By Brittany Cotton
Landscaping
Landscaping can enhance anyone’s outdoor property, no matter how small or large. You can do this by planting cherry blossom trees, Japanese maples, small evergreens that have been pre-shaped, and other small trees if your back and front yards are also small. You can control the width and shape of these trees by simply shearing them. For example, if left alone, a cherry blossom tree will stay fairly short and simple grow out like an umbrella. If you want it taller, shear off the branches in order for it to grow up.
There are infinite possibilities with flowers. Perennials such as lillies, rose bushes, peonies, day lillies, daisies, chrysanthemums and many others can significantly enhance your outdoor property from spring to fall. If you like to garden, annuals are best, but if you want flowers that require little to no effort, there are many durable perennials.
Landscaping also includes things like weeding, hedging, and shaping of your natural outdoor property. You can do this yourself or you can hire services. Landscaping can actually be an art of its own, when done with care and thought.
For example, you can shape, hedge and create a garden bed simply by digging into the soil, creating a pattern to your liking, planting trees, shrubs, perennials, etc – and using hedging to maintain the shape. You can fill it in with stone, colored tan bark, wood chips or whatever best suits your aesthetic tastes.
Hardscaping
Hardscaping almost always requires services, unless you or your spouse happen to do such things. Hardscaping involves paving, cement, driveway expansion, patios, aesthetic fire pits and the like.
Hardscaping, however, is one of the best ways to enhance your outdoor property because it lasts all year. While you can plant evergreens, that is nothing compared to a semi-covered patio with a fire pit during late autumn or early winter. Imagine the smells that come from an outdoor fire pit during late autumn. That cannot be replicated with a cheap knock-off.
Paving is one of the simplest ways to enhance your outdoor property, which typically includes either driveways or very basic patios. However, the possibilities that can extend beyond these basics stop only with your vision of the ultimate backyard.
Hardscaping is also an art. Colored stone patios, brick walkways, wooden plank outdoor staircases for properties with steep inclines – these are but a few things that can be done to your outdoor property. That outdoor fire pit you’ve dreamed of? Imagine a 3 foot stone fire pit, surrounded by circularly placed stone and an aesthetically matching half-moon shaped bench – also made of complementing stone that lasts year out. No storm, rain, wind or hail can damage it, which is not the case with typical lawn furniture made of wick or flimsy fabrics. Stone benches are not only eye-catching but practical during late autumn and winter. You can sit next to the fire without the worry of soaked fabrics or wick that has splintered.
The choices are endless with hardscaping. You can simply look at Pinterest, Google or even ask those you know for ideas to hardscape your property. It can be as simple as a paved driveway and patio or as extensive as the ultimate year-round hardscaped backyard, complete with a covered back patio, fire pit and deck.
If you are not acquainted with hardscaping or landscaping, whatever service you select will undoubtedly have binders with examples, or you can ask for suggestions. If you want an avante garde approach, there are many options for that as well. There is hardscaping for practicality as well as for the sake of property value. In today’s seller’s market, hardscaping is a fairly inexpensive investment to increase your overall property value. While landscaping increases the aesthetics of your property, hardscaping can increase your actual property value.
Whether you are a hands-on or hands-off person, landscaping and hardscaping can be done. With all the DIY vidoes out there, any simple project can be accomplished if you have the motivation, time and energy. However – most of us do not, which is why hardscaping and landscaping services exist. If you have just bought a new home, or want to spruce up the one you’ve lived in for a while – these suggestions will get you started.