A well-maintained, healthy, and vibrant yard is a joy to look at and a pleasure to enjoy. It boosts curb appeal, increases property value, and contributes to community pride. If you’re looking for the best ways to maintain a beautiful yard without wasting resources or harming the environment, then it’s time to start thinking sustainably.
By implementing sustainable yard maintenance practices, you can save water, money and protect the environment from ecological damage. Whether you’re a developer looking to uphold the value of your properties or a homeowner seeking to create the perfect entertaining spot, these pro tips will help you take care of your yard in a responsible way:
Design a Water-Wise Landscape
Water scarcity is an increasing problem in parts of the world, with over two-thirds of the world’s population experiencing severe water scarcity for at least one month each year. This is why we must consider sustainable ways to keep your yard lush year-round.
You can conserve water used to maintain your yard by:
- Reducing and reusing water
- Increasing surface coverage
- Investing in an efficient irrigation system
- Choosing drought-resistant plants
- Incorporating rainwater harvesting systems
But before you start, it’s important to create a plan that takes into account the type of soil, climate, and region you live in. Here’s where a landscape design professional specializing in creating beautiful, water-saving yards comes in.
An experienced yard maintenance Rohnert Park landscaper will consider the Sonoma-Marin Saving Water Partnership design standards to create a sustainable and water-wise landscape that enhances the beauty of your outdoor space.
Practice Regular Yard Maintenance
If you want a yard that looks picture-perfect all the time, then regular maintenance is essential. You don’t have to invest a ton of money – there are sustainable ways to make sure your yard is thriving:
Mowing Your Lawn
Regularly mowed grass will stay healthier than grass allowed to overgrow and go weeks between mowings. Sustainable yard maintenance means ensuring your blade is sharp and not cutting off more than 1/3 of the grass blade at any given time.
Edging Your Yard
Have you ever noticed how professional landscapers make those crisp borders between the lawn and surrounding beds? That’s because they’re adept at using sophisticated edging tools for precision work around gardens, pathways, and driveways to give the yard distinction between different landscape design elements.
Pruning & Weeding Your Yard
Regular pruning removes dead or diseased branches to promote the healthy growth of flowering plants and vegetation in your garden. As far as weeds go – those pesky little buggers can sprout up even after you think you’ve gotten rid of them! To prevent weeds from regrowing and keep plants looking their best all season long, consider hiring a landscaping company with access to sustainable weed control methods like mulching.
Mulch It Up
Mulching can help reduce water loss due to evaporation and keep weeds from growing in between plants, which helps prevent competition for resources like water and nutrients from the soil. Top off your mulch every few months since it naturally degrades over time.
Choose Eco-Friendly Products
What you use to treat your plants and lawns can make a huge difference in the eco-friendliness of your yard maintenance routine. Whether it’s weed killer, fertilizer, or bug spray, you should always check the ingredients and assess their environmental impact.
Here are some pro tips for eco-friendly yard maintenance:
- Opt for organic fertilizers that contain composted organic materials such as plant residues, vegetable matter, and manure instead of synthetic fertilizers.
- Try using natural pest control techniques such as installing bird baths to attract predatory birds that eat harmful insects, companion planting (growing certain plants together to ward off pests), and using sticky traps instead of chemical pesticides.
- Request the landscaper to use slow-release fertilizers with fewer synthetic chemicals and minimally toxic herbicides instead of traditional products filled with harsh chemicals, which damage the environment in the long run.
Repair and Replace When Necessary
Sometimes, despite our best efforts, certain things in your yard just won’t last. Whether it’s a badly rusted sprinkler head or dying shrubs and trees, it pays to be proactive and invest in repairs or replacements.
The first thing to do is to diagnose the problem. You can do this by evaluating the structure’s condition by checking for signs of decay, metal rust, holes, and gaps in the grass. It’s best to have an expert provide an assessment.
Once you have a professional evaluation, you can decide whether to repair or replace the structure. If the system is relatively new, a repair is advisable. But if the design is over a few years old, you may need to replace it with an updated, much more durable model.
Find Yard Maintenance Services
Pursuing sustainable yard maintenance is easy with the right tips and tricks. Utilizing tools such as water-saving irrigation systems, native plants, and organic fertilizers is key for any Rohnert Park homeowner looking to maintain a beautiful and sustainable outdoor environment.
We provide small-scale and large-scale yard maintenance services focusing on sustainability and efficiency. We understand the importance of using eco-friendly practices while keeping your landscape looking beautiful and healthy year-round! Contact us today for more information about our sustainable yard maintenance services!