How to Create a Low Maintenance Garden
It’s nice to have a beautiful yard, but it’s often demanding. The secret is to create a low-maintenance garden. These landscaping solutions are perfect if you don’t have much time to look after the yard. It could be your holiday garden, or you are busy with a job or raising a family. Whatever the reason you want low maintenance garden, we have a detailed guide on how to create it. Follow these steps to ensure you have a stunning yard that doesn’t require much maintaining effort!
Plan Your Garden
Any good projects begin with a bulletproof plan. Your initial task is to plan a stunning garden, and it starts by analyzing the available land. It’s best to get in touch with professional landscape contractors and schedule a meeting. They can help plan everything so it fits the low-maintenance requirements but also your budget and preferences.
Check out these quick tips for planning a low-maintenance garden:
- Consider your preferences. Would you like a large area to host guests or a pool to cool down during the summer months? If you have special considerations, mention them to your contractor to prioritize them when designing the garden.
- Analyze the site and pick the best spot for each plant. If you want a low-maintenance garden, each plant should be in an ideal location. That includes suitable soil, sunshine exposure, etc.
- Careful with lawn areas. Lawns are demanding to maintain, so it’s best to install replacements in most areas. You can pick alternatives that will keep your garden green.
Consider Low Maintenance Landscaping Plants
Choosing plants for your garden is the most interesting task when designing your backyard. If you want a low-maintenance garden, consider herbs that are native to the area. The best landscaping ideas for beginners also indicate you should go with plants resistant to severe weather conditions, especially heat. Here are the top choices to select for a low-maintenance garden!
Shrubs
Many flowering shrubs are available, so consider when they will bloom. Some species, such as Japanese spirea, bloom in June and July. They don’t mind the full sun and can even deliver a second flush of flowers if you prune the plant after it blooms.
Weigela, shrub roses, and smokebush are some other suggestions for shrubs in your backyard. Species like possumhaw have decorative berries, but you can also go with evergreen plants like goldthread cypress.
Shasta Daisy
It’s ideal for planting this perennial during the spring or summer. It can handle full sun exposure, but you could secure it some shade, too. The white flower color is dazzling, and if you want the Shasta daisy to reach its full potential, consider finding fertile and rich soil. The plant is sensitive to over-watering and can resist droughts for a limited time.
Coneflower
Echinacea is the scientific name of this perennial. It blooms from summer to the end of fall, with clumps only getting bigger each season. You can find them in various shades, such as purple, yellow, red, etc. It secures enough options to pick those that best fit your garden. Coneflowers are also available in different sizes; some grow over five feet.
Hardy Hibiscus
The plant is native to North America and is available in different shades. Whether you go with white, pink, or another color, you’ll love how the hibiscus flower looks. The flowers don’t last long, but you can expect many blooms during the summer season. Hardy hibiscus is famous as an endurable plant that can even survive cold winters.
Install Water Irrigation Systems
Hand-watering is out of the question since you want to minimize your effort. Investing in a water irrigation system is a smart move, especially in the long run. While choosing the irrigation option, consider how to maximize water conservation.
Most experts recommend a drip irrigation system as it’s more efficient and helps to preserve water. You can use different functions of a smart irrigation system to optimize water use. For example, you can program to irrigate at certain times of the day. Some system seven has sensors that monitor soil moisture and detect rain. If it starts raining, the irrigation system turns itself off automatically.
Explore Xeriscaping
Xeriscaping is a concept that you are already moving toward if you are interested in low-maintenance gardening. According to National Geographic, it’s an idea to design a landscape to eliminate or minimize irrigation requirements. The most xeriscaped garden doesn’t require any extra water beyond that provided by nature.
If you live in a dry region, such as the western US, xeriscaping is imperative. During times of long droughts, water becomes a scarce resource. Apart from minimizing its use, xeriscaping fits low-maintenance gardens and can even reduce the overall costs of maintaining the landscape.
Check out these tips for xeriscaping your yard:
- Pick suitable plants. Native herbs and those suitable for the climate will fit best.
