Susan's Lawn Gardens

Susan’s Lawn Gardens is pleased to feature this article from today’s guest author from  All States Landscaping. They are landscaping experts, so we feel very comfortable recommending their work to our visitors.

Ideas for a Low-Maintenance Landscape

by Raily Arena

Landscaping.  The very word conjures images of sophisticated machinery and esoteric knowledge.  To some degree, this may have a semblance of the truth, especially since landscaping is generally associated with professionals and experienced gardeners.  However, the activity itself is not really limited to the chosen few.  Whether you are too busy, too lazy or have very little gardening skills, as long as you have the willingness and the basic knowledge in gardening, you can actually perform decent yard work.  Learn how with these easy, low-maintenance landscaping tips:

Have a good plan
Whether it’s your frontyard or backyard, it’s always a good idea to have a plan in place.  This will help minimize costly and annoying errors and ensure that you can carefully design a garden that has all the elements you like and still be easy to maintain. 

Browse through magazines and photos of gardens you like and decide on the kind of look you want.  Then begin planning by making measurements on your garden.  Make a rough sketch of the kind of landscaping you want so you know exactly which plants to use, where and how many.

Use only plants that will thrive in your area
Other than climate, you also need to consider the zone you’re living in.  Some plants will thrive in places where others won’t even survive in.  Factors that affect this include soil type, weather, amount of rainfall and sunshine.  Find out which plants will grow best in your locality. 

If the plant and trees you choose aren’t capable of surviving in your area, you will be forced to uproot them and replant now and again.  If the plants stay alive, you’ll have better chances at low maintenance landscaping.

Consider trees that don’t shed as much
Raking dry leaves can be an unpleasant gardening chore.  If you want low-maintenance landscaping, choose to plant trees that don’t shed too much.  Ask your local gardener for varieties of this type, such as crabapple trees and spruce.  These provide shade and coverage but won’t require you to perform backbreaking work everyday.

Go for sturdy plants and flowers
If you want a low-maintenance garden, stay away from varieties that require focused care such as orchids and some roses.  Go for plants such as pansies, juniper, tulips and rhododendrons.  Choose perennials over annuals so you do not have to replant.

Consider building a rock garden
Rocks never need to be watered, trimmed, protected from the sun, rain or snow.  If you find it hard to grow plants or flowers, consider putting up a rock garden.  Used carefully in groups, rocks can have a very beautiful, serene, uncluttered effect on your landscaping.  Plus, they can work very well just on their own, with only grass surrounding them. 

Rocks are also a good option if you’re planning to build a Japanese-style zen garden, complete with sand and a few well-placed concrete pagodas.  The advantage here is that this style of landscaping is extremely low-maintenance – water only the plants that need watering and leave the rest as is.

Work at the landscaping – a least, initially
Any type of landscaping will require some work at first.  The goal is to ensure that your plants are able to develop a good root system.  This should take from a few weeks to a few months, depending on the plant and the environment.  Once that’s done, though, you can simply sit back and enjoy the fruits of your low-maintenance landscaping efforts.

There are so many tips on how to do low-maintenance landscaping. A little creativity and the right tools can go a long way.

Article Source: Ideas for a Low-Maintenance Landscape

Susan’s Lawn Gardens is pleased to feature this article from today’s guest author, TED GUARNERO. He is an expert on seaside landscaping, so we feel very comfortable recommending his work to our visitors.

Mary, Mary Quite Contrary: How Does a Seaside Garden Grow?!!

by Ted Guarnero

Living near the sea or in a coastal region may exemplify your dream lifestyle, but it’s no doubt that the harsh and particular conditions of the sea-side landscape make it hard for things to grow. But, plant growth is certainly not impossible – you’ll just want to know what grows best in the land of salt and sea before you embark on your landscaping plans. You’ll also want to pay particular attention to layout, and hardscape elements that can really help pull your landscape design together.

You’ll first need to determine what type or types of soil’s you’re dealing with. If it’s predominately sand than you’ll have to accept that you’ll be limited to what you can plant and grow – unless you’re industrious enough to want to lay yards, and yards of top soil. Remember that even though certain plants will grow in sandy soils you’ll have to be on top of watering like never before.

