Curb Appeal - Front Yard Transformation in EGR

East Grand Rapids Home Before Landscape Transformation

Planning to sell your home soon? Don't just clean up that landscape. Transform it.

 

If your home landscape hasn't recently been updated, you should really consider replacing outdated plantings.  It makes sense to keep mature, well placed trees and shrubs, assuming they have not become too over grown to be effectively prune without constricting your options for transformation.  Proper pruning can turn healthy trees and shrubs into prime focal points. 

Here I added PJM Rhododendron, Endless Summer Hydrangeas, Chocolate Eupatorium, Huechera, Hanoke Grasses and Hostas - Color interest is assured through use of "evergreen" foliage of various colors, as well as steady flowering of different plants from season to season.

Once you have determined what trees and shrubs can remain with careful pruning, remove other worn out plants.  Make sure you have removed all roots from old plants without damaging desirable plant roots. 

Having removed old perennials, shrubs and trees, it will be necessary to add garden soil or compost to fill the vacant spaces.  Spread four inches of compost over the area you are renovating.  In small areas, mix the compost in using a shovel or garden fork and rake.  Large areas will need to be mixed using a tiller. Just don't damage tree roots in the process. Alternatively, mix compost into individual planting holes at a 1:1 ratio.

Ground cover such as the Periwinkle seen here can be very effective for large areas.  However, it needs to be used in moderation.  The above area lacked height and color variation making the overall look pretty boring.  Overgrown Yews had previously been removed from beneath the windows (good move) leaving only Pachysandra.  Dull.  Most ground cover overwhelms other perennials and shrubs, so if you plan to keep the ground cover, be sure the plants have enough space to become established and not be choked out.  Also, choose plants that sufficiently tall and whose leaves naturally emerge higher than the typical 6-10" height of Periwinkle and Pachysandra.

Here we have another "before" view of the home we transformed in EGR.

And here is the after view.  Notice the colorful display.  I removed the existing Pachysandra and Periwinkle to make room for new perennials, including 'Candy Hearts' Bleeding Heart, 'Brise D'anjou' Jacob's Ladder, Burgenia and a variety of Hostas.  Also included in this planting area: a weeping Japanese Maple and 'Endless Summer' Hydrangea, repeated from the other side of the house.

 

This gently curving path is NY Bluestone set in Slate chips.  Another walkway that stands out and creates a unique feature that makes the landscape a stunning masterpiece.

 

This home in EGR beat the market by selling in a matter of weeks, not months. 

 

Believe it or not, this house sold at the asking price. 

 

Major selling point:

CURB APPEAL.

 

For assistance in designing a unique landscape for your home or business, or help creating that CURB APPEAL for the house or business you need to sell

 

Call Brent @ (616) 328-3258.

Disciplines of Landscape Design

Landscape Design encompasses several disciplines necessary to achieve a satisfactory result (end product). Landscape Design requires some measure of insight into each of these. Among these disciplines are Aesthetics, Horticulture, Architecture and Psychology.

A practical understanding of Aesthetics or art, when combined with the other disciplines, will enable you to envision the overall layout of your landscape. Additionally, an eye for art allows you to combine various elements of the landscape into a cohesive and flowing design.

Great landscape designers take much of their sense of garden aesthetic from natural landscapes. I encourage you to find and explore areas untouched by the ever encroaching hand of man. God is the greatest landscape architect. Let His creation guide your design. Combinations of color and texture, the mix of beauty that touch your various senses in the wild can be included in a smaller scale in your own landscape.

Horticultural knowledge encompasses a wide range of disciplines but in short it is the science of plants. What plants go where and what conditions each plant requires for optimum growth. How are plants affected by pests, soil conditions, light and water and temperature? How do plants react to pruning and fertilizers? And so on.

Additionally, a basic knowledge of architecture helps us frame the landscape. It helps us determine what hardscapes such as walkways, patios, gazebos, outbuildings, etc., need to be included in our landscape to make it habitable and useful for our defined purposes. Keep in mind, how the landscape will be used. Who will be using the area? How will it be accessed? What is topography of the land? What kind of walls or slopes will be included in the landscape?
How will various areas interconnect and interact?

A general knowledge of psychology is within the grasp of most people. While designing your landscape, you should think about how you would like to use the area(s)? Everything you include in the landscape should contribute to your usage goals. Will the area be used for meetings or family gatherings? Are you trying to create an atmosphere of action or relaxation, an aura of anticipation or peacefulness? Do you intend to exude intimacy or openness with your landscape? As with the interior of your home or business, how the various elements combine and contrast affects the mood and ambiance of your landscape.

Once you have determined what your landscape is meant to accomplish in your life, a knowledge of psychology will help you frame and fill your gardens and landscape with elements that will enhance your intended experiences. How does a particular choice of paving material affect the speed at which you move through your gardens? Do certain elements draw you in? How do certain plants or arrangements affect our mood or the moods of those who experience our landscape? Will a certain water feature distract from or enhance the purposes you envision?