Landscape design plays a central role in your property, especially if it incorporates sustainability. Landscaping refers to the art of developing your space to maximize its functionality and enjoyment. With careful planning and thought, followed by proper installation and maintenance, your landscape can enhance your property’s value and the general quality of life for your household.
The Impact of Landscape Design and Maintenance on Homes
Landscaping is not only about mowing lawns, raking leaves, as well as planting flowers. It also entails designing your space to enhance your property’s appeal and meet your needs. That said, here’s how landscape design and maintenance impacts your home.
Below are the positive impacts of landscape design and maintenance:
1. Improves Aesthetic Appeal
With some creativity, designing and maintaining your landscape can make it more alluring. Landscape design involves magnifying the visual beauty of your space while downplaying any undesirable features. Examples of this aesthetic appeal include entertainment from birds chirping in the trees that are strategically planted around your home, sweet aroma from the beautiful flowers dotting your garden, leaves rustling in the gentle breeze, as well as soft sounds from the water in your fountain.
2. Increases Home Value
A good and well-maintained landscape complements an excellent interior, pushing your property’s value upwards. This value can rise by about 5.5 – 12.7% of the current one. A thoughtful landscape design also makes your stay comfortable. Playing around with both hardscape and softscape elements will make for a perfect setting for your family. For instance, plants or shrubs grown on intentional spots, attractive pathways, as well as exterior lighting, can accentuate your space.
3. It’s Therapeutic
Humans love connecting to natural beauty, that is, plants, trees, and flowers. This is therapeutic to your mental state as it cares for your psychological wellbeing, cognitive function, and physical health. All these serve to give you the relaxation you and your family need in your abode.
4. Boosts Functionality
Innovative landscape designs can make your exterior more functional. You can have a patio for entertaining guests or dining when the weather is fine. How about a raised bed in your backyard where you can grow flowers or vegetables? Planting fruit trees in one corner will yield fresh fruits, provide shade, and break the wind.
5. Conserves Natural Resources
If you’re an environmental enthusiast, considerate landscaping can prove to be attractive. Incorporating plants and trees will add value to the local ecosystem. Such surroundings will impact you positively, as the plants will hinder soil erosion and help purify the air you breathe.
Your chosen landscape, if also well taken care of, promotes a healthy and balanced ecosystem where insects, birds, as well as local wildlife can thrive and wonderfully co-exist with each other.
Landscaping may also have negative impacts as described below:
1. Can be Costly
Landscaping is an investment that can turn out to be costly right from the initial point of installation and throughout its lifetime (maintenance). For an exquisite look, you need to get a professional. Though you can do it yourself at the expense of your time. The regular attention it requires in terms of watering, plant replacement, weeding, deck sealing, as well as purchasing chemicals can be psychologically and financially draining.
2. Tampers with Environment
Done right, landscape designs can positively affect the environment. Otherwise, knowingly or unknowingly, you can harm the environment, particularly when you introduce exotic plants. Being foreign, these plants will need more attention and extra resources to thrive. You’ll have to irrigate them more and even use fertilizers so that they grow appropriately. It will increase your water bill and chemical use will pollute groundwater. Additionally, some exotic plants can be invasive to the point of overtaking the area. This will damage local animals and plants, defeating the very purpose of a balanced ecosystem.
Considerations for Home and Landscape During Renovation Projects
Renovation projects require careful thought, enough time, and significant effort. From the initial planning to the actual project execution, everything must be done meticulously to ensure no errors occur that can derail the whole task. Here are some considerations to bear in mind:
Master Plan
Create a master plan to help you achieve your project goals. It could be drainage problems, water erosion issues, or interior damage. Customize your plan to suit your needs and meet your expectations.
Professionals
Engage professional contractors by interviewing multiple of them. Don’t rush this process or act on a whim. Also, price should not be the only consideration factor, though you should compare bids and go through various price quotes. Talk to their references so that you get a better idea about them and how easy or difficult it is to work with them. It will save you time, money, and pain that can result from costly hiring mistakes.
Budget
Have a realistic budget with a spending limit for the renovations to avoid wastage or stalling. Renovation projects may go beyond your expectations, mainly due to rising costs. The best thing to do is to have an extra amount of about 20% of the budget on standby.
Permit
Ensure you or your contractor have the necessary permits for your project. It’s advisable to counter-check with the concerned local department so that you’re sure whether you have the required permit or if any is needed at all.
Style
Both your home and landscape renovations should complement or match the original architectural structure. The renovations need to flow with the rest of the elements on your property, rather than seeming like an afterthought.
Thoughtful Optimization Efforts
To work seamlessly on your renovation project, ensure you are keen on the progress on your property and have pre-meditated measures in place. For instance, if work is to be carried out within the house, ensure you protect your landscape (be it the lawn or the flowers) so that it is not ruined and trampled on. You can do this by putting tape or other markings around places the workers should not step on. If need be, cover your lawn or pathway with tarpaulin, especially if it’s the rainy season and it’s muddy.
Other optimization efforts include:
- Using best landscaping practices to control erosion
- Reduce surface runoff by lessening the amount of hard/impervious surfaces
- Consider energy implications, for instance, using natural ventilation more and maximizing daylight use
- Minimize heat islands, e.g. shading your paths and open areas with trees or other vegetation; using roof material with high emissivity and reflectivity to bring down energy loads and elongate the roof’s life
Conclusion
Once you understand how landscaping impacts your space, you can take time to properly plan how best to renovate it for maximum benefit. Note that the way you set about landscaping, and the actual actions you take, can either give you full returns or negative outcomes. Contact us today for more information or if you need help with landscape design and maintenance. Our landscaping expert personnel are ready to step in and attend to your issues!
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