The Big Picture: Conceptualizing Large-Scale Landscape Design

Do you want to make your home pop and tie your yard together with cohesive beauty? When done well, landscaping provides improved style and functionality. If you're undertaking a big landscaping project, you must have a plan for your large-scale landscape design. Keep reading to discover what Progreen Landscape Solutions recommends for conceptualizing large-scale landscaping projects. When you follow these tips, bringing your landscape design from concept to reality becomes a fun project! Set Your Goals The first step in your landscape design plan is to set your goals. To help determine what you want from your landscaping, ask yourself the following questions:

• Do you need an outdoor entertainment space?
•  Is increasing your home's curb appeal or resale value more important to you?
• Will you need outdoor lighting?
• How much privacy do you require?
• Do you already have some landscaping elements you want to preserve or accentuate?
• Do you have any problem areas or drainage issues?
• Do you have pets or children whose best interests you must consider?
• Will your designs require additional permits?

When you answer these questions, you can focus your design to create exactly what you want and not waste time adding things that won't further your purpose. Understand Your Environment When planning a large-scale landscaping project, environmental factors are one of the biggest considerations. Verify your landscaping plans include the following considerations. Topography A sloped yard can support different designs than one that's mostly flat. The topography plays a major role in the type of structures your yard can support and how much drainage you require. A good landscaper can maximize the strengths of your topography while mitigating its challenges. Climate Climate includes temperature, amount of precipitation, and average sunlight, and they are all key factors in determining what kind of plant life your landscape design should include. You can tailor the type and placement of plants to offer you maximum privacy and comfort. Planting Zone A planting zone describes which plants can thrive in a given climate. For the best results, your landscaper will choose only plants that thrive where you live so you can have the best-looking yard possible. Design with Purpose The best landscape designs are intentional, and each feature has a distinct purpose. Try utilizing the perfect balance of form and function, and utilize a theme to unite the concept and tie each piece together. Popular themes include:

• Modern: This style exemplifies minimalism, clear lines and edges, symmetry, and subtle use of one or two accent colors.
• Resort style: This style focuses on relaxation and engages all the senses with trickling water features, extravagant designs, and entertainment spaces.
• English garden: These landscapes utilize plants for privacy and structure and contrasting drifts of color. They usually have paved or gravel walkways to meander through.
• Oriental: This landscaping focuses on relaxation, serenity, and peace. They typically incorporate water and plants with subtle color differences.

Start with Hardscaping Hardscape features include water elements, retaining walls, walkways, patios, steps, and fireplaces. They define the different spaces within your landscaping, such as separate areas for cooking, gardening, and entertaining. They also provide functionality like improved drainage. These features take up the majority of your landscaping space but should balance out the plants. Common hardscaping materials include concrete, bricks, pavers, or natural stone. Add Plants Your plant selection provides the most aesthetic appeal in your landscaping. When choosing plants, keep in mind the following:

• Choose native plantings: Nurturing exotic plants is often a losing battle. Unless you want to spend a lot of time and money keeping alive plants that your environment can't support, stick with local native plants, and plant them at the right time of year for your planting zone.
• Limit variety: Within the same small space, keep your plant choices similar to create a cohesive look.
• Consider colors: When designing over a large space, group together plants of the same color. Alternating too frequently makes the features difficult to see from a distance.

Render Designs Your landscaper needs design renderings to make your dream a reality. For the best results, make the plans as detailed as possible and scale them accurately to reflect your yard's size. The rendering should include the dimensions of your home's exterior (including windows and doors), any additional structures (like driveways or gazebos), and the hardscape and softscape elements. Contact Progreen Landscape Solutions for All Your Landscaping Needs When you need landscaping design for a large-scale project, Progreen Landscape Solutions is here to help. Whether you need to redesign your sprinkler system or create a completely new backyard, we provide world-class services with competitive pricing and professionalism. Contact us today to schedule a consultation.