Landscaping Plant GuideA landscaping plant guide will help you narrow down which type of plants you'll be adding to your yard. It will also help you identify the characteristics of the plants that you intend to add to your landscape, so that you select the plants that are the best fit for the location. You've already completed your landscape design by modifying a free landscape design available to you on this site, or by using one of your own. By starting with a landscape design, you have already decided on the location of the landscaping trees, landscaping bushes, perennial plants and annual flowers you wish to use in your design. You know what function your backyard will serve, and the overall feel that you're trying to create. Use a landscaping plant guide to help identify exactly which plants will work best for you.
Select the perfect tree for your backyard landscaping design! You may be designing around one or more trees that already exist on your property, or you may be planting new babies to grow with you and your family. You'll want to choose the type of tree carefully, depending on where it will be positioned in your yard, to make sure that it brings you many years of enjoyment. A landscaping plant guide should take into consideration the different characteristics of different trees before making your selections.
Gurney's Seed and Nursery (opens new window) is one of my favorite online/catalog companies to order plants from. I have purchased apple trees and blueberry bushes from them, and lots of vegetable seeds. One of my orders failed to contain an item, and I found their customer service department to be friendly and easy to reach. The problem was resolved very quickly. Take a look for yourself!
Select the best bushes for your backyard landscaping design depending on the purpose that the plant will serve. Are you creating a living fence? Do you want to enjoy fragrant lilacs in the spring? Do you want to add an artistic display to a particular area? There are landscaping bushes to meet each and every one of your needs. Click on the link above for more information related to landscaping bushes.
My personal favorite of all landscaping plants.....perennials! These beauties are planted once and return year after year, for many years of enjoyment. A landscaping plant guide should help you identify the maximum growth heights of the perennial plants you'll use, the amount of sun the plant needs, and the blooming period of each plant. Perennial plants tend to multiply with each passing year, and should be divided at least once every 4-5 years. This is a handy way to add more plants to your yard, as you can replant these divisions, essentially adding more and more plants to your backyard landscaping design for FREE! Click on the link above for the landscaping plant guide related to perennials of all types.
Spring Hill (opens new window), another favorite of mine, has a huge variety of perennials! If it's perennials you're after, this is definitely the place to start! They also have a large variety of shrubs and irises to choose from.
What a beautiful thing! Plants that actually thrive in a shady environment!
Shade loving perennials are some of my favorite varieties of perennial plants available. I have so many trees throughout my yard, which means that I have many areas that exhibit poorly developed grass, weed growth, or no growth at all. I have built up the soil around the base of several of these trees where I have then planted clusters of shade loving perennials to enhance the beauty of these previously neglected areas. Click on the link above for more information about the shade loving perennials that I have added to my own landscape.
Annuals Plants
I don't plant many annuals in my yard, but I do love a colorful window box display and patio planters. Annual gardens (opens new window) are a wonderful addition to any landscape. If the design is right, the end result can be a real "show stopper" in your neighborhood!
Bulb Plants Bulb plants are another one of my favorites! Who doesn't love the site of tulips or daffodils as the first sign of spring after a long winter? Bulb plants are particularly easy to plant and easy to care for. Take my yard, for example, where they have received no care beyond the initial planting, but where they give me much enjoyment come May! Consider planting tulips and daffodils outside a window you frequently look out, or where you'll see them every time you come home. You'll be so happy that you did! Brecks (opens new window) has the most beautiful tulips and daffodils I've seen! I ordered 30 tulips from this company last year, and I was truly impressed with the display in spring. The tulip stems were as sturdy as they said they'd be, and the flowers were very good quality, just as promised. I plan on adding another 30 tulips to the same area next year.
Other considerations when choosing which
Now that you've decided what your finished product will look like, you can use your landscaping plant guide to decide how much money you want to spend, and where you want to purchase your yard plants. You'll also need to decide how quickly you'd like to see your backyard landscaping plan unfold. Do you want it to be established within a year or two, or do you want it to grow and develop over time? |
Annual flowers can bring a great deal of color and "pizzaz" to your backyard landscaping design. Use a landscaping plant guide to organize the flowers in your design by color and height. Some flowers even serve dual functions....beauty and protection! Did you know that marigolds are known for their mosquito deterant qualities?
