Looking out unto a pristinely landscaped garden can create a moment of bliss and inspiration. It’s no coincidence that the word ‘paradise’ originally meant ‘walled garden’. Is it such a surprise than that for thousands of years people have taken pride in their gardens and yards? The very idea of landscaping is as old as the joy one receives from a well maintained and properly landscaped garden. If you’re looking for landscaping services today, then your instinct is the same one that has inspired millions of people before you.
Landscaping services can include anything from building an impressive retaining wall around your perennials or creating a mighty fire-pit for long nights with friends, to installing security lighting to keep away intruders or sprinkler systems to automatically water your plants. Landscaping services encompass those tedious lawn and garden maintenance tasks like mowing, mulching, planting and spring cleaning. You can also find landscaping professionals who will help you design the perfect outdoor area for you and your family.
In this article, we’ll run through just some of the aspects and services that landscapes encompasses, and why you may want to invest in a professional landscaping service to help you create your personal paradise.
Some landscape services will help you design your ideal landscape, as well as build the hardscapes and integrate the softscapes that you need. A properly designed landscape can bring numerous benefits to your outdoor space.
A landscape designer can turn the space you have into your own personal sanctuary. A place where you can sit back and connect with nature, even if it’s just for a few minutes. A balanced design can invoke feelings of calm and security, enhancing your quality of life, giving you a space to sit back, relax, and de-stress after a long day of work. A good designer will know how to transform unused areas of your yard into aesthetically pleasing hardscapes and softscapes.
A good landscape design service can make use of your existing budget to transform your unused or unruly yard into a functional and aesthetically pleasing outdoor space.
Choosing to hire a professional landscaper to design your outdoors space is a cost-effective way to increase the value of your property, as it will extend the usable area of your home, while also increasing the aesthetic value.
In landscaping, hardscapes are defined as the structural elements of your yard. They might be decorative, like waterfalls and fountains, or they might be more practical, like patios, firepits and fencing. A hardscape usually encompasses all non-living elements of your yard. A hardscape will enhance those living elements, making your lawn, plants, gardens and trees stand out, and a good landscaper will even be able to install hardscapes that make those living elements easier to maintain and help them flourish.
Hardscapes tend to be labor intensive and could require weeks or months of work depending on the scope of the project, and the number of materials required. A good landscaping service will be able to streamline the hardscape construction process, as they’ll have the right tools, materials and know-how for the undertaking. Some of these projects will require heavy equipment, which can be costly to rent or buy, which is why many homeowners tend to choose a landscaper to handle their hardscape needs.
Here are some of the hardscapes that a professional landscaping service can help you with.
A landscaping service can help design your patio and deck, as well as implement those designs. Depending on the complexity of the job, this may take days or weeks. Depending on your area, you may need a permit to build a patio or deck, a landscaper should know the basic building codes of your area before they get started.
You need to use the right materials for your deck, as the wrong type of wood may rot and actually pose a danger in the future. If you’re attempting to replace an old deck with a new one, you’ll have had experiences with the problems that rotting wood can bring.
A landscaper who specializes in patio and deck building will know where to start, what materials to use, and how to build a deck that’s both beautiful and safe.
Driveways are an essential hardscape feature that can’t be ignored. Every time you drive into your home, you’ll see the effects of the quality of your driveway.
Driveways can be built out of a variety of different materials, including gravel, asphalt, concrete and paver. Each of these materials has their own benefits, and their own specific construction methods.
The land you build your driveway on needs to be prepped beforehand, in order to support the material and ensure its longevity. Without taking the appropriate considerations, you risk your driveway cracking and damaging with time.
Some landscaping professionals offer driveway construction services, so that you can avoid many of the pitfalls homeowners make when attempting to construct their own driveways.
How you decide to fence your property will rely on two major questions: Why do you want to build a fence? How do you want your fence to look?
Once you’ve figured out those two questions, then you can decide on the materials needed as well as the design.
Fences are used for a variety of reasons. They can make your outdoor spaces more private, keep out intruders, keep in pets, or they can be purely aesthetic.
A good landscaper will know what materials are needed for your specific function, climate, and design, as well as how to properly install your fencing.
You may be looking to construct a walkway for your outdoor area. This process usually involves laying out the walkway, marking the path that you’d like to create. The path is then excavated, usually with some specialized tools. A special landscaping fabric is used, and a layer of sand is placed over it. The stones are then laid out and installed, and the gaps are filled.
This process can be time consuming and frustrating if you’re unsure where to begin. Landscapers specialize in the installation of these walkways and paths.
Is there a more satisfying image than sitting around a newly built firepit with your friends and family on a summer’s night? Fire pits are a popular backyard hardscape that a large number of homeowners have decided to implement.
However, there are many considerations that go into the construction of a fire pit. Will it be a permanent construction or portable? What type of fuel do you intend on using? What’s the safest location to build it? How can it be made to fit in with the surrounding landscape design? What material should it be built out of?
A landscaping service can not only help you answer these questions, but they can also go ahead and build a firepit that aligns with your personal budget and goals.
Retaining walls are a popular garden feature that are used to hold soil. Your retaining wall needs can vary from small projects meant to extenuate the beauty of your perennials to large walls build to surround your entire garden.
Landscapers will consider a variety of factors before starting on a retaining wall project. These include the purpose of the wall, the drainage patterns of the soil, geography and soil type. All of these can influence the type of wall that you need, the materials you’ll use and the type of drainage system you might need to install.
