Environmental protection has never been more essential, and it can begin right in your own environmentally friendly backyard. Incorporating environmentally-friendly maintenance and design into your landscaping will not just help in saving the environment, but will also give a stunning, appealing backyard that is easy to maintain. Use the 5 tips below into your landscaping design and before long you will be enjoying a low-maintenance backyard, which also just happens to make the planet a bit eco-friendly.
1. Select native plants
When selecting trees and plants for your backyard; consider flora native to your area. Native plants and trees offer habitat for and entice butterflies, birds, and other useful local wildlife, and are adapted to the climate and local rainfall amounts. As soon as they are established, native vegetation needs little or no maintenance, since they are naturally resistant to diseases and local pests. They do not require supplemental watering, fertilizers, or pesticides, they are cheap and easy to maintain and are eco-friendly.
2. Mulch
Organic mulch like pine needles, bark, wood chips, and leaves offers numerous benefits. Mulch retains soil moisture and regulates temperature, which helps to keep plantings healthy and alive, and it as well prevents weed growth in flowerbeds, enabling easier weeding.
As organic mulch breaks down, it has the benefit of adding nutrients to the soil. Mulching under trees to the drip line not only assists the root area to retain moisture, but also decreases the footprint of your lawn. Grass lawns take in a lot of water, and including mulch all through your landscape is effective in reducing outdoor water use by around 50 percent.
3. Plant ground cover rather than grass
Ground cover offers many benefits over grassed lawns. Ground cover hugs the earth and needs no herbicides or pesticides, little if any mowing, and no additional watering. For poorly lit spaces, moss helps make a stunning lawn. Moss is green even during the high summer heat and feels great under bare feet.
Clover is a superb ground cover for lawns in full sun. It remains green at the time of drought, helps to stop soil compaction, feels cushiony and soft underfoot, and smells sweet. If you would like to give a habitat for bees, you can permit your clover lawn to flower to entice them.
If not, do not worry, simply provide your clover lawn with an infrequent mowing to both keep the bees away and promote growth. Creeping perennials could also be used for groundcover lawns, most of which feel soft underfoot, smell wonderful and require little maintenance.
4. Keep your grass high and dry
When you are mowing, the grass should be left higher (cut no more than one-third of the total length of the blade at a time) and mow more regularly. Your lawn is going to retain plenty of water and be healthier. Additionally, the grass clippings should be left on the lawn. Grass clippings are 75 to 85 percent water, rich in nitrogen, and will help keep your lawn healthy and moist. If you really cannot withstand leaving the clippings on the lawn, you may dispose of them in your new compost bin.
5. Start composting
Composting decreases the quantity of waste we produce and also creates natural, free fertilizer. All you require to start making your own compost is some soil and a warm, partially sunny area. If you want to keep your compost pile concealed, it is simple to install a compost bin.
