“Landscape Design” is very crucial if you’re one with nature, and need to focus on enjoying the view of plants, flowers, trees, and shrubs. They make the environment a lot livelier, offsetting the dullness of stone and concrete. Plants and greenery on your property allow you to see a brighter side of the day, letting you take a step back from reality.
Apart from allowing people to appreciate nature around them, plants also foster a positive aura within the environment, which can make people feel relaxed and at peace with the view. This can be especially true for people who go to offices or those who are in a constant state of stress.
Because of this, many people choose to have their gardens landscaped. Aside from simply beautifying your property, you can make your own landscape design, which can better maximize your available space.
Hiring a landscape architect would always be an option, but that doesn’t mean that it’s a requirement. If you’re designing the landscape on your own, you would need all the physical help you can get. It’s already exhausting to come up with landscape designs, and so much more tiring to physically do it yourself.
Of course, landscape designing will never be complete without plants as they add life to the outdoors, thereby increasing your home’s value. If you’re planning to do some landscaping work for your property, consider the following plants that can help enhance your design:
1. Yucca
If you’re looking for a plant that’s easy to care for yet has a beautiful impact on your garden, the Yucca plant is one of your best options. Yucca is a slow-growing plant that’s ideal for keeping your landscape in shape without performing too much maintenance. The Yucca plant is commonly mistaken for a Dracaena as they look similar.
What’s great with the Yucca is that they’re extremely drought-tolerant, which makes caring for it easy. In fact, you’re most likely to kill this plant due to overwatering.
You should only water it for about an inch every week during spring and summer, and it will require less watering during winter.
Drain it well when watering, and make sure not to let it sit in a tub of water. If the Yucca shows yellow leaves or soft roots, that may be a sign of overwatering.
Avoid placing Yuccas along pathways or play areas to avoid any accidents that may occur when coming in contact with their sharp leaves. Consider their size during maturity and place them far away from common areas. Moreover, grow them with plants that require the same care and steer them clear from plants that require daily watering.
2. Peony
If you want to add color to your landscape, the Peony would be a great choice. It’s a classic garden flower that will look great in any landscape design. It also requires minimal care, most especially when you plant it in well-drained and slightly acidic soil.
Peonies require at least six hours of sunlight each day, so it’s best to place them in a spot most hit by sunlight. You have a better chance of getting fuller blooms when you place Peonies in an area where it has a full day of sun. In addition, you should only water your Peonies weekly for about an inch or two.
3. Hardy Geranium
Another flower that will look great in any garden is the Hardy Geranium. This can be a great border plant that produces blue, pink, purple, and white flowers that could suit any landscape theme.
Caring for these flowers is not a handful as they grow perfectly under areas that have full sun to moderate shade. If placed under full sun, be sure to provide them regularly with water so they won’t immediately dry out. Having them absorb enough sunlight will help them blossom fully, so try to provide enough sunlight as possible.
4. Liriope
The Liriope may look like grass, but it’s an herbaceous flowering perennial plant. This is an ideal low-maintenance landscape plant as it’s drought-resistant, so you don’t have to worry too much about caring for it.
This plant doesn’t require direct bright light and will do well with partial shade, so you can place it in an area where the sun doesn’t shine too much. But don’t worry if you placed your Liriope under full sunlight. It’s simply more comfortable under partial shade.
The Liriope does well in warm daytime temperatures. If it’s wintertime, use winter protection to keep it alive and healthily weather out the cold temperature.
5. Swiss Cheese Plant
For a unique set of leaves, a Swiss cheese plant is a great option. This comes with heart-shaped leaves and develops holes that resemble Swiss cheese, thus its name.
This plant is easy to grow and it loves to climb, so it’s recommended that you provide a stick that it can hold on to. This will result in a beautifully standing plant rather than one that’s lying around the ground.
This plant grows best in bright indirect light, going well with large trees that serve as their shade. When it comes to watering this plant, check first if the soil is nearly dry as that’s the best time to water it. Don’t let the soil be completely dry when watering.
6. Boxwood
The most common outdoor plant, the boxwood plant is typically a large shrub used mostly in modern landscaping. It reaches a mature height of 2 feet and is densely packed, making it a great border plant. It’s also easy to care for and will look great in any landscape design as they have a neutral look.
For the first two years, a boxwood plant requires deep weekly watering that will allow its roots to receive moisture. When mature, it will only need deep watering every two to four weeks depending on its needs and environment.
