Title: How to best maximize your outdoor space
Whether large or small your outdoor space can be overwhelming if you are planning to do some landscaping. Too often people in their eagerness to develop what they see as a perfect garden spot fail to clearly and efficiently utilize their outdoor spaces. This can be an expensive mistake in terms of both money and time. Yet by following a few guidelines and making a plan before beginning your landscaping you can better decide how to proceed. If you are planning on doing some landscaping here are some tips for helping you determine how to best maximize your outdoor space-
|
|
- Decide how you will be using your outdoor space and how often. You will need to decide if you are looking for an outdoor entertaining area, a garden for growing fruits and vegetables, a play area for kids or just some green to improve the outside of your house (strictly decorative landscaping). After some consideration you may find that your outdoor space requires a little of all of the above. By determining exactly what your outdoor space needs will then lead you to be able to answer the next consideration of how often you will be using it. For those who live in a seasonal climate their options may be more limited then those lucky homeowners who have sunshine most of the year. Having a clear picture of how often you will use your space and how you will use can help you determine the right way to maximize your outdoor space.
- Realistically understand how much space you really have. While you may dream of a spacious pool and spa complete with outdoor kitchen not having enough space can seriously cramp your dreams. Homeowners who fail to consider the actual square footage of their outdoor space can find themselves with an overly crowded and non-functional landscape. Knowing how much space you really have is not about guessing this is the time to get the tape measure out and do some serious measuring before you proceed.
- Think about each part of your landscaping in relation to each other. While you may be tempted to place landscaping or hardscaping simply where it looks best that may not always be the best place to maximize your outdoor space. For example: if you are building an outdoor kitchen you will need to ask yourself- where will it be placed in relation to the indoor kitchen, the eating area and the pool or spa (if you are putting one in). An outdoor kitchen that is to far away from the indoor kitchen or the eating area may not be functional and you do not want to the grill or other kitchen equipment getting consistently splashed by pool or spa water. In addition if you are putting in a pool or spa experts state that the further you place it away from the house the less it will be used. This is an important consideration for what can be a very high ticket item.
- Do not be afraid to call on a professional. Some nurseries offer free consultations and landscape designers often charge only a small fee to draw out a design plan for you. Keep in mind that these are people who do this for a living and can often come up with space efficient solutions for your landscaping that you may not even have thought of. This can be especially helpful if you have space concerns (meaning that you do not have acres to landscape). You want the final landscaping on your home to be pleasing visually and functional all at the same time.
