A healthy and attractive lawn is key to creating enjoyable and attractive grounds. Anything you plant needs to be planted considering the future. Trees grow to be much larger than when they are planted. Lawns need to be planted for the future as well. Lawns must be well cared for from day one to create healthy and lasting turf. Look at centuries old estates and the lush green grass present there, and take this as inspiration.
Today, keeping a healthy lawn is much easier than it used to be. The battle against weeds and bad soil is much easier to win. There are new chemicals that help with this task. You can create stunning lawns for your home with the use of spreaders, mowers and other tools.
However, to create a good lawn may sometimes be harder than just spreading seed or pulling weeds. It is sometimes a really good idea to have your soil tested to understand its make up, and then possible have it altered to make it more effective.
The seeds you choose should be a reflection of the lawn you want to create. Is the lawn going to be used for a general purpose or as a showpiece for your garden setting?
The lawn is the main canvas for your setting. Suburban problem lots can be a problem for creating a living outdoor space, and may need to be paved. But for the normal setting, the lawn is the backdrop for your blooms, shrubs, trees, and plants. It should be larger than any other area in your garden setting, roughly two to three times the width of the borders or beds.
Flowers are an important part for a garden setting. They are used to add color and beauty, and can be cut and brought indoors as well. Flowers bring a wonderful charm to your setting. The idea when planting flowers is to create a secession of flowers that occurs from spring to late fall. There are perennials that occur at different times of the year.
The iris is a great example, as its blooming season will end just as the peonies blooming season begins. Knowing the time frame of perennials blooming periods will allow you to make sure there are always flowers in bloom in your garden.
Consider making a potting area in your vegetable garden or behind a garden shed to grow extra annuals and perennials that can be easily transplanted. Then when one grouping of flowers is done flowering you can add in these flowers to make sure there is always flowers in your setting.
It is always best to create a plan on paper, and on this plan include the borders and beds, and plan the positions of the plants. On an average 60 x 100 foot lot, or the ½ acre lot the best scheme is to create a border that runs the length and rear of the backyard wall. This border should be mixed with bulbs, perennials, annuals, and even shrubbery.
You could also create a plan for the center of the yard, a foundation planting, a pathway, and also for the sides of the houses. Semiformal or formal gardens may feature borders or beds lay out alongside of and divided by walks.
If your area is in need of a border, plant tall screening plants so they create a background for shorter plants, as well as a screen. Screening plants may need to be staked to keep them upright. For borders over 3 feet, create a narrow path in front of the screening plants to allow you to better care for them.
The border plants that make up the center need to be of a medium height and should be chosen for their color. For larger borders plants like the iris are great choices for the middle part. For the forgeground of a border, consider planting edging plants. These are neat and simple flowers, and include options like:
- clipped or green perennials
- long-growing petunia
- ageratum
- pansies
- dwarf marigolds
- sweet alyssum
Beds and borders will serve you best if they are visible from indoors as well. Place them so you can view them from a window or a terrace, making them useful from every point on your property!