Even though Calgary is famous for the sheer number of sunny days it gets each year (most year that number is 300 or more!), summer has to come to an end at some point. For patio owner across the city, this means that the last days of patio season are always something to be treasured. If you’re looking for a way to bring your summer outdoor living to the next level, then you need to think about adding a pergola to your deck or patio.
What Is A Pergola?
If you’ve ever seen a movie set in Italy, or been to a stylized Italian restaurant with outdoor dining, you’ll have seen a pergola in action. In the classical form, it’s a wooden post and beam structure that sits on top of a deck or patio to mark out a dedicated space. The posts support a lattice frame of beams, leaving the sides open to the breeze while giving dappled shade and a beautiful aesthetic to your outdoor area. If they’re attached to a house or structure, require no digging of foundations and the base plates screw directly into your deck or patio, meaning the whole structure can be installed inside a couple of days.
How A Pergola Enhances Your Patio Season
Most people use a pergola on their deck as a way of creating a kind of outside dining room. While there’s no doors or windows, the pergola shows you and your family where the dining table should be, and gives you the impression of eating indoors while enjoying the best of patio season in Calgary. Some easy ways to enhance your pergola deck experience include:
- Climbing flowers – the stereotypical mental image of a pergola often has vines and flowers drooping down between the lattice beams. It’s not hard to replicate this by putting large pots at the foot of each post and planting climbing flowers such as clematis, wisteria or jasmine if you want some summer scents to accompany your meal.
- String lights – while the Calgary summer provides more than enough sunlight during the day, you can add string lights to your pergola to allow you to make use of the last of the warm evenings outside. Bigger lightbulbs are better for larger gathering (and you’ll need less of them to light your deck) while smaller fairy style LED lights make for a more intimate and romantic setting for your dinners.
- Fabric covers – finally, while the purpose of the lattice framework of the pergola roof is to allow light in, you can add lightweight fabric covers between the beams to provide a little shade. You can put these on a rack meaning that you can change how much of the pergola roof is covered on any given day. If you choose lighter colours, you’ll get the protection from the strongest midday sun while giving your and your dinner guests some cooler shade allowing you to enjoy every last day of patio season.
