How is Sustainable Landscaping Done?

07 February 2020

Sustainable landscaping is a unique way to let nature beautify your home. It may take a little extra planning, but by using sustainable landscaping practices, you can spend less time working on your lawn and more time enjoying it. Below are ways on how to do sustainable landscaping.

Wise Plant Selection

The plants you choose have to be well-adapted to your local environment. Every landscape has those plants that just won’t thrive. If you have plants that need a lot of nurturing, it might mean they’re not right for your climate. Replace them with plants that will do better with your local weather patterns. You can make use of native plants for they often need less water than foreign species, as they’re used to the local rain levels. They also have developed strong defences against local pests and diseases. As an added bonus, they tend to attract helpful neighbours like butterflies and bees who keep your flowers alive and well.

Layering

Layering is essential to creating sustainable landscaping. It mimics natural plant growth and provides a lush environment for nature’s best pest control: birds.  Invite them to stay by providing various shrubs, trees and other plants for them to call home.

Lawn Alternatives

If you’re tired of mowing the lawn, ditch grass altogether, moss, ground cover, or even turfs are great no-mow lawn solutions. If you’re partial to grass, try a meadow lawn. These need mowing just once or twice a year, and give your landscape a beautiful, natural look. For the best results, be sure to use grass that is native to your local area.

Xeriscaping

Xeriscaping is landscaping that has extremely low water needs. It’s critical in places like my home, San Diego. Lawns are simply wastes here, unfortunately. A lot of homeowners are doing gravel, stone, and succulent or cacti landscapes that actually have quite a beauty of their own. It’s not as lush and green as a lawn and shrubbery, but it has its own appeal.

Composting

Composting is an eco-friendly way to keep soil moist and healthy year-round. To give your flowerbeds a sustainable glow, start your own at-home compost pile.

Maintain Clean Yard

Whatever you leave in your yard will make its way to your local water system via rainwater runoff. Keep lawn clippings, pet waste and other unsavoury materials off your lawn to keep your community’s watershed clean.

Rain Barrels

Put that excess rainwater to good use with your very own rain barrel. You’ll create a sustainable water supply for your landscape, helping you cut down on your water bill. You can use a permaculture swale which is a small depression designed to redirect rainwater runoff. These are usually situated at the lowest point in your yard and absorb excess water during downpours. The extra water collected in the swale keeps the rest of your yard moist and healthy in the days following a rainstorm.

Consult us at Mark Browning Landscape Design for your sustainable garden landscape designs. We pride ourselves with sustainable and sensible design principles and we encourage our clients to strike a balance between both hard and soft landscape treatments.

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