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Serving the Naperville Community
Serving the Naperville Community
 Your outdoor living space should be a comfortable haven to which you can escape regardless of the weather or time of day. Optimizing your outdoor entertainment in the face of the elements can be a daunting task—but the payoff will be well worth it. Here are a few landscaping tips to make your outdoor living space as functional as possible and to streamline your relaxation.
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 Undertaking any change can feel daunting at first. There is a lot to plan for and adjust to when you’re about to introduce landscape design changes to your Naperville, IL, property. Your current routine may be uprooted for a bit. If you are prepared ahead of time for what is needed and expected, then the transition to the wonderful changes ahead to your landscape will be seamless. Here are some steps to help you prepare for changes to your landscape design. What’s Involved with the Site Survey and Analysis You should expect that a complete site survey and analysis will be performed. This means that at a minimum, site visits by the landscaping company has been completed. They will assess the current design, the topography, soil, environment, and your lifestyle to ensure that as the process unfolds, the unexpected has already been carefully thought out. These proactive steps will keep you and the landscaping company you are working with on the same page and working together to determine the most efficient way to bring change to your property. There can be forethought into how to cause your family the least amount of interruption and downtime. At this point, you and the company performing the work have an opportunity to fully discuss the potential issues, what is most important to your needs, and ensure scheduling will occur with minimal, if any, setbacks. Related: Challenges in Landscape Design and How Our Team Can Help in Wheaton, IL Take Time With the Landscape Design Mock-Ups Using mock-ups and renderings will allow you to be able to see the phases unfold before the big build begins. This gives you ample opportunity to make the changes and adjustments you need on your end to avoid any detrimental lifestyle intrusions that could occur without this knowledge. Having a complete concept plan will also allow you to make sure spacing is adequate, the concept of the design fits together and the overall design plan works with existing architectural features and hardscapes. Selection of Materials, Features Whenever possible, it is ideal to focus on keeping your landscape as environmentally friendly as possible, whether that means prioritizing native plants that are destined to thrive with minimal water or considering how to reduce the amount of care your overall lawn needs if you bring in more hardscape features, such as an expanded patio. You want your new landscape design to thrive and adhere to the soil, surroundings, weather, and impact that it will be up against on a daily basis. This can be achieved by making sure your landscape contractor is knowledgeable about choosing proper placement of each plant, water feature, turf, and foliage that is going into your remodeled landscape. Related: The Benefits of 3D Design for Your Naperville, IL, Landscaping Scheduling and Timelines Scheduling is one of the most important things to consider when preparing for landscape design changes. Weather, your lifestyle, deliveries, and the experts you’ve hired will all affect the timing of your project. Keep in touch with your landscaper as the project unfolds so that you are in tune with why any delays may occur and what the remedies are. Experienced landscape contractors have gone through pretty much any conceivable challenge on their job sites and can provide realistic timelines for your project. Things happen, and skilled contractors will deal with them promptly, while keeping you in the loop at every step.  You might love to host family birthdays or barbeques, but perhaps the current state of your brick patio is preventing you from sending out any invites lately. The last thing you want is for your grandmother to stumble while hanging out in your Hinsdale, IL, landscape. The time to repair or replace those broken and missing bricks could be now. A Crumbling Patio If you worry when guests visit that the a missing brick could cause a twisted ankle or worse, then repairing the patio problems can help you not to stress over accidental injuries. Maybe even you forget to step around the broken pieces and stumble as you try to water your flowers. Eliminating potential accidents by replacing the missing or fractured bricks can ease your mind. Related: Bring a Traditional Look to Your Wheaton, IL, Backyard With a Brick Patio Standing Water on the Patio If your poorly installed patio has sunken places where the water collects from a rainstorm, this can bring about mold, which can make the bricks slippery and hazardous. At times the rain can run across the patio and wash out all of the landscaping that you have worked so hard to install. There is not much more discouraging than seeing your mulch and flowers strewn down the path that the water takes. Water that does not drain properly can cause