In sandier soils some plants to investigate include: bearberry, yucca, memorial rose, trumpet vine, fragrant sumac, beach plum, rose rugosa, Austrian pine and tamarisk. One recommendation might be to do an image search of these plants on the internet – you can then start to get a visual picture of what you like. Begin by building a folder that you can use as a resource when you’re ready to purchase and plant.

When you do begin planting, try not to plant everything at once. Experiment, and try some species to see how they adjust and grow. You’ll start to get a good idea of what has potential to thrive in your soil and in your environment. In all cases, you’ll always want to work with the elements and not against them. This is key to making your seaside landscaping a success. You really can’t fight with the ocean… so “go with the flow” is a good rule for a seaside “green thumb”.

Another good tip is to explore your neighborhood and to make a list of what you like and what grows well. Talk to your neighbors and discover their seaside gardening trials and tribulations. Consult books and ask specialists before you purchase your plants.

Generally plants that have a silvery gray color like Russian Sage and lambs ear are able to better tolerate sea spray and wind.

If you have an area further away from the elements of sand, sea, and wind, you can move into some more colorful choices like hydrangeas, Montauk daisies, and butterfly bush. These plants are still quite hardy and can tolerate some exposure, but they shouldn’t be planted right on the shoreline.

Here are some other suggestions for hardy seaside plants to discover and explore in your landscaping plans:

Ceanothus: This evergreen sports attractive blue flowers and does best in rather dry soil.

Cypress: Very suitable as a wind-break or privacy screen.

Pines: Good evergreens for screening or wind-break options. Can be cultivated or left to grow willy nilly.

Mugho Pines: These are well adapted to salt water areas and they offer a unique texture to your garden.

Arbutus Unedo: The broad evergreen leaves of this tree make for an attractive textural element. The tree will also flower and be followed by a decorative fruit reminiscent of strawberries- hence its common name, “strawberry tree”.

Azalea Mollis: This is a deciduous azalea that requires some protection from direct salt spray. It blooms brilliant flowers in white, pinks, and in many different shades of red. This is a lovely spring time color addition to any seaside garden.

English Lavender: This is one of the hardiest and most widely planted species. It has fragrant light to dark purple blooms and comes in many varieties.

Rockrose: This is a shrub that boasts showy spring to summer flowers in white or lavender.

Once you’ve chosen some plants and an area to landscape, you can begin to think about adding hardscape elements. Meandering stone or crushed sea shell pathways, well placed river rocks, sandstone, or granite, an arbor built of drift wood, a glass ball- these sorts of additions will tie in your landscaping and help to create height, dimension and texture. Think about placing a bench somewhere to take advantage of a beautiful view. You might even add some silver bells and cockle shells… This is where you can let your inner artist explore.

Take your time, have patience, educate yourself on all the seaside garden possibilities and you’ll be sure to create a lovely haven by the sea.

Illustrated Properties is a Jupiter FL real estate company with professional, effective services to help you succeed in the local market. Visit TedSoldIt.com for information on neighborhoods and home listings, and to get in touch with an expert Jupiter FL Real Estate agent.

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Susan’s Lawn Gardens is pleased to feature this article from today’s guest author, STEFAN HYROSS. He is an expert on real estate landscaping, so we feel very comfortable recommending his work to our visitors.

Suggestions For Great Backyard Landscaping

by Stefan Hyross

Everyone enjoys relaxing outdoors on a nice summer day. However, if your backyard needs some work, you may not be enjoying it to the fullest. You may be overwhelmed by the size of the landscaping project, especially is you try to do it all in one growing season. The solution? Sectional landscaping.

If you determine sections for your backyard and remodel only one section each year, you will be able to revamp your whole yard in a few years without breaking your back or spending a fortune. Sectional landscaping is particularly useful if you care on a budget. It will be easier to absorb $1,000 every year for 3 or 4 years than trying to spend $4,000-5,000 in one season.

The most important element of landscaping in section is the overall plan. Without one, you backyard will look like a patchwork of landscaping styles. Begin by sketching the existing permanent structures such as house, shed, deck, pool and trees. Now is a good time to take inventory of the existing plants and shrubs and decide which ones will not be part of the new landscape plan.

