The last thing you want to be doing during a hot Arkansas summer is laboring away in your backyard. Turn your landscape into a low-maintenance oasis with our tips for saving you money, energy, and precious afternoons. <\/p>
When it comes to low-maintenance landscaping, xeriscaping<\/a> is king. Keeping thirsty plants watered is one of the most demanding parts of maintaining a yard, so why not invest in a drought-tolerant, water-wise landscape design? <\/p> A well-designed xeriscape can thrive on rainfall alone with no supplemental water. That doesn\u2019t mean tumbleweeds are rolling across your front yard; xeriscapes can be lush and colorful.<\/p> Options for xeriscaping:<\/strong><\/p> Advantages of xeriscaping: <\/strong><\/p> Approximate cost: <\/strong>Labor and plants can cost between $3 and $15 per square foot<\/strong>. A landscape designer can help plan your xeriscape for an average of $3,300. <\/strong><\/p> We get it: A perfect green turf seems like the pinnacle of landscaping success. But your backyard can be just as beautiful (if not more so) without the headache of mowing and maintaining grass. A traditional lawn needs constant watering, fertilizer, herbicide, and manual labor. Put the mower away for good and replace it with artificial turf or ground cover<\/strong>. <\/p> Artificial turf is a fantastic replacement for grass if you like the look of a thick carpet of green without dealing with drought, pests, and diseases. You\u2019ll spend more up front, but the time and energy saved in the long run will be worth it. <\/p> Plastic heat-resistant fibers weave into a backing and attach to a shock-absorbing pad to make a layer of artificial turf. The only maintenance is weekly raking to pick up debris and semi-regular washing with an antibacterial solution. <\/p> Advantages of artificial turf: <\/strong><\/p> Approximate cost: <\/strong>A professional will install artificial turf for $3.50 to $15.50 per square foot<\/strong> including materials and labor. Artificial grass costs between $5 to $19 per square foot. <\/strong><\/p> Another great option is ground cover. Ground cover<\/a> can give a wilder, more natural look than artificial grass while still providing plenty of verdant color. You can plant flowering ground cover and ground cover that will hold up to plenty of foot traffic. <\/p> Ground cover options include<\/strong>: bugleweed, pachysandra, carpet sedum, creeping phlox, and dwarf Solomon\u2019s seal.<\/p> Advantages of groundcover: <\/strong><\/p> Approximate cost<\/strong>: Expect to spend between $3 and $12 per square foot<\/strong> covering your lawn with ground cover. <\/p> A native plant is a wildflower, tree, shrub, or vine that grows wild in the Little Rock area. You might think that means they\u2019re scruffy or unkempt, but Arkansas native plants are just as beautiful and elegant as imported cultivars. <\/p> Because these plants have spent centuries adapting to the local environment, they generally require less maintenance. Many can survive on the area\u2019s rainfall, in poor soil, and with no fertilizer. <\/p> For more information, check out Arkansas Native Plant Society\u2019s collection. <\/a><\/p> Advantages of native plants: <\/strong><\/p> Approximate cost: <\/strong>Your only expense is the plants themselves if you install them yourself. Professional planting services range from $4 to $10 per square foot.<\/strong> <\/p> Showy flowers draw people\u2019s attention the most, but hardscaping is what pulls it all together. A vine-covered trellis, well-placed pathway, or handmade bench can take your landscape from good to magical. <\/p> The best part? Hardscaping elements don\u2019t need weekly watering. Wood elements may need annual staining, and patios and decks can benefit from a yearly pressure wash, but the nonliving parts of your yard need much less maintenance than plants. <\/p> Hardscaping options: <\/strong><\/p> Advantages of hardscaping:<\/strong><\/p> Don\u2019t forget about lighting, either. String lights set the mood for dinner parties in outdoor living spaces; spotlights showcase beautiful trees; lanterns offer diffused light in dark corners. <\/p> Approximate cost: <\/strong>The cost of hardscaping depends on the project. A patio costs $3,500<\/strong> on average while pavers cost between $1 and $15 per square foot.