Landscaping

Concrete landscaping was unheard until recently as the word “concrete” seemed to visualize a dull and rugged garden. But right now, concrete is seen as one of those major elements in landscaping. It is used for patios, pathways and driveways.

To fully understand the use of concrete, implement the important tips below:

1. Use concrete to design walkways and paths.

The garden will look beautiful if concrete is added for the walkway or path. It does not matter if one has a large or small yard – concrete is pretty flexible when it comes to adapting to this use..

2. Concrete for garden add-ons!

More reasons why concrete “rocks every landscape designer’s socks”: it can be made into a patio or a planter. It can even be the material for the sundial in the garden!

3. Concrete is good for stone walls.

One of the landscaping trends is the use of concrete in creating stone walls. Walls act as the house’s frame. They can keep the pets from wandering around and yes, keep the trespassers out! Walled houses can discourage burglars from breaking into the property.

4. Unruly soil? Go for concrete!

One surefire way to keep the soil in place is through concrete landscaping. The ability of concrete blocks, which come in different styles and textures, adds flair to the garden.

5. Concrete can decorate too!

Concrete is best suited in landscaping because it can be customized to fit the home owner’s needs. As it can be in the form of brick, slab or block, it can embellish the garden like never before!

6. Have a border using concrete

Concrete borders make sandbox-building possible – also easy. It can enclose the children’s playground and make the pool-viewing a more enriching experience.

What else can be done with concrete in landscaping? The list is endless: concrete flatwork, concrete floor slabs, concrete foundations and concrete coloring and stamping. The concrete can act as the foundation for gutter splashes, basketball courts, tee boxes and tree rings!

It is important research the companies which specifically cater to concrete landscaping. Bayshore Concrete and Landscaping, Terraforce and Endless Borders specialize in this type of work.

Who would have thought that concrete finally found a place in the area of landscaping? Concrete has somehow changed and yes, revolutionized the look of the home garden. It is prettier and much, much better than ever before.

There are many advantages to participating in the practice of edible landscaping. As one might imagine, edible landscape elements are those that can be used for food, as well as for ornamental beauty. Vegetables, herbs, and fruits can add variety and color to the landscape, and if well maintained, they can also look very attractive and even elegant in many cases. Most people prefer to keep the edible elements of their landscape to the back portions of their property. While this may be reasonable for a more conventional garden plot, a well placed squash patch in the front yard or beautiful raspberry bushes against a fence can look very attractive anywhere on a piece of property, and fruit trees are always welcome. Strawberries and herbs make excellent ground cover, and peppers and tomato plants make excellent accents in flower gardens. Here are some of the advantages of incorporating edible landscape elements into your environment.
Less effort on the lawn. If trying to keep a manicured lawn is a daunting task, you can reduce the amount of lawn that you do have by adding more edible elements. If you pay someone to keep your lawn for you, it can become quite expensive. Edible elements are excellent ways to reduce you’re the area of your lawn, making the upkeep easier, without having to spend a great deal of money.
Increased quality of life. You can experience a better quality of life as taking care of these edible elements in your landscape leads you to more exercise and more time in the fresh air. Inside of offices and homes the air does not circulate as well. Sick building syndrome is an actual condition that results in respiratory problems associated with being indoors too much. Sometimes, with all of the dust, and other small particles constantly floating through the house, the air inside a home can be more polluted than the air outside the home. Being outside can help alleviate much of the problems of this nature.
Experts agree that exercise is important, and tending your edibles can be an enjoyable way to get some physical activity. You feel better when you exercise, and your body is healthier. Increased physical wellness also results from the fact that you can choose not to use pesticides and thus grow food that is better for you. There are also mental health benefits associated with tending plants. Additionally, the satisfaction one feels from growing something for one’s consumption adds to feelings of self worth.
Quality family time. Taking care of an edible landscape makes a great family activity. A family can spend time together, and children can learn the value of hard work as well as learning to respect and enjoy nature. These days, with so many distractions tempting the family in all different directions (or even to just sit in separate rooms watching TV or playing on the computer), working together for a common goal can really help family members discover each other.
Environmental benefits. You can help the environment by growing edible elements in your landscape. When you eat what you grow, you decrease demand for factory farming and processed foods, which in turn helps the environment. Additionally, if you choose to shun harmful chemicals like pesticides, you are decreasing dependence upon harmful products. Additionally, you are also helping reduce the demand for transporting produce to stores, thus affecting truck emissions.
Financial benefits. And one cannot forget the pocketbook. Edible landscaping provides food for your family, allowing you to save money at the grocery store. If you have enough room, it is even possible to grow enough food to freeze or can some of your food for winter. This can result in great savings. With berries, apples, and crabapples, it is also possible for you to rather inexpensively make your own jellies and jams. During summer months, it is possible to purchase almost none of your produce at the store if you have properly planned your edible elements. Although items like citrus fruits and melons may not grow in your climate, most vegetables and berries grow almost anywhere. This means that you can buy a very few items of desire, and grow most of the rest of your produce.
The great thing about edible landscaping is that you do not need everything in the same area. There is no reason to put all of your vegetables in the same place, like a traditional block garden. You can spread a great many of them throughout the landscape for more dramatic and aesthetic effect.

