A Simple Solution for Bringing your Landscaping Ideas to Life

There’s nothing better than relaxing outdoors on a warm summer night enjoying your backyard. It is often when I’m doing this that I get ideas of what I would like to do with my yard. Having ideas is great but when it come to doing the work well that can be a lot of effort. Especially if you try re-landscaping your entire backyard during the course of one growing season which can be back breaking, very expensive and requires major planning.

Want a simple solution for bringing your landscaping ideas to life?

Try breaking up your backyard into “rooms” and remodel one room each year. If you’re on a budget this can be especially helpful and you’re results will be much better. Because you will more easily be able to spend the time and money you need to on each project.

This will be much easier than trying to revamp the entire backyard all at once. Although you still should have an overall plan even though you’re landscaping only one section of the yard at a time.

Start by using some graph paper and sketch out the permanent structures on your property including the house, out buildings, deck and trees. Make copies of your sketch and experiment with different designs. Incorporate ideas you like from magazines or gardens you’ve visited. This is also a good time to consider which existing plants and shrubs won’t be a part of the new landscape.

If you like hosting BBQ’s with friends you’ll probably want to keep the center of your yard open with flower beds along the borders. For a more intimate space, you could create island flower beds with walkways in between. Make sure you leave cutouts for a place to relax on some comfortable lawn furniture, and add an accent along the borders with some solar lighting.

Here are some more ideas you may like:

Screening with Plants:
If your yard doesn’t have a fence, you might want to consider planting a row of cedars, juniper, yews, or a combination of these bushes to create privacy. They can also provide a backdrop for future flower beds. You could also use a strategically placed evergreen screen to provide a windbreak from winds or drifting snow in the winter.

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 is huge and it’s hard to know where to start. If you have the room a six foot wide bed in a mainly sunny situation makes a great border garden.

Use 3 or 5 plants for each kind of flower and allow 16”–18” between each plant. Planting an odd number of plants is more visually appealing than an even number. Allow 20”–22” between the different plant groups. Plant flowers that bloom at different times of the year, with the first flowers appearing in April and the last in October. This will keep your border in bloom all summer. Don’t forget to plant them with the tallest ones at the back of the border and 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.

Island Beds:
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.

Water Feature:
Imagine the reflective beauty of a pond or the gentle splashing of a man made waterfall. A pond really adds a lot to a yard and it may be where you want to start but it can cost a fair amount with the liner and pump and stone etc. Make it part of the plan but I would leave it to step two at lest.

Do Your Yard a Favor:
Before you buy any plants, visit your local garden center for advice on drainage and soil preparation. Also, bring a copy of your plan.

Don’t forget by breaking up your backyard into “rooms” and remodeling one room each year you will save yourself some time and energy to enjoy your yard and have something to look forward to next summer.

Bringing Landscaping Ideas to Life “by the yard”