Lush, green lawns can be beautiful, but they can also add greatly to overall landscaping maintenance tasks involved in keeping a property looking its best.
They can also be a cause for higher water bills and introduce more chemicals into the environment in trying to keep them that way.
Reduce Water and Chemical Usage With Creative Landscape Design
One way to reduce the drudgery of weekly lawn mowing while also saving water and reducing the use of toxic chemicals is to get creative with landscaping.
A beautiful landscaping design comprised of different plants, groundcovers, and hardscape elements can turn a plain yard into a personal oasis, all while minimizing the size of the high-maintenance lawn!
Reduce The Amount of Lawn
With a goal of reducing the actual square footage of the lawn around a property and thus the amount of lawn and landscape maintenance required to keep it looking good, homeowners can add beauty even when removing some of the green.
Hardscaping with the addition of patio space and walkways surrounded by planted beds and ornamental grasses is a prime way to turn thirsty grassy patches into more beautiful, and more easily managed elements.
Adding landscaping design such as pavers, bricks, crushed stone, and other natural elements can further shrink lawn space to turn it into a design element, and not just a living sponge in need of frequent watering.
Use Native Plants
In addition to the hardscaping elements, homeowners looking to reduce their lawn and landscaping maintenance tasks and costs can focus on plantings comprised of native and drought-resistant plants.
Durable, flowering groundcovers are another landscaping design option that can work as well.
A thick layer of mulch in planted beds will also retain more water when it rains while slowing evaporation afterward, keeping plants happier and longer.
Keep Some Grassy Lawn Area
While reducing the amount of grass in a yard with a beautiful and creative landscaping design can bring many benefits with it, avoid removing all of the grass.
Some grass patches should remain, as grassy areas do absorb some of the heavy rains that happen in Texas, preventing flooding.
Balance The Above Changes With Desired Landscaping Appearance
That said, although totally eliminating certain landscape maintenance tasks like mowing will not be the final result, it will be greatly reduced.
With a good balance of grassy patches, hardscaping elements, trees, bushes, and ornamental beds planted with resilient local species, homeowners can reduce the amount of landscaping maintenance required to keep their properties looking great, as well as their seasonal water consumption.
Smaller lawns and more thoughtful landscaping designs are easier to care for, more eco-friendly, and look beautiful, too!