the bricks in the patio to sink and when this happens, you can end up with potholes. Water that does not drain well from the brick patio can also cause damage to the foundation of your home. When the water has nowhere to go, it will just sit beside the foundation and seep into your crawl space or basement, potentially leading to mold and other costly damage. Frustrating Weeds in Your Brick Patio Any cracked or missing mortar leaves a place for weeds to grow in the patio bricks. Once this happens, the integrity of the rest of the bricks are threatened because weeds and vines are persistent and find their way into the smallest of cracks. It is certainly a frustrating process to try to battle the weeds that always seem to find their way into any opening between the bricks. Related: How to Choose Brick Pattern Designs for Your New Patio in Naperville, IL Patio That Is Not Level When the bricks settle and begin to slant, the entire structure of the patio can be threatened. Not only can this cause damage to your yard when the rain runs off, but the slanting of the bricks makes the patio virtually unusable. When the rest of your yard is well-groomed and lush, a non-functional patio can be an eyesore. What Happens When You Correct the Problems When you correct the problems with your patio bricks by replacing the broken ones or renovating the entire patio, you have the opportunity to correct any water problems that exist. Imagine no more gullies through the yard during a rainstorm, or no more standing puddles on the patio, or no more navigating your way around the patio to attend to your flowers. When you repair or replace problematic pavers in your patio with quality materials that are installed correctly, you won’t have to worry about repairs—you can simply enjoy your new patio.  Caring for your landscape can be tricky, especially if you have a variety of plants in different areas. Luckily, we’ve got great landscaping tips to keep your plants looking robust and bright during the hot summer months. Here are some of the ways you can keep your plants in tip-top shape in the Wheaton, IL, summer: Light Sunlight is an important part of every plant’s growth, so giving each plant the right amount is crucial to its development and health. Some plants need full sun, others partial sun, and some thrive in the shade. It’s important to know what each plant prefers, and keep plants with similar needs in the same area. Plants like lilacs and roses prefer full sun, and can be placed in direct sunlight. They need sunlight to keep their leaves dry, which prevents disease and helps them thrive. Other species, like hostas, can tolerate a good amount of shade if cared for properly. More delicate plants will burn in too much sun, and need the cover of shade. Related: Why Softscapes Are an Essential Part of Your Hinsdale, IL, Landscape Design Water The water needs of your landscape increase during the hot summer months. The sun and hot air dry out the soil, depleting water and nutrients from your planting area. Keeping track of how much water your landscape gets is critical to planting success. Some plants need more water than others, so knowing how much water each plant needs can make the difference between life and death. For plants that like a moist bed, be sure to apply a heavy layer of wood chip mulch, like cedar. The mulch keeps the water in the soil, prevents weeds, and if you choose cedar mulch, can even repel certain types of pests like ticks. If you notice your soil still drying out on a hot day, perhaps consider installing a sprinkler or irrigation system that will deliver water to your plants all day long. Pruning Gentle pruning can be a helpful tool for keeping your landscape looking healthy. While heavy pruning is done for most plants in the early spring or late fall, sometimes plants can benefit from a light pruning. Mowing the lawn is essentially pruning, and it prevents the grass from going to seed, keeping it lush and green. Plants like roses benefit from a light pruning, like deadheading expired blooms and wilted foliage. If a plant starts to get yellow leaves or dried out foliage, it may be a sign that the plant is under stress. Gently pruning away dead leaves or foliage will allow the plant to dedicate more resources to the thriving parts of the plant. This will make it grow bigger and better, and lead to a healthier plant. Related: 3 Gorgeous Masonry Ideas for Building Planter Boxes in Wheaton, IL Companion Planting Companion planting is the practice of growing plants next to each other that mutually benefit from their neighbor in one way or another. For example, growing a tall bushy plant next to one that needs some shade can keep it cool and provide a critical shield from the sun. If you have plants that need good drainage, a deep rooting plant like a small tree can be a great way to keep water from sitting on the top layers. Some plants even attract beneficial insects that can help to control harmful bugs. Ladybugs are one example of a beneficial insect as they can eat aphids and other insects that feast on your plants. Ladybugs love herbs and certain flowers like geraniums, so plant these where you want beneficial insects to protect vulnerable species. |
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