One of the best lessons in landscaping your yard is learning what not to do. Oftentimes the trees, shrubs, and plants around your yard will need minimal care once you’ve planted them in places they will thrive, provided adequate watering, and continue to keep the weeds at bay.

Before Planting Preparation

Any trip to the garden center for plants can be a mixture of excitement in the anticipation of choosing plants and a bit of trepidation in not knowing which plants to choose or how many to get for the area you’re planting.

Start your shopping spree with an idea of where you’d like to plant in your landscape. Consider if this area gets mostly sun, a bit of shade and sun, or is situated in mostly shade. The types of plants you’ll choose should be suited for the growing area. For instance, planting a colorful petunia, which thrives best in a sunny spot, in the shade along the side of the house won’t allow the petunia to reach its full growing or flowering potential. It will be starving for sunshine.

When choosing plants, take a moment to read the plant tags describing the plant’s maturity width and height. Take these measurements into consideration to help you determine: a) how many plants are needed to fill a specific space and b) if the plant will quickly outgrow the space to be filled. Planting perennials along the walkway is sure to add eye appeal. When these same flowers reach maturity and are drooping across the walkway, they quickly become eyesores. You want your love for the tree or shrub you’ve chosen when it was small and compact to carry over when the same grows to become a nuisance, only because it wasn’t planted in the best location in your landscape. Take into consideration tree roots and the locations of walkways and the driveway or patio. Think about how close tree branches will be to windows, the spouting, and the roof.

Mulch, Stones or Plain Dirt

Before tossing bags of mulch into your garden cart and heading for checkout, let’s consider if mulch is your best choice. Mulching around flowers adds a big WOW factor, making the colors pop (and this is a very good thing). Choosing the wrong mulch leads to regrets.

Once you know your plants, you will have a better idea whether mulch or stones it the better choice for the individual plant’s growing needs. Some plants don’t like mulch around their root area while others thrive with the added coolness mulch delivers. Read the plant tags to get to know the varieties you’ve selected, consult gardening books, or ask the experts at the gardening center for their suggestions.

You may think adding small pebbles around plants is your ticket to having a weed-free flowerbed but unfortunately, weeds will find a way. The facts are stones can help deter plants when you’ve used landscaping cloth underneath but the chances are some weeds will find a way to make their presence known. Weeding in a pebbled landscape is grueling work.

Your landscape may thrive best with a combination of stones in some areas, mulch in others, and plain dirt in the rest.

Creating Eye-Catching Plantings

Wherever possible plant your flowers in groupings instead of a single plant here and there. You’ve probably seen a single row of marigolds or red salvia planted down the center of a flowerbed. Compare this to a grouping of three marigolds planted in a triangle followed by a grouping of five salvia. The pops of color will be bolder and eye-catching when planning your arrangements by group.

Think about the colors and flowering times for the plants you choose. If your home’s exterior is lighter earth tones, choose bright colors or think of the texture of the plants to add variety and interest to your landscaping. Plan your selections around bloom times to have something blooming spring, summer, and into the fall.

Having a beautiful yard can be easier than you think with a bit of forethought. Having an attractive landscape makes your home appealing to those driving through the neighborhood, searching for a new home. If you’re planning to sell your home, be sure to consider how much curb appeal your current landscaping offers. If you’ve recently purchased a home that could use a bit of pep, head to the garden center for some ideas. Have questions? Reach out any time.

Since 2004 Sara Lyn Nguyen continues to bring a wealth of knowledge and expertise about buying and selling real estate around the Houston area to those she serves. Sara is a multi-year award winning REALTOR® and relocation specialist where her clients trust her to have up-to-date information on the real estate market. She has been one of Gary Greene’s Multi-Million Dollar Top Producers and was the #2 Top Producing agent in 2020 citywide. When it’s time to buy, sell, invest, or relocate speak with a trusted professional knowledgeable in the homes and neighborhoods of Fort Bend/Sugar Land and the surrounding region.