Landscaping and Gardening Services in Pismo Beach and SLO County
Mon-Sat: 7:00AM - 5:00PM
15 Sep 2014

Front Yard Landscaping Ideas

When people think of front yard landscaping, they think of large plants surrounded by sweeping expanses of gorgeous green grass. In reality, not everyone has a massive front yard to support large-scale landscaping. A low maintenance yard is something that many people can appreciate, but it doesn’t mean that you have to give up on the quality of your yard.

There are many yard designs that are easy to maintain whether you do them yourself or hire a professional landscaper to do them for you. While hiring a professional landscaper will certainly make everything even easier, there are many D.I.Y options that don’t take extreme amounts of effort. Keep in mind that if you do decide to hire a landscaper, you need to specify that you are looking for a front yard landscaping design that is easy to maintain year-round. For many people, especially in suburban areas, front yards are small, which can it difficult to come up with good landscaping ideas. Fortunately, there are several easy ways to beautifully landscape your small front yard!

Great Front Yard Landscaping Ideas

Who Needs Grass?

One way to cut down on maintenance time is by growing little to no grass. It’s easy to assume that a front yard, however big or small, should be grassy. However, small front yard landscapes can work well without any grass at all – and sometimes, they’re easier to maintain without it! Not having to mow your lawn cuts out a lot of maintenance.

Speak to a landscaper about some ideas to make your yard look good without having to necessarily have a lawn. Clover lawns save money as well as time because they require less mowing. Clover also does well in areas that often suffer from drought, so you won’t have to worry about brittle, yellow grass becoming an eyesore.

Another benefit f clover is that bugs don’t like it, so your picnics are less likely to be interrupted. Consider creating a courtyard. Use landscape mesh underneath patio stones to prevent weeds sprouting in the gaps, and fill in the spaces between stones with pea gravel or sand. You can build raised perennial beds along the edges of your courtyard, filling in any gaps with a couple of well-placed shrubs. Make sure your plantings stay mulched to keep weeds out, and you’ll have a weed-free, mowing-free new landscape!

Make Your Neighbor’s Yard Part of Your Landscape

While your neighbor won’t appreciate it if you start gardening in their yard, you can still use their yard to enhance the look of your own. If your neighbors aren’t particularly fond of gardening but keep well-maintained grass, take advantage of the view as you plan your own landscape features.

Keep your border plantings low, and avoid privacy fences or anything that will obstruct the view of your neighbor’s nice grass. You can even align annual and perennial beds so that they open up to your neighbor’s yard. Capitalizing on a nice view of your neighbor’s front yard will help make your own yard seem larger.

Using Color to Make Your Yard Seem Bigger

Whether you’re planting along the edges of a sidewalk, around the border of your yard, or around your house, try to use bright, bold colors at the front of your design. Reserve more greenery and muted flowers for the background. People will notice the bright colors first, while the rest of your design seems to recede off into the distance. This simple trick can help make your front yard seem much larger than it actually is. If you do decide to have a lawn or even just a bed of flowers in your yard, you can install irrigation.

This method of watering your plants is not only easier, but it saves time and money and is much better for your plants. Hire a professional to install a system for your yard landscaping design or you can get a kit and do it yourself. Doing it yourself can be a bit tricky if you do not have experience, though. These are only a few of the ideas you can try. Front yard landscaping – even for small front yards – is limitless. Use your imagination, and you can turn even the smallest yard into attractive scenery.

Need help with your front yard landscaping? The professional landscapers at Evergreen Landscaping are here for you. Contact us or call 805-773-5395

16 Aug 2012

Home Gardening and Landscaping Ideas

During the last couple of years home gardening has become an increasingly popular past-time and hobby. Actually, research has shown that home gardening is at an all-time high in America at this time. In the USA 8 from 10 households take part in some form of home gardening activity. Obviously from the number of individuals which are doing the work, home gardening is one of the most widely used outdoor recreation in nation.

