Learning how to landscape your home will help beautify the overall appearance of your home. Everyone wants to make their home look great, but they have no idea where to start. That’s where this article will come in handy. Continue to read on to find great advice on being a good landscaper.
Plan out everything before you buy materials so you don’t spend what you don’t need to. Figure out exactly what items you require by making a landscaping sketch. By having a materials list you can avoid impulse buying.
Check your property boundaries before beginning a landscaping project. This is particularly important if there aren’t fences to separate the properties. It won’t do you any good to plant on your neighbor’s property and you may inadvertently create quite a rift. Visit the county courthouse or view a plat book to determine your property lines.
Ground Cover
If you’ve got a big shade tree in the yard, it won’t be easy to put flowers underneath. Find another form of ground cover. This will add a lot of visual appeal and be quite easy to take care of as well. Cool ground cover varieties include hosta and sweet woodruff.
There is more to landscaping than just plants. When you are creating a design for your yard, you may find it easy to put too much emphasis on plantings. However, don’t forget any non-living accents either. Some nicely arranged pottery, scattered rocks, and an arbor, can all add to a nice landscape design which naturally flows together, even during the winter when the plants aren’t blooming.
Grow Quickly
Trim plants regularly so that your yard won’t turn into an overgrown, unmaintained eyesore. Plants such as azaleas or forsythia often grow quickly and can overtake your yard if you don’t maintain it properly. Don’t be scared to cut them back quite a bit, as they grow quickly.
Focus on accomplishing your landscaping projects in phases. If you plan on doing your whole yard, you might want to break up your yard and work on it section by section. This can make it more affordable. Another option is to start with a single type of plant and plant it n various areas in your yard.
Make sure you know your hardiness zone, and purchase plants for your landscaping accordingly. In 2012, the USDA hardiness zone map has been updated. You will be able to choose plants that can thrive in the climate of your area, with less risk of freezing.
Your landscape design is very much influenced by the kind of soil you are going to be using. Some plants have trouble growing in certain kinds of soil. If your soil inhibits your creativity, you can replace it or create separate bedding areas consisting of wood chips or mulch.
Landscaping is an evolving process. You should not worry yourself that everything must be done immediately. You can step your progress to correspond with the seasons. This also helps with your budget. Write each step in the process down and choose ones that are important to do first.
Larger Plants
If you are utilizing large plants, remember that they will create shadows. Use this natural shade as a benefit rather than a hindrance, and position the larger plants somewhere where they can protect your house or deck from the heat of the sun in the warmer months. Try to ensure that no smaller plants are enveloped in the larger plants shadow.
Add special aspects, like a water fountain. For these focal pieces, you will want to increase your budget and work with a store that focuses on these types of projects. You will be able to get great tips from the employees at these very stores.
If you want to hire a landscaper, get references. Price is important, but if you ask to see some pictures or addresses of work a landscaper has done, you will be able to see first hand if they are right for the job you want accomplished.
After reading the tips in this article, it is time to get started. You may find that this article has enhanced your landscaping ability a lot. Take this article’s advice and beautify your land today!