Outdoor spaces can be an expression of beauty and pride for homeowners, yet can also become time-consuming tasks that take up valuable personal time. Low maintenance landscape designs may offer homeowners who wish to reduce maintenance costs or spend less time tending their yard an alternative solution; plant selection and hardscaping are two elements which are key in making sure that a low-maintenance garden works no matter the climate conditions.
Plant Selection
Selecting the appropriate plants has a major influence on how much effort is expended maintaining your yard or garden. Selecting locally sourced natives that thrive well within their regional climate requires less care, while hybridized grasses with perennial flowers and shrubs make for low-maintenance borders that complement the surrounding environment. In arid regions drought-tolerant succulents and native flora create stunning gardens with minimal water usage; in temperate zones hardy evergreens mixed with perennial flowers and ornamental grasses provide attractive gardens which require little additional irrigation during summer months compared with selecting locally-sourced non-natives alone.
One way to reduce maintenance is to limit the size and replace your lawn with alternative greenery, such as eco-friendly seed mixes featuring sedges, clover, and wildflowers. They offer an affordable alternative that requires far less watering and mowing; some homeowners have even chosen ground cover like gravel or crushed rock instead; moss can make for an attractive shady alternative without ever needing to be cut back!
Hardscaping can also help lower maintenance costs by adding hardscape elements like walkways made of pavers, stone, or brick and patios with wood. Although hardscaping elements may cost more upfront, they reduce mowing and weeding tasks and maintenance expenses significantly. Furthermore, adding low-maintenance water features – like replacing an elaborate pond or fountain with something simpler like a waterfall – adds beauty and reduces upkeep costs simultaneously.