Landscaping tips

• A healthy landscape starts with a plan. Gather ideas you like from residential, commercial and public gardens. And remember a plan is meant to change over time to incorporate new ideas and fix problem areas.
• Trees provide a long term framework for your landscape. They provide structure, screening, shade and year round beauty.
• Include flowers, vines & groundcovers in your landscaping to provide focal points and add splashes of color. Flowers can be planted in beds, grown in containers, or mixed in amongst trees and shrubs.
• Match your landscape to your lifestyle. If you enjoy working in your yard, add vegetable, annual or perennial flower beds. If you are not the gardening type - and texture and color with a few container plants or with a small area filled with annuals.
• Know your yard's (micro) climate. Every location has a distinct climate caused by the unique typography of the land, location of the buildings, proximity to water, wind patterns and other local factors.
• Don't fight your site! Take your local "micro" climate into consideration. For example, keep heat sensitive plants away from south facing walls, which get intense sun. That way you will not have to counteract excessive heat with additional watering.