No time is better than the present. You probably have a lot of inquiries on how to start and what to do, but no worries, this article has you covered. It contains some great information about home gardening. And before you know it you will be on your way to growing an amazing garden.

Home Gardening and Landscaping Ideas

Many people that try their hand at home gardening plant flowers; at least they begin out planting flowers anyway. Roses will probably be the very first thought into any gardeners mind, but roses will require extra time and work, and really should probably be left to people who’ve gardened before. When planting flowers many choices can be found, for example bulbs, perennials, and annuals.

Edible vegetation is another big thing in home gardening. Perhaps the best thing about edibles is the reward of eating them. The list of edible plants that gardeners can grow at home is endless. Some of the most common edible plants in the vegetable arena are potatoes, peas, corn, carrots, squash, and cucumber. Many gardeners go for fruits, such as, watermelons, tomatoes, peaches, plums, apples, pears, and apricots. Small fruits, such as strawberries, blueberries, and raspberries often require less work and less space. These are making them much more feasible for home gardening.

Herbs, most often used as spices in cooking, are growing in popularity every single day. The most grown include basil, thyme, oregano, parsley, and cilantro. Probably the most essential things to watch whenever planting edibles is insects and disease. In the end, you don’t want to lose out on the feast you’re going to get to savor from healthy plants.

Many people don’t realize it, but landscaping is a form of home gardening. Landscaping covers many different areas and types of gardening. You may also classify mowing your lawn as landscaping! Keeping in the line of grasses, landscaping usually involves decorative grasses, and the great thing about them is they don’t take much work for upkeep. Kinds of grass include monkey grass, pampas, buffalo grass, flame grass, and ornamental millet. Landscaping is not just limited to plant life. Additionally, it includes anything completed to a yard for decoration, for example adding rocks or stones, placing a small pond, statutes, or a waterfall.

Learning More about Home Gardening and Landscaping

Humidity might be needed by some houseplants. You can create humidity in any environment by grouping different plants together in one pot, or replanting the specimen into a larger pot and filling the gap in with compost or stones. You can also provide the requisite humidity for your houseplants by using a spray bottle to mist it one or two times per day.

Clay is difficult to dig through with a shovel, as it is sticky and compact. To make working in clay easier, rub the shovel with floor or car wax and then buff it with a cloth. This will both make the clay fall off of the surface, and prevent the surface from rusting.

Collect rainwater for your plants to become more ecologically friendly. Using a barrel or any sort of container to collect any amount of rainwater can not only save you money on your water bill every month, but you are using a natural resource as well. Bear in mind this tip to have a chemical-free garden while saving money.

When deciding on which plants to include in your home gardening projects, consider evergreens which produce colorful berries. These types of trees can offer your garden a splash of color, especially during the winter when all other plants and trees have lost their hues. Some evergreens that will add life to your yard in the wintertime are the American Cranberrybush, Common Snowberry, Winterberry, and American holly.

There isn’t much difference between home gardening and gardening anywhere else. Plants still have to be planted inside a good location. The plants still need water plus they still require the same nutrients. Home gardening shouldn’t cause anyone to get nervous. Should you choose decide to use homing gardening and finding out that you simply don’t possess a green thumb, don’t get discouraged.

After reading this article, you should be well on your way to growing a fantastic garden. If you think that you were ready before, you should see yourself now. Acquire some information, read up on home gardening, and try it again the next planting season. Hopefully, the tips that were provided gave you some pointers that will help you get started with your gardening adventures so that you can begin growing like a pro.

Need a jump start with your home gardening? Call 805-773-5395 for a Free Consultation or 

10 Aug 2012

Container Gardening for City Dweller

Sometimes, the urge to garden might be stopped by other circumstances, such as living arrangements or space constrictions, but container gardening can help you. If you live in an apartment, you obviously can’t grow a garden, as you don’t have a back or front yard! One of the best solutions for this problem is to start container gardening. You can try sitting them near the window or on your balcony, or even hanging them. Just a few containers and your whole living area will look much more beautiful and serene. Even though you miss out on the full garden experience, there are benefits to container gardening.