- Avoid large lawn surfaces. As you already know, lawns require most watering to stay flawless.
- Mulch. You can help water preservation, prevent weed growth, and decrease heat with mulch. The experts advise using bark chips and similar organic matter.
- Don’t water with maximum pressure. If you blast the plants with water, it could lead to wasting it while increasing the risk of damaging the plants.
- Many municipalities offer xeriscaping rebates. If there’s a local program supporting xeriscaping, you could save some funds. Contact relevant authorities for more details.
Mix and Match Easy-Care Paving
Paving is important to secure optimal traffic to and from your garden. Fortunately, there are affordable paving options that require minimal maintenance. Composite decking offers a vast selection of designs and finishes.
Your task is only to choose the preferred combination, and you shouldn’t hesitate to mix and match. Dark but neutral shades, such as gray, are a common option for paving. You can pick an area that will feature stone tiles with unusual patterns. It depends on how much attention you want a particular zone to attract. You can consider faux-wood tiles for areas where you place furniture or durable porcelain paving around flower zones.
Create Functional Outdoor Living Space
What’s the point of having a fantastic backyard if you can’t enjoy it? While designing your low-maintenance garden plan, don’t neglect a functional outdoor living space. These are areas where people can spend time outside. It’s a place to enjoy reading a book while children are playing. You can invite and entertain guests and create memorable grilling parties.
Here are some tips to use:
- Add a fire pit and chairs around it. It’s a perfect place for social gatherings, especially since the fire keeps you warm in the evening.
- Install a pool for hot summer days. The surrounding area can have sunbeds and don’t forget tiles or stone for a better appearance.
- Place a grill or an entire outdoor kitchen. If you are a BBQ enthusiast, you can cook fantastic food and gather friends and neighbors.
- Create a stress-free zone with a covered pergola. A covered pergola keeps you safe from the rain. You can install furniture pieces and create an area to relieve stress and relax.
Invest in a Container Garden
Not everyone considers containers to be a part of low-maintenance gardening. But if you think about it, the pros largely outweigh the cons.
Check out the advantages offered by container gardening:
- You can grow plants in restricted spaces. It’s not necessary to have a huge backyard, especially if you want to grow different plants.
- It’s easy to rearrange the containers. You could remove pots and rearrange the garden easily. The reason could be that there’s a better position for that plant, or you just want to mix things up.
- Fewer problems with weeds. Containers are an environment you control, including the seeds and soil. Birds and animals might carry some weeds, but it should pose minimal issues.
- Fewer issues with plant diseases and pests. Once again, we return to a controlled container environment. So even if a disease attacks your plant, it won’t spread to other herbs.
So, what’s the downside of a container garden? Many point out its frequent watering, which doesn’t technically fit the low-maintenance garden guidelines. You could resolve this with larger containers. And even if you water them frequently, it will still take less time than dealing with weeds, pests, and other issues.
Make Small Rock Gardens
You are ready to give up large lawn areas but aren’t sure about the right replacements. Rock gardens have existed for centuries, especially in Japanese and Asian cultures. These concepts have a crucial benefit in that they only need minimal care during hot summer days.
Here’s a quick guide to making a rock garden:
- Pick a location. Rock gardens don’t mind direct sunshine. However, avoid big trees since leaves will fall and disrupt the garden’s appearance in the fall.
- Determine the desired layout. You can look for inspiration online or visit mountain zones close to your property.
- Pick the rocks. You can mix small pebbles and dry sand, as that seems to be the easiest option. Choose the ones you like for the surface, and then consider large rocks and other materials.
- Do the ground preparation. It will require removing weeds and herb roots in the area. Add a free-draining foundation with broken bricks and rubble.
- Add the pieces. Follow the set layout, but make changes if you feel like it. Large stones should be buried so that only two-thirds are above the ground. Add some sun-loving plants to boost the natural touch.
It takes time to create a low-maintenance garden. But once you finish the project, you’ll love the minimal effort required to keep its flawless appearance. Instead of wasting time on maintaining it, you can focus on relaxing and enjoying your beautiful yard!
