While we love taking on landscaping large design projects, we know some people only one smaller areas of their yard landscaped, and yet others would love to be surrounded by beautiful flowers and plants while living in a smaller space like a garden apartment or duplex. We are up for designing smaller spaces as well! There are several reasons to consider landscaping smaller spaces, and several ways to we can spruce them up.
Let’s talk about an important reason to landscape even smaller yards. First of all, here in the U.S. we have somehow taken it to heart that we must have large swaths of green grass in front of our house. But there are a lot of reasons this thinking is incorrect in terms of the environment we live in here in Florida. Our love affair with grass has become an environmental disaster here in SWFL. The overall impact of taking care of our lawns through irrigation and fertilization here in the U.S. consumes nearly 3 trillion gallons of water a year, and about 2.4 million metric tons of fertilizer. Southwest Florida has unfortunately been feeling the effects of that fertilizer and water usage the past few years with our red tide and blue green algae infestations in our waterways and canals. Plant beds and mulched areas use much less water and fertilizer, which is why it’s a great idea to landscape even smaller properties rather than leave them with just a lawn. Creating a yard that thrives on rainfall only is one of the best ways to reduce your water bill while still having a gorgeous and healthy landscape.
Another reason to consider having even your smaller outdoor spaces landscaped is curb appeal. Our professional landscaping services can create the illusion of more space by giving your yard a curving pathway of flowers wound around important focal points like large planters or decorative vases. Small upgrades to your lawn can be just as impactful as a total outdoor makeover when they are done right.
Another way we can make your yard appear larger is by breaking up open areas with small plant groupings, and creating little restful nooks for sitting and reading or watching the sunset. By creating little vignettes of colorful flowers or plants it creates an intimate space.
Smaller front yards can be landscaped to maximize space without an overcrowding of plants. We may start with one large plant, for example a bromeliad right in the center, giving an illusion of extensive space, and then surrounding it with smaller colorful plants. This creates a stunning clean effect with a central focal point.
If you have one or two large trees in your yard, we can take advantage of that by digging out the grass underneath it and planting some shade loving flowers and plants, along with a mulch bed. The sun is so brutal here in SWFL that it’s lovely to be able to create plan beds beneath a tree to add some shade loving varieties to your landscape.
Believe it or not, creating outstanding small space landscapes takes even more design expertise, and we know the basics to make sure your condo, townhouse or small yard look fantastic. #SWFLlandscaping #Floridalandscapedesign.
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