Grading

Grading is the first step that should be dealt with when you are planning the landscape design. Grading helps prepare the yard to suit hardscaping elements such as making a walking path, driveway, building stairs or a patio and softscaping elements such as growing plants and grass. Grading helps eliminate the stagnation of water and allows the water (where mosquito larvae breed), to flow away. Grading or sculpting of the land helps create a slope that ensures, water flows away from the house. This reduces chances of the pooled water close to the foundation from causing any structural damage.

Balance the components

Hardscaping and softscaping are the two main components of landscape design. Hardscaping includes durable and long term elements such as driveways, walkways, decks, paver patios, outdoor kitchens, water features, retaining walls, gravel, rocks, etc. Softscaping includes living elements that need regular upkeep such as trees, plants, shrubs, vines, flowers, vegetables, soil, turf, etc. Hardscape elements require lesser maintenance – this means, once installed, there are fewer maintenance expenses. Whereas softscape elements in comparison, if not planned in a proper balance with other long term elements, can rake up expenses such as water and energy bills, herbicides, fertilizers, etc.

Irrigation planning

When your yard is a combination of landscaping components like Softscaping elements and Hardscaping elements, you need to ensure that you plan the laying of irrigation pipes and the mode of irrigation very carefully. You can trust Certified Landscape Construction to assist you with this as it can be crucial in the long term. For instance, if you were to select a pop-up rotor to irrigate your lawn and it was to throw a portion of the water on the hardscaping elements, then not only will that be a wastage of water, but it will also cause the area where water has been dispensed, to become slippery resulting in a fall or injury if not walked upon carefully.

Xeriscaping

Xeriscaping leads many people to envision a yard with a desert-like and barren landscape that is void of textures or color. This is far from what xeriscaping can truly look like. As the trend is catching on in drought-tolerant areas and arid climates, environmentally conscious people are also adopting xeriscape principles. Certified Landscape Construction promotes water conservation and we can assist you with designing a beautiful colourful lawn with multiple textures so that you can not only enjoy the yard but also reduce the water bills significantly.