lawn ideas – Modern Architecture Concept

Hardscapes are a low maintenance way of achieving a beautiful landscaping design without the up-keep! Keep reading to find out why we are in love with hardscapes!

Photo: Thompson Custom Homes

If you are looking to undergo a total renovation to your landscaping design this year, have you considered just what a hardscape could do to totally change the look of your lawn and garden? Just browse the Internet and you will see that hardscapes are trending in 2018. There are some lovely examples of Architectural Landscape Design with the inclusion of hardscapes you can get ideas from.

No, you don’t need to live in Minnesota to employ ideas from that site, but if you do, that may be one company you could consult with if you live in or around Minneapolis and are looking for someone to take your project from design to completion. Nevertheless, here are three reasons hardscapes are trending this year.

1. Little-to-No Maintenance

Many homeowners find that they simply don’t have the time to keep up with lawn care as it should be. While working long hours and having many family responsibilities, it’s hard to find time more than once a month to get out there long enough to mow the lawn. Forget about planting and caring for decorative flowers, shrubs, and other plants because there wouldn’t be time for that. Therefore, the most common reasons why so many homeowners are leaning towards hardscapes is the minimal care they require.

Photo: K&D Landscape Management

2. Outdoor Living Space at Its Finest

Hardscapes can be used for anything from a peaceful place to rest after a long day at work to the backdrop for an outdoor kitchen. Whether covered or open to the blue sky above you, you will begin to discover multiple ways in which a hardscape area of the lawn can serve as extra space outside the home. These are especially useful if you often entertain outdoors in the summer. Enjoy friends and the fresh outdoors without adding mess and clutter to your home.

Photo: Van Puette Lanscape

3. Well Suited for Small Lawns

Even homes in suburbia are often situated on small postage stamp-sized lots. When this is the case, hardscapes come in handy. With a natural stone floor, a fire pit for warmth and beauty, and a chair or two to rest in, you can appreciate nature even more when you know you need to do nothing more than hose it off a few times to keep it fresh and clean. Why buy a lawn mower when your backyard is hardscaped? Don’t forget, you can add potted plants for a bit of color if you so desire.

Along with those leading reasons why hardscapes are trending, you will find homeowners saying that it is also easier to keep their homes clean because dirt and mud aren’t getting traipsed into the house after a heavy rain. On the flip side, hardscapes can help to keep dust down during dry months when there has been little rain. With a few potted plants, you can enjoy the same natural beauty as you would in a traditional softscaped garden and some of those plants can even be used for vegetables and herbs.

Hardscapes are a major trend in landscaping that is growing by the day. Now you know why

Are you trying to sell your home? Sprucing up your lawn for a quick sale is not that hard as you may think. Keep reading for our easy tips!

Photo: Solara Custom Doors and Lighting

So you’re trying to sell your home. Two words: deep breath. This can be a stressful undertaking but there are things you can do to sell your home easily. First and foremost, you obviously need to make sure your house is in shape to sell it. Unless you know it’s going to be a knock-down, it’s well worth your while to do some home improvement projects, particularly to your bathrooms and kitchens (which can raise the resale value). However, what many might not consider to their detriment is the curb appeal (or lack thereof) of their home. If you’ve watched HGTV, you likely know that this is the overall aesthetics of your home as potential buyers pull up to the curb. How is the paint looking? How are the shutters holding up? Are there any trees that need to come down? There are many factors that make up curb appeal, and one of those is your lawn. How important is the look of your lawn when trying to sell your home? We explore that below.

How Important is a Great Lawn?

In sum, it’s pretty darn important. The lawn is likely the first thing potential buyers will notice when pulling up to the curb—hence the relevance. However, there are exceptions. If you live in California, for instance, those looking to buy a house are less likely to be as consumed by this, as brown or at least less-than-perfectly-green lawns have become the norm due to their near-permanent drought situation. In other areas of the U.S., you want your lawn to be as green and well-manicured as possible.

Photo: Via Houzz

If you don’t have time to tend to it yourself during the sale process, outsource this to someone who will. We often talk about our love of lands like Ireland and Iceland for their lush and green countryside, so the last thing we want when trying to sell our homes is for prospects to see dead and dry landscaping. If you do live in an area that’s prone to droughts, you might think about replacing the grass with turf or even drought-resistant plans like succulents and rocks. A lot of people in California are going with the latter option, and you wouldn’t believe how polished this can look when done right. And the huge extra bonus is that there would be no more mowing the lawn!

Other Lawn Essentials

There is a lot more to making your lawn presentable than having green grass. You need to make sure your hedges are trimmed, particularly the ones that adorn walkways up to the home. You only get that once chance for the first impression. Trim your rose bushes and trees, rake the leaves, pull weeds from your well-designed garden, and simply make everything look well-tended to. You might even consider taking a photo and/or having an outside eye come over to look. Either of these tactics would ensure that you’re not missing something due to the fact that you’re walking by these things every day.

Photo: Bosenberg and Company Landscape Architects

Don’t Forget the Bells and Whistles

We all know real estate agents have their tricks. They take photos of the home in just the right light and at just the right angle. They stage the home or sometimes even have professional stagers come and do it for them. They’ll have scented candles going or even bake cookies so that the smell is inviting. So if your real estate agent is taking these great pains to make your home look as appealing as possible, you should, too.

Just as you would with a fresh coat of paint inside and tweaking bathrooms and kitchens, you’ll want to add things like pops of color to the outside of your home. Consider putting in bushes that flower and/or potted plants. Hang them from trellises and have them greet your prospects on the front porch. If you anticipate having some visits at night, highlight the best parts of your lawn and landscaping with spotlights. Any of these added touches will surely make a huge impression on potential buyers, even if it’s on a subliminal level.

So just how important is the look of your lawn when trying to sell your home? We’ll say it again—very much so! But don’t let the thought overwhelm you. You don’t have to do a complete overhaul, but you should consider some of the aforementioned tactics in cleaning up your lawn and landscaping. Once you do that, your home will surely fly off the market.