Unifying and Separating Landscaping Planting Beds

There are thousands of plant combinations, companion plantings, and color combinations that will work well in landscaping and garden planting schemes.

And form a beginner or do it yourselfer standpoint, simplicity and repitition in planting is a good starting point that can be added to later. I usually say to pick a color scheme of two or three colors and repeat it throughout the garden.

For more curious, experimental, or advanced home landscapers there may be a feel for planting in masses or even random, assorted, and wildflower and ornamental grass beds.

In any instance, there's always a chance that even the best of planting intentions can disrupt harmony, balance, and unity in the garden instead of creating it.
Periodically adding a neutral colored plant throughout your landscape can help unify planting beds that differ in color, texture, and even height.

Silver or gray plants such as Lambs Ears, Artemesia, Dusty Miller, Santolina, Sage, Horehound, and others are considered neutral colored.

Using white flowers as a neutral also works very well. Anything white is a natural focal point and especially in the garden. In a mass of green foliage, orange flowers, mixed flowers, etc., white always draws our eyes to it. Using it throughout the garden will create a sense of unity.
Use white sparingly. Too much of it tends to feel cluttered.

Unifying a garden that's out of sorts is really quite simple. As well as moving and matching existing elements, try adding a neutral color plant to the different planting areas.

Separating or "buffering" beds from each other can be as simple as adding a neutral or group of neutrals between colors or beds.


Cedar Hill Lawn Care

Cedar Hill Landscaping

Ultimate Deck And Patio Retreat For Easy Living

You can create a stress-free outdoor space that is comfortable, convenient and low-maintenance. It's easier than you may think. TV home improvement expert Ron Hazelton, a regular correspondent on "Good Morning America" and host of his own syndicated series, "Ron Hazelton's HouseCalls," has several easy ideas to create a relaxing, luxurious get-away, right in your own backyard.

Set the Stage

Start with a focal point, such as a patio or deck, saving labor and time with a low-maintenance composite that looks like the real thing.

Made with recycled plastic and reclaimed wood, it protects against splinters, moisture and insect damage.

Decking and railing manufacturers such as Trex Co. (www.trex.com) offer rich textures, colors and railing designs. Choose from realistic wood grain, smooth, or a rainforest-look surface, with the ability to curve the decking into unique shapes. For a lower-cost makeover, replace the wooden deck planks and railings with composite material, provided the deck's support is structurally sound. Now the stage is set.

Entertain in Your Hot Tub

Make your backyard one of the most comfortable and relaxing places in your home with the addition of some alfresco entertainment. Need to unwind? Try a therapeutic spa with a wave lounger that will massage your body in a wavelike motion from head to toe. Prefer the relaxation that only comes by watching your favorite show? For what many consider the ultimate luxury, ThermoSpas All Weather Entertainment Center features a no-glare, waterproof TV, a built-in stereo with surround sound, a radio/CD/DVD player, a bar top and stools, a minifridge or wine cooler and a cigar humidor (www.thermospas.com).

Effortless Awnings

Motorized retractable awnings provide an elegant solution for enhancing backyard enjoyment and offer a number of benefits. In addition to coming in a wide variety of sizes and colors, awnings, like those from SunSetter powered by Somfy motors, can make any deck or patio cooler and more comfortable while increasing a home's energy efficiency. Awnings provide a protected outdoor living space that's comfortable and affordable. The awnings can reduce the temperature of decks or patios by up to 20 degrees, protect from harmful UV rays and expand your outdoor living area, all at the push of a button. (www.sunsetter.com--www.somfysystems.com.)

Stress-Free Garden Hose

Your gardening and outdoor chores keep you active enough-why deal with the hassle of a tangled, heavy garden hose? One example of a device that makes this job much easier relies on water power, rather than electricity or batteries. ReelSmart, from Hydro Industries (www.hydro- industries.com), is a water-powered, auto-rewind hose reel that automatically rewinds your garden hose with the flip of a lever. The company offers different models, including an outdoor sink and hose reel combo for watering, potting plants, BBQ food prep, and pet and car cleaning. There is a number of auto-rewind hose reel styles that will keep your garden hose organized and protected from the sun.

Now you can enjoy the splinter-free, easy-care style of a beautiful composite deck, the relaxing jets of a soothing spa that truly entertains, the sun protection and ease of a motorized awning, and the simplicity of an auto-rewind hose reel. For more information, visit the Web sites.


Duncanville Lawn Care

Duncanville Landscaping

Tools Every Do-It-Yourself Landscaper Needs

There is no doubt that choosing to do your own landscaping is the best way to go for many people. Not only do you save a lot of money by not hiring professionals to do the work, you also will get to enjoy a lot of time outside. Landscaping is good exercise and a great way to spend an afternoon.

Any do-it-yourself landscapers will require a variety of tools, from basic to high tech, in order to get the job done right. Here are some of the tools that are essential for doing your own landscaping.

Software: Yes, believe it or not, a good landscaping program can be essential when you are designing the layout of your lawn and garden. I use the Master Landscape & Home Design by Punch! Software. I bought this program for my wife back in 2003, and we have used it a lot ever since. The 3D Photoview technology allows us to put in digital pictures of our home and garden and then implement any changes on the screen before we put them into effect in our yard. The PlantFinder allows us to find plants that are the most appropriate to the soil and climate conditions where we live, and it even has a calculator to help us estimate the costs of the plants from different stores. This is about as high tech as I get when it comes to landscaping, though.

Lawn mower: You might not realize it, but mowing the lawn is an essential part of any landscape. A lawn mower is therefore a critical part of doing your landscaping yourself. Buying a lawn mower can be a tricky business- you can get models with everything included but the kitchen sink. The fact is, a second hand lawn mower that works can be just as good as a brand new model straight from the catalogues. If you have a large area to mow, you will probably want to invest in a riding lawn mower to save time and aching muscles.

Weed Whacker: There are points on your lawn that your mower just won’t reach, around fences and right beside patios, around any fruit trees or berry canes. For these, you will need a good weed whacker. The best models come with several attachments, appropriate to chopping down a variety of weeds- especially if you have slacked off and allowed some of the hardier varieties to grow up. These can be death for the average string-and-coil whacker, and you will need some good plastic to stand up to them.

There are several other tools that every landscaper needs, most of them relatively low tech in comparison to those above. A variety of shovels, rakes, and pruning instruments are all essential, as are a good pair of gloves. All of these tools will be dependent on what you have planted in your landscaping, and more complicated designs may even require some basic knowledge of electricity, carpentry, and hydroponics.


Mansfield Lawn Care

Mansfield Landscaping