It may be cliché, but first impressions really are everything. Curb appeal is very important in real estate and landscaping is on of the most important and efficient methods to increase your home’s value.
Below, we’ve put together some landscaping ideas that’ll up your home’s value, whether or not you are planning to sell.
Match Your Landscaping to Your Home’s Architectural Style
One of the best ways to increase your home’s overall value is to create a singular style and stick with it. It is helpful to create a versatile landscape that can be adapted to any style home, in the instance that your tastes change or you decide to sell your home.
Plant Some Trees
You can’t really go wrong with trees. In one study by the Wall Street Journal, trees helped homes sell for 10-15% more than their asking price. They add shade, help get rid of carbon dioxide in the air, and bring a relaxing, calming feeling to a space.
Increase Privacy
Windows are often a big selling point for buyers who want a lot of natural light and an expansive feel. However, big windows also mean neighbors and passerby’s can easily peek into your home. To preserve ambiance but add privacy, opt for soft, airy-textured, glossy-leaved barrier shrubs outside the windows over fortress style hedges or fences.
Make Your Lawn as Low-Maintenance as Possible
Keeping your lawn and landscaping simple saves yourself as well as new homeowners time on maintenance, and also helps cut down on water costs.
Add Color
Gardens with full, leafy plants and vibrant flowers will add wonderful color, texture, and dimension to your landscape. Beautiful flowers, thick shrubbery, and blooming plants will create instant curb appeal for your home and give your landscape a well-maintained appearance.
Lighting
Once you’ve worked hard to increase your curb appeal, now make sure you can see it all the time. Highlight your home’s architectural features and most-eye capturing shrubs and flowers with landscape lighting.
Tips to Keep Your Lawn Green in the Summer Heat
There are quite a few actions you can take throughout the year and especially in the summertime to keep your lawn lush and green. We have put together some tips to keep your lawn green in the summer heat.
Water Early
The best time to water your lawn during the summer months is the early morning, before 10 AM. Cooler temperatures in the morning help keep evaporation to a minimum. Watering in the morning also keeps the turf cooler during the hot parts of the day, which reduces the stress on the grass.
Water Deeply
You should water your lawn long enough to moisten the soil about 6 inches down, which is the depth of a healthy grass root system. It takes about one inch of water to wet normal lawns to that depth.
Mow High
Avoid scalping the grass when mowing. Weak and sparse grass and exposed soil can make your lawn more susceptible to weeds and disease. Shift the cutting deck on your mower higher during the summer months. We recommend cutting at 3 ½ inches.
Maintain Your Mower
It is important to keep your mower properly maintained. The most important part of this is ensuring blades are kept sharp. Blunt blades tear grass rather than cut it, and this will damage the plant, making it more susceptible to browning.
Fertilize
Your lawn also needs regular feeding in order to stay green all year. We recommend feeding your lawn every six to eight weeks.