Fishponds, waterfalls, streams, and decorative fountains are all examples of common waterscapes that homeowners choose to implement in their gardens. Watching and listening to the sound of flowing water is relaxing and soothing. Looking at your beautiful blooming flowers sitting on a fish-filled pond is an exciting and unique experience to have right outside of your home. You can build small decorative fountains around your outdoor space, small and exquisite landmarks that give your garden some personality. You could implement large cascading waterfalls that lead to a serene stream that runs through your property. There’s no denying the beauty that a waterscape can add to a garden.
However, choosing and implementing a waterscape into your own garden may be a tough job. Knowing which plants might work best in your pond, or how to hide the piping and other water systems that are required, as well as knowing how to install these systems, can be difficult. Landscaping services will know how to implement these systems as well as keep them concealed and blended in with the natural environment. For example, a waterfall might be a great addition to your yard, but you risk making it look ugly if the piping is visible or doesn’t look natural. A landscaping service will know how to implement systems like bubbling boulders which are large rocks with a concealed piping system inside of them so that no jarring piping takes away from the beauty of the flowing water.
If you’re looking to have live elements included in with your waterscape, like a fishpond or even bright water flowers, then you’ll need to have the appropriate mechanical systems as well as the ecological systems to support them. For example, you should know what PH and minerals are required in the water to support your particular species. A landscaping professional with experience with softscapes will be able to answer these questions for you, as well as help you implement the systems in your own garden.
Professional landscapers are also proficient in the installation of a variety of outdoor systems and technologies. Sensors, sprinklers, irrigation and lighting are all popular choices with homeowners today. A landscaping service will have the appropriate materials, tools and knowledge to help you with your outdoor installations.
Irrigation systems are time saving and cost-effective ways of maintaining your yard. A well designed and implemented irrigation system is one that will improve the health of your garden and keep it at the moisture level that it needs. Automatic irrigation systems work on timers that can be set to water your garden at the best times for you and your plants.
When designing and implementing an irrigation system, a professional landscaping service will make a variety of considerations. Different plants will need different levels of irrigation. Your water pressure will have an effect on the power of the sprinkler. Sprinklers will need either rotary or fixed heads. There may be underground features that impact your ability to install an irrigation system, like utilities or tree roots. It may need to be winterized.
A landscaping service can help address these considerations, while creating a quality irrigation system that will keep your plants at their optimum health. A good irrigation system is built to last, and to be as efficient as possible. If it’s built properly, it will prove to be a quality investment that will save you both your time and money.
Outdoor landscape lighting can add a level of beauty, security and utility to your outdoor space. The type of light that you use, as well as it’s shape, size, brightness, wattage, beam width and color, will all depend on what it is you’re trying to achieve.
If you’re looking for added security, installing a strong outdoor beam light on an elevated surface is ideal. Lighting is a great home security measure against intruders. You might also install an area sensor that triggers the lighting upon movement in the area.
If you’re looking to light your garden or make your outdoor paths more visible, you may opt to use dimmer lights, that are waterproof, and installed in the ground. You might also choose to use small solar panels so that you can power your lighting without spending any money on energy.
Landscape services can help you choose what kind of lighting that you’ll need, as well as install them not only so that they can light up your desired outdoor spaces but also to avoid common pitfalls that can decrease their longevity.
Softscapes encompass all features of your garden or yard that are living, most notably, your plants! Professional landscapers often offer services such as mowing, mulching, planting and flower bed building. Many landscaping services have a yearly maintenance option where they will send a professional to take care of the seasonal aspects of your garden and lawn care as well.
Trees are a beautiful and useful addition to any garden. They can beautify the garden, while also providing a cool shaded area for yourself and for your plants. Certain plants need a shaded area to grow, and a natural and beautiful way to add that shade is to plant a tree. Trees can also increase the privacy of your home, as they can be used to block off viewing angles from public areas. Trees add character, and can give your property curb appeal, which may drive up its price.
Professional landscaping services may specialize in tree planting. A professional landscaper will know where to plant a tree, what soil conditions are needed, how much room it needs to grow, and the safest space for it to be planted.
Flower beds are a great way to add color and beauty to your outdoor space. A well-designed flower bed can increase the value of your property from the added curb-appeal.
When designing and planting flower beds, landscape designers keep a variety of factors into consideration. The flower colors that you choose are a major part of the aesthetics, certain colors can help build each other up (blues and whites for example), while other colors mixed together can look unappealing. Different flowers will also have different growing requirements, so flowers grown in the same flower bed will need to be carefully chosen. Finally, landscapers know which flowers have strong fragrances, and which flowers are not fragrant, this is important as using multiple fragrant flowers may be overpowering and unpleasant.
Skilled landscapers know how to utilize shrubbery. Shrubs can extenuate an outdoor space, making a garden look fuller, and more filled with life. Empty patches in your garden, flower beds, and paths, can effectively filled with shrubs. Larger shrubs can even be used as barriers, which might help with your pathways and keeping your property separated from neighboring properties. Certain variety of shrubs are deer-resistant, making them a great investment if you’re having trouble with deer getting into your garden.
You can hire a professional landscaper to plant these shrubs for you, as well as to choose the right variety for your needs. Certain shrubs are evergreen, meaning that they’ll last through the winter and into the next year without needing to be replanted.
Landscaping covers many aspects of outdoor life, both on residential and commercial properties. When planting, building or installing in the outdoors, there are many aesthetic and functional considerations to take into account. Trying to balance out aesthetics with functionality, while sticking to a budget can be even harder, especially with complicated projects where unforeseen costs and tools are required. Choosing to hire a landscaping professional, or to call up a landscaping service, can give you the piece of mind that you need when tackling projects that are either too complicated, or too time-consuming for you to take on yourself.