up, says Lazar. Whereas a professional might charge as much as $2,800 to install a play area, homeowners can do it themselves for the price of the structure and materials only--in this case, about $750.
Step One: Building the Bark-Filled Bed
Build a bark bed for the play structure about six inches deep; make it large enough to provide six feet of space all around the structure.
Next, grade the bed so that rainwater won't puddle in it. Create a gentle slope to one end of the bed, and install a catch basin drain at that spot (figure A). From there, run a drain pipe out to the street.
The walls of the bark box are constructed from 2" x 6" pressure-treated boards. Set the boards in the ground with 18-inch pressure-treated wood stakes, set two feet apart. Nail the stakes to the boards using #6 galvanized nails (figure B).
Line the box with filter fabric to prevent the bark from mixing in with dirt. (The gauzy fabric is available at irrigation supply stores and lawn and garden centers for about $50 a roll.) Roll the fabric out, cut it to fit and staple it in place with landscape/irrigation staples that you tap into the ground with a hammer.
When the kids are grown and the play structure comes down, you may want to use the bark bed as a vegetable or flower garden. Consider installing irrigation pipe now, says Lazar, while the bed is being dug.
Step Two: A Backyard Balancing Act
An easy addition to the play environment is a balance beam, made from a redwood 4x4 and pressure-treated fir for footings. Here's what you do:
- First make the footings by cutting the fir into one-foot sections; cut the tops at an angle to remove dangerous corners.
- Space the footings 18 inches apart (figure C), and place the redwood 4x4 across them. Attach the redwood to the footings with nails.
- At each footing, drill through both beams with a half-inch drill; drive half-inch rebar through the holes to solidly anchor the balance beam to the ground.
Step Three: Building the Play Structure
According to Brett Holbrook, a play structure contractor, the number-one concern when choosing a play structure for your children should be safety. This checklist helps cover all the bases:
- Check for protruding hardware. Make sure it can be capped and that edges are rounded, not sharp.
- Look for structures with angled wooden access ladders (figure D), not vertical or metal ones. Wide wooden steps are much safer for kids to climb up.
- Try to find a kit that is free-standing, so you won't have to set any posts in concrete. This not only helps in installation but makes the structure easy to move or remove when the time comes.
- The kit you buy should include all necessary nuts and bolts, and holes should be pre-drilled.
- Once the play structure is put together, use a level to ensure it is straight. Use shims (thin, tapered pieces of wood used to fill gaps) to level it, if needed .
- To protect little fingers, check for vinyl-coated chains on the swings.
- Make sure there is no wood on the edges of slides that could cause splinters. Instead choose slides made of heavy blow-molded plastic; they're safe, smooth and won't overheat in summer the way metal slides can.
- Choose a structure that will grow with your child--for example, a toddler swing can easily be replaced by a bigger swing.
Once the structure is installed, it's time to add the bark around it. Use playground fiber or 3/4-inch bark. Those materials are big enough that they won't blow around the yard and make a mess.
Plantings
The goal with this project, says Lazar, was to tie wild grasses from the hillside into the landscape of the yard. He selected low-growing plants so as not to obstruct views and tough, rather than delicate, specimens that could hold up to high traffic and nearby play. Here are a few of his choices:
- Mexican feather grass (Stipa tenuissima), Zones 7-10
- Leatherleaf sedge (Carex buchananii), Zones 6-9, has a brownish-red tone year-round and long, thin blades with curling ends
- Carex buchananii veridis, Zones 6-9, a green cousin of leatherleaf sedge
- Snow in summer (Cerastium tomentosum), Zones 3-7, a trailing groundcover with fuzzy gray leaves
- Catmint (Nepeta x faassenii), Zones 4-8, another trailing groundcover with purple flowers.
Step Four: Building the Boulder-Lined Dirt Box
Another feature that the Rickses are adding to the play area for their children is a dirt box for construction play. Anchored with boulders at the corners for the kids to climb and sit on, the dirt box is a good alternative to the typical sandbox because it won't attract neighborhood cats. Choose surrounding boulders small enough to fit in a wheelbarrow, advises Lazar, and bury them one-third deep to stabilize them and make them appear established.
To build the dirt box, follow these steps:
- Dig out a space four feet square and 12 inches deep.
- Place boulders at the corners of the dug-out area.
- Measure between the boulders and cut pressure-treated 2" x 4" boards to place between the stones and hold in dirt.
- As with the bark bed, use 18-inch stakes to anchor the boards in the ground.
- Fill the box with soft, organic dirt (figure E).
Guests Gary Lazar
Landscape Designer / Contractor, Lazar Landscape and Design
2884 Ettie St.
Oakland, CA 94608
Phone: 510-444-5195
Fax: 510-444-5198
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