While a backyard garden is a great addition to any home, there’s a lot that goes into maintaining it. From the trees to the lawn and everything in between, it’s much more than planting some flowers and pulling weeds. Gardening is a great hobby and a good way to relax, but if you want to keep it ‘Home and Gardens’ level stunning, there are rules you should follow. We’re not trying to rain on your parade or make gardening into just another chore.
Rather, the purpose of these (hopefully) helpful rules is to provide you with a guide to follow at your leisure. The goal is to help you achieve the maximum pleasure, production, and functionality from your garden space. So read on for a comprehensive guide to the rules of gardening that will help your outdoor area be the best it can be.
1. Shaping Your Outdoor Space: Expert Tips for Tree Service
One of the cornerstones to gardening and a great outdoor space is strategically placed healthy trees. So choosing the right tree services to suit your needs is vital to the success of your garden space – both aesthetically and functionally. Start by asking your neighbors who they use (if you like their area). Check reviews and peruse online.
Come up with a plan and expectations of what you want your tree service to deliver. Next, get at least three estimates, as prices can vary greatly. Take into consideration tree removal, planting, pruning, and trimming. Ask the tree companies for proof of insurance and licensing. This will ensure you’re not held liable in the event of an accident or property damage.
Ensure that the company has the equipment and staff necessary to do the work you need done. Check reviews online to determine the company’s reputation. Finally, review the pros and cons of any potential contracts. While it may be worth signing a contract if you have a large property with a lot of trees, often, you can get by with intermittent, seasonal visits.
2. Trimming Techniques: Enhancing Tree Health and Aesthetics
You don’t need to be Edward Scissorhands to keep your trees healthy and pleasing to the eye. With a few simple tree trimming techniques, you can be the envy of your neighborhood. First, it’s important to periodically check your trees for dead or diseased limbs and chop them as close to the tree as possible. It’s fairly easy to spot questionable branches as they will typically be bare or have old, dead leaves. While doing that, it is also important to prune smaller branches that are closer to the trunk.
Next, you can try your hand at crown trimming. This technique involves trimming the top of the tree to allow light through and reduce wind resistance, which will result in fewer broken branches and fallen limbs during storms. Finally, there’s canopy sculpting, which involves trimming and pruning the interior branches and leaving the outer branches alone. This allows for enhanced air circulation.
3. Securing Your Property: Pro Tips for Fence Installations
Everyone loves a cute fence, and while aesthetics should be part of your decision when choosing to go for fence installations, your primary goal should always be safety. According to research, homes with fences are less likely to suffer from trespassers and burglaries. Additionally, fences help keep your pets and children safe -allowing them to enjoy the yard and play without the fear of wandering off or having stray or wild animals enter the space.
Not all fences are created equal when it comes to security, however, so there are some things to consider when looking at fencing. The first thing is the materials. Wooden fences are aesthetically pleasing, but they aren’t the most secure. Wood can be easily breached, broken, and climbed. If you’re in need of heavy-duty fencing that provides safety, consider chain link, wrought iron, or some other metal.
Then there’s the height issue. A four-foot fence may keep the dog in, but it won’t keep determined trespassers out. Where fencing is concerned, taller is better. You may also want to consider decorative yet effective spikes or other cumbersome toppers that potential thieves see and will keep moving.
4. Sowing Success: Lawn Hydroseeding Essentials
One of the number one rules of gardening is to ensure a lush, green lawn. This can be difficult to do depending on your climate, soil, and general green thumb level. One solution to lawn issues is hydroseeding. Lawn hydroseeding is especially helpful if you’re installing a new lawn or repairing huge dead or damaged areas.
The process takes grass seed, mulch, water, fertilizer, and other nutrients and mixes them into a slurry, where they’re put in a spray container. The slurry is then sprayed over the area at high pressure. Hydroseeding ensures speedy germination, with grass sprouting in as little as a week. It also ensures uniform coverage, erosion control, and dust control.
This seeding method is cheaper than sodding and does well on large, sloped areas. Other benefits include weed control and disease resistance. The best time to do this process is during spring because the lawn will need to be constantly moist. You will also need an erosion control blanket or coverage and will need to regularly test the pH balance.
5. Finding the Right Contractor: Insights into Tree Services
Trees are an important aspect of not only your yard but the community and local wildlife as well. They must remain healthy and grow with each passing year. When you’re looking for help from tree contractors, it’s vital that you research and do your due diligence. Like all other professionals, some tree contractors are more experienced and knowledgeable than others.
While it’s a given that all tree professionals are trained in pruning, trimming, and removal techniques, along with a variety of equipment that’s used, it’s also important they be educated in the science of trees. A good contractor will be able to identify and diagnose diseases and recommend treatment. As mentioned earlier, all tree professionals should be fully licensed and insured.
A few things to be aware of: never use a company that goes door to door looking for business, and never use a company that shows up after a big storm. A good, reputable company will never ask for full payment up front. They’ll also be able to provide a written statement/evaluation of your tree’s condition.
