Soft And Hardscaping Tips To Make Your Backyard Attractive And Useful
Posted on: 3 May 2018
Spring is the perfect time to work in your yard and spend time in the sunshine, as the cooler temperatures make it more comfortable outside. There may be many projects to complete in your yard, comprising installing a paved surface and planting new vegetation. Here are some tips to put together the right elements in soft and hardscaping of your backyard to make it beautiful and functional.
Hardscape Features
Your backyard will need to have paved areas and surfaces to keep down the mud and dust, for which you can install many different types of materials. To make your patio surface durable and visually interesting, you can use paving stones to form the surface of the pavement. Be sure to level out the foundation of the soil and excavate the appropriate amount of soil to provide depth for the paving stones to sit on the ground and be relative to the surrounding soil's height.
You can pour a layer of sand onto the base of your paving stone foundation, which will provide a layer of well-draining material. This is important especially if you live in an area that has winter and freezing temperatures which can cause frost and freeze heaving beneath the paving stones.
Installing a layer of gravel can also provide a helpful surface and to give diversity to the paved surfaces. Gravel works well in bedding areas and around trees and shrubbery, as they allow moisture to saturate the soil around the vegetation. Gravel also helps keep weed growth from occurring in your bedding areas.
Vegetation
As you choose the types of vegetation to place in your bedding areas, select a variety of tall, medium, short, and ground level vegetation to give a diversification to your outdoor plants. If you have installed stepping stones or paving stones, you can plant various types of ground covering plants. These will grow to fill in the gaps between the stones and make the area beautiful.
Select trees in your yard that will grow to a height they will block out the noonday and late afternoon sun in your backyard to create a cool and inviting place to relax. Planting trees that also provide shade onto your home's exterior and its windows during the hottest part of the day will help keep your home cooler during the summer. Place these trees along the south and south-western sides of your yard. Along with your lawn, the shade trees provide will make your backyard cooler than other paved and non-shaded areas.
For more information, contact your local hardscape services.
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