If you are looking for a spring staple for your backyard there is nothing like the  heady scent and lavish blossoms of Lilac.   Aside from the Rose there is really no other flower as beautiful and aromatic as the Lilac.  Unfortunately the Lilac only blooms for a few weeks in the spring.  If you would like to  prolong their presence in your yard, grow a variety of Lilacs, including, early, mid and late varieties.   Lilac bushes can live for hundreds of years without much tending to.

There are over 1,000 varieties of Lilacs.  Lilacs  come in several colors, with the most popular being the color lilac and purple. White and pink are also popular. They also vary widely in size from the small 4 to 8 foot varieties to types that can grow up to 30 feet. So there is a variety perfect for your needs.

The best time to plant Lilacs is the spring.  They require at least 6 hours of direct sunlight and good circulation.  When digging the hole for your Lilac make sure that it is 50 percent wider than the root ball of the plant.  Add some compost and a few handfuls of bone meal to your soil.  Once the plant is in place pat on the soil so that it is firmly in place and make sure to water it well.

For the absolutely perfectly shaped lilac bush you need to prune them each year. Pruning is a very important part of growing and caring for Lilacs.  Pruning the Lilac should be done in early summer once the Lilac flowers have faded but before the seeds begin to form.  While some varieties only grow 4 to 8 feet, others can reach up to 30 feet tall. Many will grow in excess of 10 feet. Pruning will not only help with shape and appearance, but also impact health and vigor and the profusion of flowers.

You do not need to provide frequent fertilizer or organic feeding for your lilacs. Use a general-purpose fertilizer in early spring or one high in phosphorus to promote blooming. Too much nitrogen in the soil will result in poor blooming. Repeat the use of a general-purpose fertilizer after the flowers have died off.

There you have it.  Lovely, luscious Lilacs!!!  Low maintentance and simply gorgeous!

Spring is here and gardening season is upon us.  You are really excited to get out there and start gardening or are planning to hire a landscaper to set up your garden for you.  Before you decide on landscaping there are a few questions you need to ask yourself so that your landscaping will be exactly as you pictured it.

Here are our top 10 questions to ask yourself:

1) What part of your landscaping do you love and what part do you hate?  Are there other members of your family that will be using the area in question and if so, what will it be used for?

2)  Do you have pets?  If you do how will that affect the look you are trying to achieve? Do you need a dog run or just a place for your pet to lounge and enjoy the outside?

3)  Now take a step back and look at your home.  In what style was it built?  Do you want that style to be reflected in the landscaping or do you prefer a style that will compliment it rather than duplicate it?

4)  What is your landscaping style of choice? Do you love the formal or English garden look?  Are you a fan of Japanese or Natural?  Look through magazines and clip pictures of the look you would like to incorporate in your landscaping.

5)  Now thinking of color scheme.  Do you prefer landscaping that is full of bright, vibrant colors or a more uniformed landscaped design of one or two colors.  Would you like more greenery with touches of colored flowering plants or more flowering plants and a touch of greenery?

6)  Allergies!  This is not generally thought of when landscaping but if you or a family member has, for instance, severe allergies to bees you will want to try to choose plants that are less attractive to bees.

7)  Hardscaping or paving surfaces, would you like to incorporate a patio, deck or walkway in your landscape design?  What is your surface of preference?  Wood?  Concrete?  Stone?  Brick?

8)  When thinking of plants, do you want to try and attract birds, butterflies or any other type of “wildlife”?

9)  What about your neighbors?  Do you need privacy or a division between properties?  Don’t forget to take any neighborly issues into consideration when planning your landscaping.

10)  The very last thing that should not be overlooked when planning your landscaping is zoning regulations.  For instance if you are planning on building a deck you may need a permit.  If you are planning on putting in a parking pad, a permit is usually required. Take your time to research this.  If contracting a professional landscaper have them look into any permits required.

