Though your home itself may be a stunning feat of architectural design, a subpar landscape design can tarnish an otherwise immaculate curb appeal. That’s because your yard is more than just an outdoor expanse of grass and other plant life; it’s an extension of your property’s usable living space and vital to the overall functionality of your property. From acting as a safe place for pets, children, and guests alike to enjoy the outdoors to the many ways that a landscape can help redirect water away from your property, your yard does a lot more for you than you may have previously considered. And that’s why having the right landscape design is crucial!
Take the Following Steps for Success
When it’s time to start working on the initial stages of your new landscape design, there are a number of essential factors you should take into consideration. Below, we’ll go through a handful of the most critical steps to take as you flesh out your design.
1. Honestly Assess Your Property
As with any project, the very first thing you’ll want to do is give your outdoor space a close lookover. First and foremost, this will help you get a good idea of what you do and don’t like about your current landscaping. With these considerations in mind, you’ll be able to think about alternatives that you may enjoy more.
During this lookover, you’ll also want to consider the following questions.
What and How Much Needs to Change?
An honest look at the scope of your landscaping design is one of the crucial first steps. Having a realistic expectation for what needs to be changed and how much needs to be redesigned in total will ensure that your project has the best chance at success.
What Styles Best Suit My Property?
The style of your home and landscaping should complement one another to create a stunning curb appeal. Styles that mismatch can easily diminish the look of your property. As such, we recommend researching and comparing different landscape design styles to help decide which is suitable for your home.
What Is the Upper Limit of My Budget?
Dealing with the cost of a project is always the least fun part of the experience, but it’s always necessary. With the above questions well thought-through, you can start to plan out your budget and solicit cost estimates from various landscaping contractors in your area.
These questions and their answers tie into the next tip to help you with your future landscape design.
2. Clearly Define Your Aesthetic Goals and Functional Needs
Before any physical labor begins, it’s essential to have a clear understanding of what your landscaping design should look like. This includes both the aesthetic goals that you wish to achieve and the functional necessities that your landscape requires to thrive in your area. For example, if your property could benefit from a retaining wall, you’ll want to make sure the style you’re considering will look all right with one.
Of course, there’s no harm in being open to changes and improvements as you continue through the project. However, getting started on the right foot can only happen when you know the direction you’re headed in.
3. Look Into Native Plant Species for Your New Landscape Design
The greenery that adorns your yard is one of the focal points of the landscaping. Where all too many landscaping designs and projects go wrong is a poor selection of plants for the new and improved outdoor space. This is often because the plants you love most or may be most familiar with aren’t always suitable for the climate you live in or the quality of the soil.
That’s why we always recommend checking what flowers, shrubbery, and trees are native to your area and heavily considering those over other less optimal choices. For example, here in Minnesota, we often recommend plants such as maidenhair ferns, zigzag goldenrods, and blue false indigo!
4. Consider What Hardscaping and Other Additions You May Want
Depending on the extent of your landscaping project, it may be prudent to also think about any hardscaping additions and other constructions that could benefit your property. Earlier, we mentioned retaining walls, which are great options for controlling erosion and are quite aesthetically pleasing in and of themselves. However, there are plenty more add-ons to consider.
Hardscaping ideas can include anything from stone walls, boulder walls, and zen garden areas to paver driveways, concrete patios, and beyond. Other non-hardscaping additions could include constructions such as:
- New fences
- Wooden patios
- Elevated decks
- Shipping container ADUs (Accessory Dwelling Units)
- And more!
With all of the above tips considered and acted upon, there’s just one last thing to do.
5. Work With Highly Experienced and Reputable Landscape Designers
The best way to ensure that you get the best landscape design—as well as the best implementation of that design—is to only entrust your project to landscaping contractors with a track record of success. Depending on the scope of your project, expert landscaping contractors are an absolute necessity for its success. And a contractor that handles both the design and actual landscaping will help streamline the process and almost certainly guarantee a better end product.
That’s why you ought to consider Paragon Designs! Our team has decades of combined experience and a history of satisfying clients with brand-new landscaping for their residential properties. Furthermore, we can tackle projects of any size, whether you need a few simple landscaping adjustments or a complete deconstruction and redesign of your home’s landscape. With us, planning out and executing your landscape designs has never been easier.
Perfect Your Landscape Design with Paragon Designs
If you have a landscaping project in mind that you’d like to see through, there’s no better team to handle your landscape design in Minnesota than Paragon Designs. You can reach us during standard business hours by calling us at 320-298-2421. If you’d prefer, you can also fill out our convenient form that is available online now. Let us make the landscape design process simple.
