If you have a typical yard, it probably takes some abuse.
Maybe you have a kid practicing for the Olympics soccer team, or your dog is obsessed with chasing squirrels.
Maybe there’s that one area where your neighbor always cuts through to borrow your hammer, or where the mail carrier takes a shortcut. (Note to self: get the neighbor a hammer for Christmas.)
Those aren’t places for prissy plants. What to plant when things might get walked on?
Planning your big new Florida landscaping project? Man, there’s a lot to think about, right?
How much will it cost? What do you really need? Your head must be spinning.
Maybe head outside and relax on the paver patio, or chill beneath your poolside pergola while you sort it all out.
If you haven’t spent much time studying the USDA plant hardiness map, nobody blames you.
But when the U.S. Department of Agriculture made significant changes to this tool that helps determine what plants can thrive and survive in what regions of the country, plant experts everywhere paid close attention. Some were even alarmed.
About half of the United States, including Central Florida, shifted into a new zone with the plant hardiness map update. Most places are warmer than they used to be.
What does that mean? Does it affect what you can plant in your Florida front yard? Should you care?
Maybe you have dreams for a splashy big landscaping renovation, but you’d like to just dip your toe in first.
Simple landscaping ideas can make a big difference, powering up some curb appeal, setting the scene for family fun, or creating a peaceful hangout for your private backyard haven. (That last phrase sounds so great, let’s repeat it: private backyard haven. Sigh.)
There’s kind of a dilemma when you’re planning to sell your house, and we’re not talking about how to hide that spot where your dog ate half the windowsill.
You know landscaping and home value are connected, but you don’t want to invest a ton of money in a house you’re leaving. At the same time, you know your home will sell faster and for a better price if it has impressive curb appeal.
When you’re landscaping for curb appeal, what projects are your best bets?
Once you know what hardscaping is, the word makes perfect sense.
It’s the hard elements in your landscaping — the paver patios and walkways, the fire pit, the structures like decks, pergolas, and pavilions.
Landscape maintenance is a year-round thing here in Central Florida, thanks to that mild weather the northerners envy.
Palm fronds drop year round. Crape Myrtles get trimmed in winter. Hedges might need snipping any time of year.
But spring is a great time for a fresh start, landscape-wise.
Maybe your plan to deal with your lawn drainage problem is to hope it goes away, and post a sign that says “Do Not Feed the Ducks.”
Sure, that’s the easiest plan. But it won’t solve your drainage problem. And you might have to buy really tall rubber boots.
French drains are often the gold standard to solve drainage problems, but If you’re not crazy about embarking on a whole big thing, that’s understandable.
There are a few things you can try first.
Your trusty irrigation system is hanging out, doing its thing, keeping your lawn green and your flowers healthy.
Then, one day, a truck full of concrete pavers shows up. A skid steer starts zooming around. There’s talk of new sod.
What the heck? Your irrigation system is understandably anxious. What about all its lines tenderly tucked underground? What about all its reliable sprinkler heads?
A new landscaping project is exciting — to you. But will there be lawn irrigation damage your sprinkler system should stress out about?
Some things just go great together.
Peanut butter and jelly. Jeans and T-shirts. Saturday morning and sleeping in.
One more classic pairing: lawn aeration and top dressing.