Getting Started in Container Gardening

One benefit of growing in small containers is the fact that you can move them around to suit your needs. If you rearrange your furniture and feel that it would look nice better if it were in the other area, you can just move it over. No transplanting or labor required! As long as the lighting is about the same, your plant won’t mind moving at all. Another benefit of container gardening is the fact that you can adapt it to any environment. Depending on the type of soil you fill it with and where you place it.

container gardening

One way to give container gardening an interesting look is to hang them at different heights. Hanging plants is a great use of space and clears up your counters and windowsills. This is called “vertical gardening”. If you pull it off right, you can make a beautiful arrangement of plants while conserving your valuable space. If you live in an apartment, you know how important it is to conserve space! One method of vertical gardening is the use of a wooden stepladder. If painted correctly, you can arrange all the plants on it in a stylish cascade of color.

A downside to container plants is that you can’t use an irrigation system. Thus, have to go around and water your plants one at a time. However, the square footage for container plants is much less than that of an actual garden, so the time spent on maintenance and watering is more balanced. You won’t have to worry about weeds or pests. It is important that you don’t over-water your container plants. This can be just as fatal to their health as under-watering.

When choosing containers for your plants, buy some extra containers in case it breaks or other unforeseeable circumstances. Change things up by buying different sizes, shapes, and colors. Try to make sure that they complement each other. Plastic containers are the best and require the least amount of watering. But if you want clay or earthen pots then you should line the inside with plastic. This helps it retain water more, as the clay will soak up water.

container gardening

Another thing to remember when buying pots is the fact that the size of the pot will ultimately constrict the size of the plant. In other words, the smaller the pot, the smaller the plant. Make a careful choice of pots according to what you wish to grow in each one. If you search for the plant you chose on the internet, you should be able to find specifications as to how much root space it should be given. This can even be an advantage for you if you choose a plant that can grow very large. If you have a limited amount of space for it, you can constrict it by choosing a pot that isn’t large enough to support huge amounts of growth.

Tools for your Container Gardening

A lot of gardeners find the hobby to be both relaxing and therapeutic. Without the right information, though, it can be confusing. Gardeners have to know not only how to do the actual gardening, but what tools and equipment are most useful. Spend some time relaxing in the sun, tending your garden.

If you’re growing veggies in the garden, they need to be in a spot that lets them get about six hours of sun daily. Many veggies require this amount to properly grow at a faster pace. This is true of some flowers.

 

Two items you need to invest in when working in a garden are a wheelbarrow, and a kneeling stool. Using a large portion of your time near or on the ground working on your garden puts a huge strain on your knees. Therefore, having a portable, lightweight garden stool will greatly assist you in making gardening easier on them. A wheelbarrow will help you move heavy items without hurting your back so ensure that you invest in one promptly.

In a dark area, pre-soak your seeds overnight. Put a few seeds in a small container and fill it near to the top with water. This lets water soak into the seeds, giving them an extra boost of hydration when they start growing. The seeds will most likely have a greater chance of maturing and surviving.

As you have learned from this article, container gardening can seem like quite the task. Yet, it is manageable if you know what you’re doing. If the benefits of container gardening sound appealing to you, then you should start planning out your container garden today. If you write a list of all the plants you desire to have, you can do the necessary research. Find out what size and shape of pots you should get. After that, it’s just a matter of arranging them in a way that makes your home look the nicest.

If you have children, then container gardening can be a great hobby for your family to bond with each other. Most children enjoy choosing the plants and flowers that will go in the garden. Not only do most kids enjoy getting dirty, they will also take extra pride in everything you grow together.

Your garden will start giving you enjoyment after you realize you have the abilities to make it happen. A beautiful garden requires the right tools, soil, water and sunlight. If you need more container gardening assistance, contact us today! Or call 805-773-5395.