Play around with ideas. Make copies of your sketch and experiment with various options. Look for ideas in magazine or visit neighboring gardens. At this stage, the only limit is your imagination. If you have frequent backyard parties or family barbecues, keeping the layout of the yard open will work best. However, if you have a lot of space or don’t use the backyard much, incorporating an island bed, pond or walkways will create nice drama. Consider your lifestyle and the way you normally use your backyard and plan accordingly.

Here are some landscaping ideas to get you started.

Use plants as screens

This is particularly useful if your backyard is not fenced in. You may want to consider lining the edge of the yard with hawthorn, juniper, cedar, etc to create privacy but also to provide a beautiful backdrop for your future flower beds. A screen of evergreen will also protect your yard from drifting snow and heavy winds.

Creating a border flower bed

The biggest challenge when creating a border flower bed is choosing perennials that will complement each other in both color and height. With so many plants to choose from, you can really let your imagination run wild. However, consider planting an uneven number of the same plant for more visual appeal. Leave some space between the various perennials you choose for more impact. Do not overcrowd the plants and they need air and light to grow. Now would be a good time to pick up a gardening book listings various perennials to help you make your selection. You can also visit your local nursery and speak to the staff. They will be happy to help you.

Island Bed

To create an instant focal point in any backyard, an island bed is a great idea. It can planted in the middle of the yard or off to one side and is surrounded by a sea of grass. An island bed has the most impact in a large yard. The bed itself can vary in shape and side.  Use your imagination! Just remember to scale the plants and place the tallest in the center and decrease the height as you make your way towards the edges.

Water Feature

What could be more relaxing than the still waters of a beautiful pond or the gentle splashing of a waterfall? Building a pond is easier than you may think. There are a number of preformed liners available on the market. Alternatively, if you want a pond with a specific shape, you can dig and build it yourself. Look online or at the bookstore for how to guides.

Before you go out and and buy hundreds of dollars worth of plants, you should visit a garden center for some advice on soil preparation and drainage. Bring a copy of your landscaping plan with you and maybe a sample of your soil. You may also wish to bring extra cash in case you get carried away!

Stefan Hyross writes on topics that include real estate Collingwood and surrounding areas. For more information about the Collingwood area, related real estate articles or to search for Collingwood cottages, please feel free to visit the website.

Article Source: Suggestions For Great Backyard Landscaping

 Susan’s Lawn Gardens is pleased to feature this article from today’s guest author, NICHOLAS WEBB. He is a gardening expert, so we feel very comfortable recommending his work to our visitors.

Patio Design – Expanding Your Home Outdoors
By Nicholas Webb

A patio can be just like another room in your house. Effective patio design can mean that your increase the floor space of your home, by adding an outside room that allows you to entertain like never before. A patio can just be a rectangular slab of concrete with some plastic chairs and griller, but it can also be so much more.

What comes to mind when you think of a patio?

Patio design gives you the opportunity to create an outside living area – an extension of your home – for entertaining and relaxing all year round. For instance, people who like to entertain may want to consider a patio with an undercover kitchen and dining area. By adding a barbecue grill, a built in fridge and some quality outdoor furniture, the patio can, in itself, become a feature of your home.

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Susan’s Lawn Gardens is pleased to feature this article from today’s guest author, BRAD SLADE. He is an expert on artificial grass, so we feel very comfortable recommending his work to our visitors.

Fake Grass
By Brad Slade

The history of artificial or fake grass is to say the least an interesting one and arose out of the social desire to in-effect ward off what could be seen, as far back as the 1950s, as an increasingly unhealthy tendency by youngsters not to exercise.

History has it that birth of synthetic grass began through attempts by scientists trying to develop a type of grass that would not only allow children and adolescents to play on regardless of the weather condition but encouraged them to do so, in other words, a surface that they enjoyed using or a user friendly surface. Hence the advent of fake or artificial grass.

The result was one of the early prototypes of what we now know to be fake or artificial grass. The earlier types were not only hard under foot and made for impracticality especially where sports and children were concerned given the tendencies to fall but were very unpopular.

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