Landscaping is a very beneficial means by which anyone can conserve energy within and/or around the home… Landscaping, ‘do-it-yourself’ style, can be done the right way the first time with proper guidance and prioritization.

Plan Ahead

Many people new to ‘do-it-yourself’ make the mistake of going with their gut feeling, or randomly starting what they think needs to be done in the garden without knowing what they want to see in the end. Planning ahead makes sure that no effort is spent on unnecessary steps, money is spent only on essential items, and time is maximized in order to provide the best results.

Included in planning ahead is measuring the garden or patio dimensions, taking note of where the sun rises and sets, as well as the direction of the wind when it blows through the house. This way, plants and trees may be planted in places that would serve best the intention of conserving energy in the home.

Another is planning around existing trees and foliage. The shade provided by the existing vegetation can be used as a guide in the placement of the rest of the shrubbery in the area.

You have the option of also taking into consideration your lifestyle in designing the landscape. Families who frequently hold barbeques or simply entertain in the garden can put the barbeque and sitting areas together, or shape the garden’s design around these particular functionalities.

Plant a Plant

One of the perks of landscaping, ‘do-it-yourself’ style, is the fact that one can grow the plants and trees he/she prefers rather than others that serve that the same function. To make the garden fully functional when it comes to conserving energy, it is best to plant fast-growing dense trees that offer a huge umbrella of shade and a windbreak for the home.

Evergreens are popular options for garden foliage, and are also very useful when it comes to keeping the heat or cool inside that would normally escape through the windows or the roof. To most effectively utilize evergreens, it is important to try to mix-and-match various textures, colors, shades, shapes and sizes. Visual appeal is created by this interesting mixture of plants.

At the end of the day, landscaping is a fulfilling experience that allows anyone to design their gardens or yard to best suit their lifestyles. Good planning, creativity, and effective execution will yield optimum results.

While a lot of people have already come across the word
landscaping, not a lot of them actually know what the term
stands for. This article is tailored for those who want to
learn about landscaping but don’t know where to begin.

For starters, landscaping is the modification of a
landscape such as a lawn to make it more aesthetically
pleasing or to make it more functional.

A lot of homeowners landscape their homes primarily because
they want to make their surroundings more attractive. But
more than that, a landscaped house usually has a higher
real estate value than one that isn’t.

People who want to have their properties landscaped usually
acquire the services of professionals. Landscaping is a
time and labor-intensive task, so in order to do that in no
time at all, homeowners invest in landscaping services to
turn their vision into reality.

But there are also those who want to take a hands-on
approach to landscaping. Again, this is a task that
requires a lot of time and energy on the part of the
homeowner so the results may not be visible immediately.

