Tag Archives: Landscaping

In landscaping your home, you can have a small patio fitted into the front of the house where it will make for the perfect place to relax with a cup of chilled ice tea on a hot sunny day

In landscaping your home, you can have a small patio fitted into the front of the house where it will make for the perfect place to relax with a cup of chilled ice tea on a hot sunny day

Even if you hire a professional to do your landscape project for you, bear in mind that maintenance must be a responsibility you should accept and to that effect, landscaping tools such as rakes, snipers, and water pots should be in your tool shed.|The mental picture of how you want your landscape to look like can be further enhanced by the study of landscape design picture ideas available both online and in the library around your vicinity.

Only a very good landscape contractor can take the picture of the landscape you have envisioned in your head and reproduce it in reality for you; ensure therefore, that you select only the best of landscape contractors.|Taking down notes about landscaping ideas that you like and those that you don’t can help you define your goals and arrive at a specific landscape plan that expresses your desires.|Remember that landscape contractors vary in factors such as their style of landscaping, the size, the designs and other factors; make sure you find one whose style of landscape design dovetails neatly with yours.

People who are lovers of bird and butterflies can use their landscape plan as an avenue to attract them close by including flower varieties that they are partial too.|Landscaping as a whole is not a monumental task as long as you know what you want to achieve and how you are going to achieve it; you may decide to be your own landscaper or hire a professional for a more refined touch.

Having children who love to explore may prompt you to landscape your home by putting a stone wall in your backyard or fencing your entire home with an attractive stone wall. |If you are thinking of doing your landscape by yourself, be sure that you have the right landscaping tools that will make your job easier; those that are too pricey can be rented for a period of time.|You can make sure that your plants are well taken care of by installing automatic sprinklers which water the plants at the time you set it to.

What it takes to Create Picture Perfect Landscaping Designs

What it takes to Create Picture Perfect Landscaping Designs

Beauty is in the eyes of the beholder.

This is a well-noted adage and is often one of the principles of landscaping designing.

Landscaping designs are not constrained to the premise that what is beautiful is magnificent. It is more than just beautification and enhancing of a garden to fit to an individual’s taste and preference. It dwells more on the aspects of placing plantings in the proper places.

The basic concept of landscaping design is considered more as a work of art. Despite the obvious technical competence, there is a pleasing quality and movement of every landscape designer to his or her masterpiece.

The creation of landscape designs are not just mere formation of ideas and visions, they show respect for the uniqueness of the area and should always be given careful consideration. The personality of the area is determined by the size and availability of the resources.

Landscape designs generally add value to the worth of the property. In fact, experts say that through these landscape designs, the total value of a particular property is increased as much as 25%. No wonder almost 20 million American households utilize landscaping services for their properties.

The Concept

Landscape designs are actually subdivided into two categories. These are the softscape and the hardscape.

The softscape part of a landscape design is the different green vegetation to be used in the area, and includes grass, shrubs, and trees.

On the other hand, the hardscape portion refers to the “architectural elements of the design, and may refer to the benches, fountains, poles, or other materials, not including plants.

These two main categories of a landscape design are significant to the overall outcome. Landscape designs also employ five additional elements that are considered the foundation of good design. These are the line, color, texture, form, and scale.

The point here is that all of these elements should constitute the design, and the design is vital to the total personality of a landscape. This is why it is important for a landscaper to incorporate all of the necessary elements when landscaping. In this way, the landscape designer will be able to create a design that is not just artistic but also dynamic and will speak for itself.

Gardening And Landscaping: How To Find Bargains On The Internet

Gardening And Landscaping: How To Find Bargains On The Internet

Any person who has spent time designing a landscape scheme and planting and tending to flower beds and vegetable patches has come to understand that gardening and landscaping can become a most expensive undertaking. Perhaps you are a person who has embarked on a trek involving gardening and landscaping. If that is the case, you likely have also found yourself interested in finding ways in which you can save money on necessary gardening supplies and landscaping materials.

In the brick and mortar world, there are a wide array of different store that specialize in gardening supplies and landscaping materials. As a general rule, these various specialty shops maintain an inventory of goods that tend to be priced on the high side. Of course, there are also discount retail stores that carry gardening items on a seasonal basis for what might be considered a more reasonable price. However, many an ardent gardener has complained that while the prices may be better in a discount retail store, the selection may not be as broad as a “green-thumber” might desire.

One solution that works for many people who love to garden but who do not want to break the bank in the process is turning to the Internet and World Wide Web. In recent years, there has been a steady growth in the number of Internet based websites that cater to people dedicated to gardening and landscaping.

In many instances, an Internet-based gardening business is able to avoid the high overhead costs associated with comparable stores and outlets in the brick and mortar world. These Internet venues are then able to pass the savings they enjoy on to their customers. In othere words, a typical gardener is able to obtain high quality products online (and a good selection of this type of merchandise) as a cost markedly lower than what might otherwise be found in shops and stores operating in the proverbial “real world.”

By taking the time to “surf” the Net — by taking a break from planting and tending to plants out of doors — a gardening enthusiast will be able to find exactly the types of gardening supplies and landscaping materials that are needed to develop a beautiful lawn and garden. A gardener will be able to find everything from seeds to plants to all manners of gardening supplies at one or another of the different Internet venues now in operation specializing in this type or merchandise. In the end, by shopping online for garden related merchandise, a person will be able to create exactly the type of garden and landscape he or she desires — and will have money to spare when all is said, done and planted.

