In the big picture, anytime is a good time to begin your landscape project planning. A good landscape design is a work of art. Just as a poet or writer may scribble a line or two on the back of a napkin as it comes to them, you can jot down notes, tear pictures out of magazines or store online pictures of landscape designs that inspire you.
In the immediate picture, winter and early spring are when you should kick your ideas into high gear and begin working with a professional New Jersey landscape design firm to turn your ideas into a physical reality. Here are tips for using winter and early spring for a landscape design and/or construction project that can be completed in time for your summer enjoyment.
Tips for Landscape Planning in New Jersey
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Contact a professional – Unless you are a landscape aficionado, the earlier you hire a professional landscape designer the better. Many companies offer a free consultation to evaluate your property and make recommendations. This way, you won’t waste time making plans that aren’t possible for your location, sun exposure, architecture, etc.
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Consider your space – So often our clients have wonderful ideas, or bring us pictures and say, “I want that!” However, their ideas don’t always work with their space, surrounding architecture, or our New Jersey climate.
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However, the more visual inspiration you can bring with you, or show your landscape designer at the outset, the more we can do to incorporate your ideas, color choices and landscape accents into a design that you love and complements your property.
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Prioritize your hardscape ideas – Of course hardscape design elements can be added at any time, but your foliage will thank you if you do your hardscape construction before you amend the soil and plant living things.
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Water features, raised planters, walkways, gazebos and fire pits are all wonderful accents, but they can require a bit of digging, trenching and concrete pouring. Installing them secondarily means having to tear out your landscape and reinstall it. Try to get your hardscape elements in first, and then you can move onto the living things.
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Seasonal interest – Pouring over seed and plant catalogs, or strolling through a local nursery, is a wonderful way to learn what makes your heart go pitter-patter. However, it’s equally important that the plants you choose aren’t 100 percent summer-blooming annuals, which prefer a Mediterranean climate.
Your Bergen County landscape designer can help you hone in on the type of foliage you are attracted to and then find trees, plants and shrubs that work for our climate. Things you may want to consider
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Having plants that bloom or fruit in all seasons so your garden has year-round color interest.
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Butterfly and bird attractors. Certain plant species are known for the variety of birds, butterflies, and other pollinators that visit when they’re blooming and/or fruiting.
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There are many edible plants that are also beautiful additions to a landscape.
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Are you committed to an organic landscape? Make sure your landscape designer is too!
A professional landscape designer will make sure your outdoor living spaces are visually appealing in all four seasons.