A well-landscaped property is one that is well-planned and
the plans should also be well-executed. However, the great
thing about going through all this trouble is that it
brings a great feeling of self-fulfillment to the homeowner
after performing such a difficult task.

Depending on what the homeowner wants, the landscape design
could be simple or complex. Simple ones make for easy
maintenance while complex ones make for a lot of room for
trees and flowers.

No matter where you live, there’s nothing better than relaxing outdoors on a warm summer night watching your backyard landscaping ideas come to life.

Unfortunately, re-landscaping your entire backyard during the course of one growing season can be back breaking, expensive and requires major planning.

Here’s a simple solution: Break up your backyard into “rooms” and remodel one room each year. This is especially helpful if you’re on a budget. You’re results will be much better if you spend as much time and money as you can on one project, rather than trying to revamp the entire backyard all at once for the same amount of money.

Although you’re landscaping only one section of the yard at a time, you still need an overall plan. Using graph paper, sketch out the permanent structures on your property including the house, out buildings, deck and trees.

This is also a good time to consider which existing plants and shrubs won’t be a part of the new landscape.

Make copies of your sketch and experiment with different designs. Incorporate ideas you like from magazines or gardens you’ve visited.

If you host frequent cook outs you’ll probably want to keep the yard open and plant along the borders. If you don’t need the space, you could create real drama with an island bed, walkways, solar lighting and cutouts for comfortable furniture to relax on.

Here are some ideas you’ll dig:

Screening with Plants

If your yard doesn’t have a fence, you might want to consider planting a row of hawthorn, juniper, arborvitae, or a combination of these bushes to create privacy and provide a backdrop for future flower beds. A strategically place evergreen screen will also provide a windbreak from winter winds and drifting snow.

Planning a Border Flower Bed

The hardest part of designing a border is choosing flowers that complement each other both in color and height. The list of perennials I suggest here is for a six foot wide bed in a mainly sunny situation. Wide, in this case, means outward from the plant screen or fence, not the length of the bed.

Use 3 or 5 plants for each kind of flower and allow 16”–18” between each plant. Allow 20”–22” between the different plant groups. Planting an odd number of plants is more visually appealing than an even number.

Allow sufficient space at the rear of the bed for access. This will also prevent choking off necessary air and light from the plants in back.

These are my suggestions for a perennial border. They were chosen to give a long display, with the first flowers appearing in April and the last in October.

Tall plants for the back row: SEDUM ‘Autumn Joy’; RUDBECKIA Goldsturm; PHLOX White; IRIS light blue or yellow; VERONICA Blue; SOLIDAGO ‘Golden Shower’; and HOSTA fortunei ‘Picta’.

Shorter plants for the front row: GERANIUM grandiflorum; POTENTILLA ‘Firedance’; HUECHERA Pink; ASTER Dwarf Blue; SEDUM Dragons Blood; ACHILLEA ‘Moonshine’; and ERIGERON ‘Prosperity’.

Obviously, these plants won’t be the best choice for every climate. A worthwhile book to help you choose plants native to your climate zone is The Comfortable Lazy Garden. It’s also an excellent reference for beginning gardeners.

Island Bed

An island bed, as the name implies, is planted in the middle of the yard surrounded by a sea of grass. It can vary in shape and size according to your imagination and available space. Scale the plants from tallest in the center to shortest at the edges.

Preplanned Gardens

I understand all of this Latin mumbo jumbo can be daunting for first time gardeners, it was for me. If you would like a ready made solution, Direct Gardening offers a wide selection of preplanned gardens designed to take all the guess work out of plant selection and placement.

Water Feature

Imagine the reflective beauty of a pond or the gentle splashing of a man made waterfall. How about a 100 foot high waterslide? Maybe next year.

Do Your Yard a Favor

Before you buy any vegetation, visit a real garden center for advice on drainage and soil preparation. Also, bring a copy of your plan; a soil sample and an extra credit card just in case you can’t wait years to make your backyard landscaping ideas come true.