The Elements Of Design In Home Landscaping

Home landscaping can add beauty and value to your home. The success factor lies in advanced research and planning so that your home landscaping design flows together in a beautiful backdrop that is pleasing to the eye and functional to the inhabitants. Consideration of plants that will work in your particular climate and coordination of your various elements will give you a home landscape that you can be proud of and enjoy for many years. But before you head to your local nursery, you want to take some time to think about what you want your end result to look like.

Pick A Theme

Home landscaping, just like interior decorating, requires that you select an overall theme or design that you can work every landscape element into. Do you love the look of climbing vines and rambling roses in an English garden? Or do you prefer the natural beauty of a mountain meadow? Is the laid-back color of a cottage garden more your style?

There are many books and websites available to give you examples of different styles of home landscaping. There are few activities more enjoyable on a wintry day in February than perusing the pages of home landscaping books! Once you determine the style you are working toward, you have narrowed your choices for plants and other design elements somewhat. With the huge selection out there for home landscaping, a little narrowing can be a helpful process. Begin a sketch of your design on paper, or use a computer software program that will help you design your home landscape like a pro.

Plan Your Design

The next step will be to research the types of plants that not only fit with the theme of your design but will also work well with your climate, soil type, and amount of sun your yard receives. Make a list of the plants that you are interested in and begin placing them within your plan. Other elements, such as paths, decks and patios, and a lawn will be added to your design plan as well. Keep in mind that, while a selection of plants will make your home landscape more interesting, a hodge podge of variety will not flow particularly well. A repetition of shape, color and texture will help link the various areas of your home landscape.

Home landscaping is an important element in the overall beauty of your home. With research and planning, your yard can become an oasis for you and your guests, and provide enjoyment to your family for many years to come.

For more about home landscaping, go to http://www.LandscaperBasics.com

Hillside Landscaping Helps Control Soil Erosion

Determine The Amount Of Area To Be Used As Well As How To Use That Area

A good hillside landscaping project would involve having steps running up the hillside as well as a retaining wall. The presence of steep slopes is a challenge to anyone that has hillside landscaping acumen because the novice would often end up wasting time and money on unsuccessful attempts at hillside landscaping. Very often, soil is lost due to erosion and, for this, it may be advisable to install a dry creek bed. In case one has a property having a slope from which excess water flows down and thus erodes the soil as well as a drainage problem then the best solution to getting rid of puddling is by building a dry creek bed.

Many first time owners of property do not have hillside landscaping as one of their top priorities, especially as they may be more taken up with paying off their mortgages. Nevertheless, with a little bit of ingenuity and some helpful guidance, the hillside landscaping problem may be solved and a near perfect vertical landscape would be created that would be able to convey such hillside landscaping ideas perfectly.

Before beginning the hillside landscaping experience, one needs to determine how much area is to be used and what would be the usage of such an area. It could mean having a meandering slope or stairs or even ladders, if the terrain permits, and it is also possible to create a mélange of the three. One should also make a conscious effort to use material that is indigenous to the area as it would make seamless integration of the overall appearance, easily achieved. One should also not use plastics as well as bright colors unless absolutely necessary. In addition, one may also bet on wood, rocks and wood chips to embellish the hillside landscaping.

One also needs to pick and choose the right plants as all plants are not suited for inclines, though it is less true of flowers and small bushes and is of vital importance when planting trees. A good hillside landscaping tree is the conifer which has a robust root structure that enables them to be exposed to a greater degree and can also survive off poor soil and they also provide some much needed color all year round. One can also layer the slopes through alternation of large plants with small bushy ones and it will enable the concealment of the terrace and provide a seamless quality to the hillside landscaping also. Potted plants should also be used to stand out and catch the eye.

What is most important, however, is tackling soil erosion. The bigger plants that have greater roots can hold the soil in place and will also absorb water that may have otherwise washed away valuable nutrients. Large plants also provide shade as well as shelter from winds and are vital to avoiding erosion by wind.

For more about hillside landscaping, go to http://www.LandscaperBasics.com

Window Shopping: Front Yard Landscaping

Plants, trees and shrubs, oh my! There are so many options for your front yard landscaping that, at times, it can seem like the options are too many. From layouts, to designs, to whether you want the sidewalk to go down the middle of your front yard or wrap around the side; the choices for your front yard landscaping are literally endless.

Where To Begin?

Well, the best place to begin is to brainstorm an idea—think about how you really want your front yard landscaping to look like. Is this something you want instantly, or are you willing to work on it for a few years? Do you want pre-historic jungle or a more conservative brick walkway lined with flowers? These are the questions you need to ask to start you front yard landscaping project.

Next, after you have a general idea, start laying out what you want to see in your front yard. A lot of what you are going to want to see depends on where you are—but shrubs are a fairly common choice that often looks good, the staple of landscaping if you will. Outside of that, it's a good idea to try and match your landscaping to compliment the front of your house with colors, designs, and various other criteria.

Now, for those of us with negative fashion sense or color coordination, there is a plethora of designer help tips on the internet to help us with our front yard landscaping deficiency. From what plants to use, to the best arrangement, to how to place the plants that match the house—if you want it, they've got it.

The first stop is Better Homes and Gardens, or bhg.com. This is essentially the one stop shop for all your front yard landscaping needs in terms of materials, but also in less tangible materials, such as general guidance do's and don'ts for landscaping and, of course, the ever present helpful tips.

If you want some great ideas of places to start, check out servicemagic.com, which has a large database of photos from other's front yard landscaping. This can be a great resource of ideas, materials, tips, and basically anything else you want for your front yard landscaping project. The best way to learn is often to observe those who are already proficient at what they do, and this is no exception. Learn from the best and adapt their ideas to your own.

For more about front yard landscaping, go to http://www.LandscaperBasics.com

How Can Concrete Landscaping Enhance Your Back Yard?

Concrete is fast growing in demand because of the many ways it can be manipulated to enhance your home in the form of concrete landscaping. Whether it is in your garden, driveway, patio or courtyard, concrete landscaping has taken a whole new meaning. Let us explore together the many ways you can you too can explore concrete for your benefit.

Popular Uses Of Concrete Landscaping

One of the most popular uses of concrete landscaping is done in the garden where the paths are decorated with concrete slabs in order to create the required décor. Walls around the garden can also be raised with concrete blocks for the simple purpose of keeping animals out of it and/or unwanted guests.

The driveway is yet another popular place in which concrete is frequently used; it is durable and it can be custom made if required to match color you have in mind or design. Small patios can be built out of concrete as well in any part of your home, front or back in the garden area where you can enjoy a quiet moment with your family and friends.

Custom Made Concrete Landscaping

Because of the growing popularity of concrete, there are manufacturers who specialize in making custom concrete landscapes on demand. Therefore, you can order anything you have in mind, for example, if you wish to have brick looking concrete landscaping for a wall around your yard or a wooden looking concrete patio, whatever you have in mind, and more can be now easily created by specialists in the domain.

Helpful Tips

Concrete landscaping designs and ideas can be found locally at landscaping stores or online as well in specialized store in the domain. Visit one today and change your whole house around with a new and modern look yet classy and elegant at the same time.

Concrete is durable and therefore will sustain any types of weather for long periods of time; however, you may want to get warranties for those concrete landscapes which are designed or custom made using other materials to achieve the look required.

Enjoy a new look and approach to creating landscapes in your home as well as backyard; contact a landscaping store today and check available choices on hand as well as the endless list of custom designing your own concrete landscaping. Be creative as well as have fun at the same time.

For more about concrete landscaping, go to http://www.LandscaperBasics.com