6. Maintaining Sprinkler Systems: Ensuring Efficient Watering
Without proper watering, your lawn and garden are essentially doomed. We can’t rely on nature to provide our outdoor areas with adequate moisture, so most of us rely on the help of sprinklers. While some folks prefer the old-school method of hooking up a portable sprinkler to a hose and moving it around every ten minutes, most of us go with the convenience of the in-ground permanent solution to watering. Most sprinklers of this type are fixed head or rotor versions that pop up from the ground on a timer and rotate the motion to give an even, full coverage to lawns, bushes, and flower beds.
While this is a great time saver and ensures proper care of your greenery, it also means that you’ll need to regularly inspect the system and perform maintenance. Sprinkler systems can easily become clogged with debris and spring leaks and generally break down from the elements. While you can certainly clean the outer surfaces of the sprinkler system, it’s a good idea to call sprinkler repair services each season to check for any major problems. This can reduce your water bill and save on costly repairs in the long run.
7. Cultivating Greenery: Nurturing Trees From Nurseries
There’s something special about purchasing a young tree from one of your local tree nurseries. Often, people will do this to commemorate a special occasion or as a memorial to a loved one. It’s awesome to watch the tree grow and change through the years, and it does become part of the family. But caring for trees that come from tree nurseries requires special care, especially the first few months. It’s important to speak with the professionals at the nursery so they can help you choose the right tree and educate you on how to care for it. In the meantime, here are a few basic tips.
Be sure to choose a spot that’s open and spacious that will allow the tree to grow. The spot should also have the proper amount of sun. When planting, dig a hole that is 10% wider than the tree’s container. Remove all debris and random roots from the hole and add soil conditioner.
Fill the hole back up with native soil and add a good three inches of mulch to protect the tree. Water generously, but be sure to ask the tree arborist at the nursery how often you should water. You may or may not need to anchor the tree or brace it depending on its size. Keep an eye on the tree for signs of disease or damage. Young trees are easily susceptible to pests and the elements.
8. Designing Dream Landscapes: Insights From Landscape Architecture
Landscape design differs from general landscaping in that it focuses solely on the aesthetics and flow of your yard. This is where you get to be creative and personalize your space. Landscape design doesn’t only include shrubs and plants either (though that’s an integral part). It includes zones that can include retaining walls, stone or wooden pathways, lighting, and other hardscaping features.
Your plan can include a theme like a lush woodland area, a modern, uncluttered space with sharp, defined edges, or an English-style garden with hedges, a water feature, and colorful, delicate flowers. Your plans for landscape design are only limited by space, budget, and imagination. You should consider hiring a landscape designer to consult with you on your Landscape Architecture plans. They can help you stay grounded and make suggestions you may not have thought about.
9. Planting Perfection: Expert Advice for Tree Care
It’s easy for us to take our trees for granted. We assume they can take care of themselves. After all, they get sun and rain water. That’s enough, right? Wrong! Trees can easily succumb to pests, disease, and the elements, so it’s up to us to help keep them healthy.
The best way to do this involves preventive care. Pruning your trees each spring to get rid of dead branches helps your tree to thrive and grow. Mulching around your tree can help keep moisture in and cut down on weeds and grass that take valuable nutrients from the tree roots. You may also consider a fertilization schedule – trees need nutrients like all other living things to stay healthy.
Don’t assume that the trees are getting enough water from the rain. Regular water should be a part of your tree care routine. Finally, monitor your tree for disease and damage. Consider hiring an arborist or tree planting service to determine any signs of disease or pest infestation that can harm your trees.
10. Elevating Outdoor Maintenance: The Importance of Landscaping
The right landscaping can mean the difference between shabby and chic when it comes to your garden space. It’s much more than lawn mowing and leaf raking, so be sure to choose a landscaping company that’s right for you. Landscapers provide services that not only clean up and manicure your outdoor area, but they help maintain water balance, prevent flooding, keep insects at bay, and provide a safe environment for your family to enjoy.
They typically do hedge trimming, lay mulch, put down grass seed and fertilizer, spray pesticides, provide grading services (to prevent flooding), and aerate the soil to promote healthy growth of grass and plants. Depending on the size of the company, they may also provide landscape design services to help with color, flow, and layout. Other companies may also do hardscaping, which includes the installation of retaining walls, pathways, lighting, water features, and rock gardens. A landscaper can take a lot of the mundane tasks and pressure of garden upkeep off your shoulders, so all you need to do is enjoy.
Gardening is not just a hobby; it’s a gift of natural beauty that we give to those around us to enjoy. Gardens are also a way to help improve the environment and improve air quality. It should be a fun and relaxing pursuit. But keep in mind that everything in your garden, whether trees, flowers, or grass, is a living thing, and proper care must be taken to keep them healthy. Following the aforementioned rules of gardening can help that happen.
