Sustainable Landscaping: Easy & Accessible Strategies

On top of the mere conscious effort to go green, there are many benefits to sustainable landscaping on a simpler level. It can boost plant health and wildlife activity in your yard and is often more cost-effective. It can be overwhelming to try and incorporate sustainable landscaping practices into your routine all at once, but here are some big ideas to consider if you want to get started. Energy Efficient Landscape Design If you’re at a beginner point with your space where you can plan for sustainable landscaping from the bottom up, you can make landscaping decisions based around sustainable practices. Ultimately, what you’re aiming for is energy conservation, so you want to focus your efforts on saving light, water, and heat resources. Saving Light Resources Luckily, solar power has become more and more accessible. That being said, solar panel installation can be a lot of money upfront, so if you’re saving up to install them, there are other things you can do. It’s no secret that outdoor spaces are growing in popularity, which means homeowners are looking for sustainable ways to light up their spaces. There are lots of solar-powered string lights and ground lights that not only save energy but are also low maintenance. Other small-scale solar-powered items that aren’t roof panels include:

• Solar grills for outdoor cooking
• Solar chargers and generators
• Window panels

There are lots of ways to incorporate solar power into your landscaping without directly installing roof panels. Contact our team for more information. Saving Heat Resources When it comes to saving heat resources, the best way to go about this is by planting strategically. For example, plant trees that will provide shade to save on AC costs or plant evergreens to block the winter chill. Shrubs and bushes can easily shade AC units, and installing windbreaks can reduce heating costs by up to 25%. You can even get creative and plant vines for insulation. The best part is that they look great while serving a specific purpose! Saving Water Resources Xeriscapes and incorporating plant varieties that don’t require much water are two obvious ways to save water resources, but there are others. For example, mulching your plants helps with water conservation, meaning that just adding a little mulch will keep you from having to water so often. You also want to consider your yard’s drainage and irrigation systems; for example, installing a drip irrigation system saves more water than other irrigation types. Landscaping Soil Health & Reducing Waste
Soil Health One great way to promote soil health while landscaping sustainably is by using natural fertilizers and soil amendments. There are naysayers who say this fertilizer won’t work for you, but it’s important to understand that natural fertilizers are designed to feed your soil, while chemical fertilizers are designed to feed your plants. Besides, chances are your plants’ health is suffering because they’re lacking chemicals in their soil–so you’ll have to feed them anyway. The great part about this is that you can actually make the fertilizer yourself–and you can do it using plant waste you would have had to dispose of anyway, like leaves and branches. Composting is a great way to fertilize your yard naturally, and you don’t need fancy tools or products to do it. Composting does so much for your landscape: it balances soil pH, contributes soil nutrients, protects against plant stressors, reduces methane emissions from landfills, improves soil moisture retention, and attracts beneficial organisms. Other ways you can reduce waste while contributing to your landscaping are mulching, which works similarly to composting, grasscycling, and reusing whatever you can, from pallets to metal cans as pots to chicken wire. Sustainable Landscaping Through Lawn Care
Sustainable Lawn Care As mentioned previously, there are lots of ways you can make your own organic fertilizers and lawn care products. However, there are also lawn mowing methods that are more sustainable than others. Take a look:

• Mow High: If you keep your grass on the taller side of the recommended mowing height, it will encourage weed prevention and deeper root systems.
• Grass Cycling: As mentioned above, grass clippings are great for your lawn because they release nutrients into the soil, reducing the need for water use and chemical products.
• Regular Mowing: Mowing weekly helps with weed prevention, reducing the need for lawn chemicals.
• Maintain Your Mower: Ensuring your mower has sharp blades and is in tip-top shape makes for less emissions from your lawn mower.

Reducing Lawn Care Areas This may seem a little backward at first, but hear it out: reducing your lawn size means less water and energy conservation. Replacing grass with wildflowers, edible plants, or ground covers not only helps with energy conservation but also improves your lawn’s microbiome. You’ll see much more wildlife, and the plants you do have will flourish and be self-sustainable, requiring less maintenance. Conclusion All in all, there are many strategies for sustainable landscaping, and many of them aren’t that difficult or costly. In fact, once they’re implemented, your landscaping requires less maintenance as your yard becomes more self-sustainable. Sustainable landscaping saves time, money, resources, and, most of all, worry. Whether you’re just starting to build up your yard or you’re looking to transition to more sustainable strategies, there are plenty of things you can try.