This plant can grow under full sun or partial shade. When planting boxwood, it’s best to plant them later in the afternoon, during the hottest time of the day.
7. Hosta
If you’re looking for a plant that’s extremely easy to care for and will look amazing on your landscape design, Hosta is also a top contender. This plant has a bright color that can add vibrance to your landscape. The shape of its leaves can vary from long and pointy, with a corrugated texture. Depending on the Hosta plant type, this can have a mature height of 9 to 30 inches.
It’s recommended that you water the Hosta to keep the soil moist. They can handle a few dry soils, but they can’t handle drought for too long. It’s recommended that you water this on the base of the plant rather than perform overhead watering since they can attract more slugs and snails.
Hosta can survive in full shade but grow best when they receive sunlight for a few hours each day. This plant is extremely easy to care for and doesn’t need too much maintenance.
8. Viburnum
The Viburnum is your way to go if you want to add a soft color to your landscape design. This plant has 12 different species, all of which give life to your garden. They provide either white or pink blooms that can blend perfectly with your landscape design.
Depending on the species, the Viburnum thrives under full sunlight, though some can grow under partial shade. You should check the needs of a specific species so you can provide the best care.
You should water Viburnum during dry periods to avoid drought. Adding mulch would be helpful to retain moisture, adding nutrition to your plant.
9. River Birch Tree
If you want a tree in your landscape design, the River Birch Tree would be a wonderful addition to your garden especially if you’re after a homey and classic look.
Fast-growing and popular for landscape use, it has a lifespan of 30 to 40 years depending on its environment and how much care it receives.
The River Birch Tree grows well in locations with full sun to partial shade. You should water it deeply for two to three hours once a week to keep the soil around the tree moist.
Read More: Indian Paintbrush and Other Spring Flowers for Your Landscape Design
10. Annual Vinca
The Annual Vinca works wonders for your landscape design as it produces flowers in white, pink, mauve, or red, and grows for about 6 to 18 inches.
It’s also one of the plants that don’t require much care and maintenance, making it a great plant that can last all year round. It can tolerate drought but it would grow best with a weekly helping of water.
Since this plant only requires weekly watering, you should skip watering if there are a ton of rainfalls for the week. Too much water might cause them to drown and have softer roots. During the day, it’s preferable that they get the most sun they could rather than being under the shade.
11. Japanese Forest Grass
Who says that landscapes should only have plants, flowers, trees, and shrubs? Some good ornamental grass would greatly benefit your design, and it’s extremely easy to care for and will look amazing throughout the year. Japanese Forest Grass will look well as ground cover to compensate for areas where adding another plant or flower will overcrowd the design.
This plant has light-colored green and gold leaves that can brighten dark areas, helping balance the look of the landscape by minimizing the impact of dark plants that often make the design a little lifeless.
Japanese Forest Grass can grow from 12 to 18 inches depending on the environment. When it comes to watering this plant, it should be done frequently as it needs to constantly have moist soil. Moreover, this plant prefers partial shade during most seasons and can tolerate more sun during wintertime.
12. Lily Of The Valley
Contrary to what you may think, this isn’t really a lily, but a part of the asparagus family.
The Lily of the Valley (Convallaria Majalis) is one of the most tolerant plants out there, making it ideal for a wide range of environments and seasons.
It’s also one of the sweetest-looking plants with white bells dangling from its leaves.
The Lily of the Valley spreads easily, so it’s best kept along walkways or near the house’s foundation as it will help a feeling of peace to your design.
This plant grows about 4 to 12 inches high and 3 to 5 inches wide. It also doesn’t require bright direct light, working best with partial light to full shade. Water it for an inch weekly as the Lily of the Valley prefers moist soil. You might need to water them more during hot days to prevent them from drying out.
Conclusion
Planning your landscape design can be tough but enjoyable. Make sure you browse through catalogs to see which design can best fit the area, as well as your personal preferences. When it comes to choosing plants, consider the environment in which they would grow and the amount of light they need to thrive.
Keep in mind that some plants might not be safe for children or pets, so be sure to place them in locations that can’t be reached or aren’t frequented by your kids or furry friends.
Further to choosing plants for your landscape design, look into how much water they need so you can keep them in good shape for a long period. In line with this, plants that need the same level of care in terms of water, sunlight, and location should be kept together.
Not only will this let you easily maintain them, but this minimizes the tendency of drowning or drying out a neighboring plant. If you’re having trouble with landscape designing, you can always check a landscape guide that could help you figure out the best way to design your home’s backyard.
