Investing in Landscaping: Your wallet & the environment

Grass seed. Check. Rake. Check. Sun hat. Check. I've already spent $200 and not planted a seed! Where's the return on my investment?

Landscaping is an investment in your home and the environment. Average landscaping increases the value of a home by five percent. Excellent landscaping can increase property value by as much as 11 percent.

Landscapes which reduce the cost of heating and cooling the home produce as much as an additional three percent increase in home value. Plants and trees combat carbon dioxide, while protecting the environment from additional carbon emissions from energy consumption. Non-flowering plants can reduce the number of allergens inside a home.

Two types of landscaping investments can increase the selling price of your home: Long term and short term. Both have some similarities. Each type is diversified differently.

Common Sense Advice

~ Hire a local professional to design the landscape. You will implement a design with a good survival rate, complementary to the surrounding neighborhood and with an eye for detail you may never have considered.

~ Ask for indigenous plants and trees. These are more likely to survive drought conditions and will require the least amount of upkeep.

~ Avoid high maintenance designs. Shrubs which need constant trimming will be very costly in the long run and could cost you more money in the short term. You do not want to hire someone to replant perennial flowers before you sell the house. A buyer may not want the bother or expense of a high maintenance yard.

~ Avoid trendy items. Water features and statues fall out of fashion quickly and may turn potential buyers away. Stay natural.

~ Use natural elevation and drainage to save water costs. Proper landscape design will reduce the amount of water needed to sustain a garden.

~ Plant evergreens on the north side of the home to block winter winds. Plant deciduous trees on the south side to shade the home in summer. Proper tree placement can save up to 25% of heating and cooling costs. The boost in energy efficiency will increase the value of the home.

~ Plant according to the mature size of the plant. Overcrowding plants decreases their survival rate and increases the maintenance work, as plants will need to be removed over time.

~ Protect your foundation. Planting large rooted trees and shrubs too near the house will have disastrous effects on your foundation, sidewalks and driveway.

~ Weed protection. Shop for inexpensive weed control barriers. This investment will reduce maintenance costs for the life of the landscape.

~ Mulch. Cover around and between plants...

Read the remaining long term and short term investment tips to make your landscaping a positive return for your wallet and the environment!

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