A backyard play area is a wonderful addition to any home.  It allows children to play and enjoy the outdoors while parents easily supervisor their play and even join in.  The need for exercise has never been greater with children sitting in front of the television and play video games for hours at a time.  By incorporating a play area in your backyard you child will rediscover the delights of outdoor play.

Adding a play area to your backyard can be easily and inexpensively done.

Depending on your budget all or anyone of the following can make a great outlet for fun and exercise right in your own backyard.

1) Residential play gym – typically a play gym is the inspiration for building a backyard play area.  Play gyms come in a variety of materials and sizes.  Wooden play gyms are a good and sturdy choice of material.  These play gyms come with colorful slides, ropes,  ladders and tubes for your child to explore and have fun with.  You can easily find one that will fit your backyard and your budget.

2) Sandbox – this can be a great do it yourself project, simple and very inexpensive.  The materials you’ll need for this project are four pieces of pressure-treated wood and some two-and-a-half inch galvanized wood screws. To build a 6X6 foot sandbox, the wood will need to be six feet long. Two by eights work well for this project. Eight inches is a nice depth for a sandbox. It makes tall-enough sides to keep the sand in, but it’s low enough so your kids can easily get in and out of the box.

Lay the pressure-treated wood out in the shape of a square inside the stringed area. Grab two pieces of the eight-inch wide lumber and butt them together at the ends to make a corner. You may need a helper to hold the pieces in place while you use a battery-operated drill with a Phillips head bit to begin inserting the galvanized wood screws into the wood. Start two inches up and insert a screw. Then, advance two more inches and insert a second wood screw. Go up an additional two inches and secure the two pieces of wood together with the third screw. Repeat the process with the other three corners, and the frame of the homemade sandbox for the kids to play in is basically complete! But, before you move onto the next step, make sure the frame is in the center of the cleared out spot in your yard.

Now all you need to do is to fill your homemade sandbox with sand, and it’s ready for the kids to enjoy!

3) Exercise equipment – This is simple!  Jump ropes, frisbees, balls, trampolines, whatever your children will enjoy and whatever your budget can afford.

4) Vegetable garden – a small patch in the backyard to grow vegetable allows you child to not only see how vegetables grow but get great exercise while weeding, sowing the seeds, watering and picking vegetables.  They feel a great sense of accomplishment once those tiny seeds begin to grow and become vegetables.

5) Flower garden – Plant an annual garden with primroses, tulips and day lily bulbs to help them learn about plant propagation.  Have fun, make this garden colorful and fun.  Your child will not only get great exercise but will get them interested in nature.

Once your backyard play area is ready for fun let your child invite some friends over to try it out.  Don’t forget to incorporate in your plan an eating area where they can gather after a long day at play to have some healthy snacks, maybe even some vegetables from their very own garden!

Ornamental grasses are widely used in backyard landscaping. But there are a lot of people who might ask what ornamental grasses are. Continue Reading →

Even in the dead of winter, there are creative backyard landscape ideas to try so you need not be cooped up inside the house when you want to party.

1. Fire Pit

Cold temperatures will always call for a fire pit, be it the permanent one made of bricks or stones, or portable. The latter can be moved to the spots where you want your guests to gather around and keep themselves warm. You can bring out marshmallows for toasting marshmallows to make smores.

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Landscape pictures of hillside homes always evoke a quiet and comfortable lifestyle that everyone is striving for. With the  ground being not perfectly level, your backyard may have those breathtaking views of the city below. Slopes on the front yard can be the ideal foundation for dramatic drives and whatever other features that your topography will allow you. Just remember that to have a cohesive look on the yard, you have to repeat the elements you apply like plants, bricks, rock size and color and the like.

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With the clever use of landscaping ideas, the cooler months ahead should not deter you from enjoying a few starry nights outdoors. By adding a fire feature in your backyard, you can create an inviting area to hang out and enjoy the company of your friends without freezing your hands.

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Keeping your backyard looking like the landscape pictures you copied it from requires a little commitment your part. Professionals often focus on the following tasks: Continue Reading →