Landscaping Stone

Landscaping Stone

If you have interest in using landscaping stone in your yard, garden, koi pond or walkway, don’t limit yourself to the traditional. Consider finding or shopping for unique stones to add flair or accent to your plans. Landscaping stone can be versatile, used for simple decoration or as a foundation for much more.
Some of the uses for landscaping stone include flooring, such as for a patio, foundations for outbuildings, such as a gazebo, or even outbuildings completely made of stone. Fireplaces look great in stone (just watch out for river rock; pockets of steam could heat up and explode in a fire pit or fireplace) as do bases for planters. Entire columns could be made of stone, either as end caps for a stone wall or to support lamps or planters.
Whatever you eventual use of landscaping stone, seek out the unusual. Below are just two examples of what you might find.
Geodes
Geodes, on the surface, seem like unremarkable, round, fist sized lumps of white or tan rock. They could serve well in a planter or flowerbed for a little hardscaping, but the real gem about these rocks lays inside. Some geodes are lined inside with layered siliceous material of various color or even clear quartz crystals; the effect is a wavy, smooth, crystalline surface. You may not have a diamond-saw handy to slice one open, but you should be able to find nice specimens in a rock shop. They make great bookends for indoors, and can frame a showcase plant in your garden.
Thunder Eggs
It is almost worth using Thunder Eggs as a landscaping stone just for the great conversation possibilities. If the name was not unusual enough, it is also the State Rock of Oregon (although it is more a stone than a rock, but I suppose State Stone is asking too much.) Thunder Eggs are very much akin to geodes, as they are a shell filled with agate. They are different from geodes in that they have a solid center, often displaying a great contrast between the rocky shell of brown and the milky white and clear crystal center. Even solid, undivided Thunder Eggs are interesting to look at, with bubbly protrusions that do give the appearance of some strange egg.
Check with rock shops that cater to rock hounds for some unique finds. While the expensive might prohibit you from paving your patio with Thunder Eggs, a combination of a few unique specimens with more traditional landscaping stone would work well with almost any plan.

Essentials of front-yard landscaping

Essentials of front-yard landscaping

Front-yard landscaping is one of the most important aspects of overall landscape design. Careful attention should always be given in landscaping the front-yard because it is the place that most people see very often—especially when they get to your house.

Getting started

When doing a landscape for your front-yard, the first major consideration would be your personal taste and preference. It is a must that you design your front-yard landscape in such a way that you want to see it not because of what other people tell you. To know what you really want, have a picture of front-yard landscape from different directions of going into the house.

By doing this, you can have an accurate assessment what are the things that you need to incorporate in your landscape design. When you do this, make sure that you have a pen and paper at hand so you can immediately jot down the list of the things that you need, the areas you need to improve on, and what are the parts of the front-yard that should be hidden or removed.

Also, take note of the accessibility in terms of entryways. This is very important because you can ensure you and your family’s safety when there’s accident such as fire and other calamities. While you’re at this, also take note of your front-yard’s planting needs so you can meet it once you start with your front-yard landscaping.

The following are just some of the things that you need to pay attention to when you start with your front yard landscaping:

1. The architectural features, structures, and the plants. Architectural features are very important because these are just some of the permanent features of the front yard. You need to invest on this because this will be a very big part of your front yard for a long period of time. It is best to carefully plan the selection of materials to be used so the harmony and balance in your landscape will not be ruined.

Also, take note of structures such as steps and other entry points. When it comes to choosing plants, make sure that they can survive all throughout the year. You should also know how to place them properly to complement overall look of the front yard.

2. The entries. This is also a very significant part of front yard landscaping because it greatly impacts the entrance of your home. In landscaping entries, make sure that they are cleared enough and exude an inviting air. One great tip is to use plants that lead people to the main door of your home. You can also add structures such as dim lampposts and trellis as well as accent shrubs and potted plants to accentuate the entry way.

3. The walks. The best thing to do when landscaping walks in create a patent that will follow that natural access for walking. This is very practical to avoid people—especially children—in stepping on areas that they should not step on. You can opt for straight paths, which are the least expensive, but you can also opt for curved ones using logs and other materials.

4. The steps. The steps are also a significant part of any front yard landscaping because it connects the path where people walk. When you do your landscape, make sure that the steps are noticeable or obvious so people would be careful in stepping on it. To make it more noticeable, try using plants as accents.

Family Fun While Landscaping

Family Fun While Landscaping

Landscaping, gardens and other home improvement projects improve our home in various ways. With proper planning, you can increase the aesthetic value of your home, but such projects are often a big problem. One way to make your landscaping project fun is by asking every member of the family to participate.

Involve your family in redesigning your home. Let everyone pitch-in his/her ideas on how you can improve work together your home. Ask for their opinions on how each area of your house could be improved.

You can exchange ideas on your home improvement project. You will be surprised to discover how creative others are when it comes to these projects.

Kids often use the yard as playground. Ask them what needs to be enhanced in that area. If you have teens in the house, the study hall or leisure room is the place they frequently spend their time. They know what needs to be done in those areas.

Create handy crafts that you can place on their rooms. Painting a decorative fence adds fun not just to your yard but makes work easier as well. Even the simplest task of weeding the grounds can be a fun task for the entire family.

Select plants with them. Have them help you decide plants what you can place in your yard. Look for the supplies that you will need together with your family.

Other than improving the aesthetic value of your home, engaging your children in landscaping your home has many benefits. One advantage of working together on landscaping your home is that you become more productive. It is possible to build stronger family ties and spend quality time while landscaping.

You also eliminate your children’s feeling that they are a hindrance. They begin to perceive the task as something as not just a chore that they have to do. The more that they get involved on the work the more confident they become of their potentials. Your kids may stay home longer if they are involved in home improvement.

Asking your kids to participate helps them develop their creativity. These projects also teach them skills that they will need when they become adults. They learn to express themselves in a more positive way. They build a stronger sense of self-meaning while helping you.

A little help from every member of the family is all you need to make landscaping fun.

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