Ever wonder how the properties showcased on television shows have such great-looking backyards? This can be done through a combination of remodeling, landscape design, and outdoor decorations. Many homeowners who have undertaken backyard improvement projects, find them to be generally easier and more flexible when compared to kitchen and bathroom remodeling. Let’s review the steps of the process:

Getting Started With Ideation

This is a fun part of the project; you can get started by watching home improvement shows, but a more refined strategy would be to search for video clips on YouTube that highlight details about backyard transformation. For many homeowners, browsing through image galleries works out even better because they don’t have to mess with pause and play buttons. With landscaping contractors involved, you can either present your idea or browse through their portfolio to check out completed projects to get ideas therefrom. Once you have a few ideas in mind, you need to evaluate how feasible they are according to your budget.

Planning For Backyard Maintenance

There’s nothing wrong with a DIY approach to backyard renovation, but many DIY homeowners don’t plan for upkeep. You should be thinking about what kind of maintenance efforts your project will need during the ideation stage; for example, if you have a large lawn section of Bermuda grass in South Florida, you may want to get a new lawnmower to make cutting the grass easier. If you have large trees shading your yard, you need to trim the trees. Even if you are not a DIY gardener, you should not overlook the cost of hiring landscaping crews to service your backyard; this needs to be in your budget before the project begins.

Think About Backyard Elements to Include

You have three main categories to consider: focal points, living areas, and functional elements. Popular focal point elements are garden sculptures, which tend to be affordable; then you have water features such as small fountains and ponds. Examples of living areas include gazebos, decks, and sitting spots. Functional elements include privacy screens, lighting, summer kitchens, and even storage solutions.

To make your project more interesting and sophisticated, think about adding elements with overlapping categories; for example, a living area with ottoman-style chairs around a fire pit can be a functional focal point during cooler nights. If you choose a gazebo, you can make it look better with decorative lighting that provides enough illumination for a larger section of the yard.

Adding the Final Touches

When professional landscaping designers plan new projects, the plans they make focus on vegetation and structure. When these plans are completed, they don’t immediately look like showstoppers, and we are not talking about only waiting for plants and trees to grow. You don’t want to draft a highly detailed plan; instead, you should leave out some aspects that make more sense to complete later. For example, if your backyard project calls for a koi pond, you want to plan for its water pump filtration system to be installed at the end of the project, but you don’t want to fill it and begin the pond cycle until its surrounding decorations are complete and the vegetation is trimmed. These details are always added at the end like you would decorate a living room. The final touches are often what make your backyard look like a showstopper.

Published by: Holy Minoza