Your front yard is the first thing that people see when they pull up to your house. But let's be real; it's the last thing that we think of - unless our neighbours have an immaculate, perfect one and suddenly we're concerned about property value. Fortunately, you don't need lawn staff and a major budget to achieve a seemingly put-together front yard. Making a few small changes does wonders for how nice your house looks from the street.
Edge Like You've Never Before
Edge lines are everything - and nothing looks clean when edges aren't clean. If your grass is freshly cut but there's a fuzzy edge along the driveway, sidewalk, and flowerbeds, everything looks like it needs a little extra effort.
Take 20 minutes to edge the perimeter of your yard, and suddenly your driveway looks fresh, the walkway has purpose instead of looking like an accident, and your flower beds are actually flower beds instead of grass with some weeds and flowers trying to make it.
The reason why people don't do this is because they think that mowing is enough - spoiler: It's not. Edging is what makes your yard look like it doesn't need too much work, when in reality, it's just the kind of work that makes it look fabulous and maintained.
Tame Your Hedges
If something screams, "it's been a while since we've been outside to tend to the yard," it's hedges. They overtake windows, spill over into walkways, and darken what would be a sunny abode.
The problem that happens to people and their hedges is that they get out of control and become too big a project to seem worth it. But it really doesn't have to be the case.
If you have hedges that are growing out of control, an electric hedge trimmer makes things far easier than navigating manual shears to only have awkward trims afterwards. You can reshape a hedge line in about one hour, cuts are cleaner (healthier plants, better looking results), and you're not sore for two days after.
Start from the top to trim down with a levelling motion of the trimmer. Most hedges are wider on the bottom than they are on top - this is to prevent any constricted growth on the lower branches while allowing sun access to all parts for even growth. Once you have the shape down, it's easy to maintain with a quick trim every few weeks during the growing season.
Weeds Be Gone
Weeds in your driveway cracks, weeds in your foundation, weeds coming up through your mulch - they all scream "I've been neglected", and worse, they come back very quickly.
The best solution? Prevention. Take a lap around your yard once a week and pull what's not supposed to be there before it becomes an out-of-control number of intrusive plants. If you have a garden bed that's overrun with weeds, lay landscape fabric down before applying mulch. It'll help keep them out for at least some time until maintenance becomes reasonable again.
Pavers or concrete cracks have tools designed to dig weeds out without disturbing the surrounding areas. Some people also swear by boiling water to kill weeds in hard-to-reach places, while others maintain a vinegar solution. Regardless, do what you feel comfortable with - but stay on top of things before they become overwhelming.
Mulch Update
Old mulch makes healthy plants look sickly. It fades to grey and thins out until it's merely dirt with a few wood chips here and there; it's embarrassing for everyone involved - especially the plants.
Fresh mulch updates flower beds from the street perspective. It brightens every colour of plant, makes everything look finished, keeps moisture in for moisture loving plants, and helps avoid weed intruders as well.
No need to pull out all the old (unless there's extensive decomposition) - simply rake smooth and lay down a few inches of fresh mulch on top. Dark brown or black mulch looks cleaner than red - and goes well with almost any house colour.
Keep it away from the foundation as well as the stems of plants - piling it against the house causes moisture issues, while mounding around plant stems causes rot.
Repair Obvious Things
A crooked mailbox, cracked house number signs, front door peeling paint, gutters falling off the house - these are small details that people may notice without realisation that the house just looks "off."
Take a walk from the curb up to your front door as if you've never seen it before; what's broken? What's dirty? What's worn? Many take less than an hour but make the property look worlds better when it seems maintained.
Power wash your front steps and pathway if they look grimy, tighten that loose porch railing, replace house numbers if they're missing or faded - none of these projects are glamorous, but they'll make sure that your house is on par with neighbouring houses that appear cared for - and others that appear sad.
Add A Splash of Colour
A front yard filled with greenery can look kind of boring and lame across to other houses. You don't have to become a master gardener; it's just nice to have some pops of colour by the entrance for curb appeal.
If you're anti-flowers, consider flowering shrubs that return annually with less effort - hydrangeas, roses, and azaleas can be forgiving flowers that add colour without replanting every season. Conversely, if you're someone who kills everything, consider three big planters on either side of your door; you're less likely to neglect something right in front of your face every day compared to at the end of your driveway.
Keep it simple, though; three big planters with similar type plants look better than twelve different varieties scattered about attempting - and failing - to find interest.
Maintain It
Finally - and most importantly - once you get everything looking good from this list, people fail by letting things get back out of control again. If you need some inspiration for keeping your outdoor space looking fresh, check out my post on Top Tips to Get Your Garden Summer-Ready.
Maintenance is key, but it doesn't have to be an overwhelming task every single time.
Take a walk around once a week; if you have ten minutes and you can pull easy weeds while they're small, trim hedges before they become projects, edge when things start looking fuzzy and clean up leaves before they become a problem - you'll find this a lot easier than once every three months when everything runs away from you.
Ten minutes once a week is much easier than three hours every month if you let things go for four weeks plus! Your front yard doesn't need to be magazine-perfect for it to look good; it simply needs to look like someone cares. Clean edges, trimmed hedges, pulled weeds and fresh mulch - and simple splashes of colour - go far from street perspective for something much better than mediocre!
No comments:
Post a Comment