<\/strong><\/p> Juggling work, family, your kids\u2019 activities, and remembering to turn on your sprinkler? Take one thing off your to-do list by automating your irrigation system. <\/p> Spraying a hose on your plants can be imprecise and wasteful. Not to mention, most plants don\u2019t like getting their leaves wet. Sprinkler systems are a good choice for lawns, while drip irrigation is perfect for flower beds and vegetable gardens. Got a tree or shrub that\u2019s nowhere near other plants? Try a bubbler. <\/p> Sprinklers, drip systems, and bubblers<\/a> have timer options available as well as seasonal adjustment features. That means they automatically decrease during colder months (when most plants aren\u2019t actively growing) and increase during summer months (when plants are usually thirstiest). <\/p> Advantages of automated irrigation:<\/strong><\/p> Approximate cost: <\/strong>Professionally installed drip irrigation generally costs between $1.50 and $4.75 per square foot<\/strong>. A sprinkler system costs between $1,715 and $3,520<\/strong> for the average home.<\/p> If you\u2019re looking to tighten up your landscape maintenance, perennials can\u2019t be missed. The term \u201cperennial\u201d refers to plants that survive all seasons in your climate, compared to annuals which only last one growing season. Some perennials can survive for up to 100 years \u2014 that\u2019s a pretty great return on investment. <\/p> Perennials for Arkansas:<\/strong><\/p> Make sure you choose perennials that thrive in your landscape\u2019s available soil (quality and pH), sun, and USDA Hardiness Zone<\/a>. Just because they can grow back doesn\u2019t mean they will if they\u2019re planted in the wrong conditions. <\/p> Most perennials grow slowly from seed (and require more care during this phase), so you may want to spring for young plants. This will up your initial costs, but remember what you\u2019ll save in the future. <\/p> Advantages of perennials: <\/strong><\/p> Approximate cost:<\/strong> If you do the planting yourself, the only cost is the plants. Prices for perennials range widely, from $5 <\/strong>for a small flower to $150<\/strong> for a young tree. Professional landscaping services cost between $4 and $10 per square foot. <\/strong><\/p> Mulch is one of the easiest ways to get your landscape to do the work for you. Usually, mulch summons up images of wood chips, but it\u2019s really anything that you can spread over your soil to create a top layer like the one that naturally occurs in forests.<\/p> Mulch helps retain moisture, meaning less supplemental watering, and tamps down weeds. Apply a 2-4 inch layer in early spring before weeds get established, leaving a few inches of empty space around the plant itself. Mulch\u2019s temperature control abilities will especially help during hot Arkansas summers. <\/p> Organic mulches<\/a> have the benefit of breaking down and returning nutrients to the soil, while inorganic mulches won\u2019t need to be replaced and are usually more fire resistant.<\/p> Organic mulch options: <\/strong><\/p> Inorganic mulch options:<\/strong><\/p> Advantages of mulching:<\/strong><\/p> Approximate cost: <\/strong>Mulch will only cost you $3-$7 per bag <\/strong>or $15-$75 per cubic yard <\/strong>if you spread it yourself. Professional installation costs $40-$70 an hour<\/strong> and $40-$145 for delivery<\/strong>. <\/p> What really makes landscaping hard is when you work against your land instead of with it. What do we mean by that? A lot less work is required down the line if you take time to assess the characteristics of your property and design a landscape that uses those characteristics to its advantage. <\/p> A good place to start is taking stock of the size of your landscape, its soil, the sunlight it receives, any slopes present, and what its climate is like.<\/p> For example:<\/p> Low-maintenance landscaping still requires time and effort to set up. You don\u2019t have to take it on yourself if you don\u2019t have the time. Hire a Lawn Love professional<\/a> to install plantings, build hardscapes, replace grass, and perform seasonal lawn care. <\/p> Main Photo Credit: Plant Image Library | Flickr<\/a> | CC BY-SA 2.0<\/a><\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" The last thing you want to be doing during a hot Arkansas summer is laboring away in your backyard. Turn […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":18,"featured_media":8846,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_et_pb_use_builder":"","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","fifu_image_url":"","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[173],"tags":[535],"class_list":["post-8842","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-arkansas","tag-lawn-care-little-rock-ar"],"acf":[],"featured_image_src":"https:\/\/lawnlove.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/04\/rsz_36279091321_36d936e62d_h.jpg","author_info":{"display_name":"Rachel Abrams","author_link":"https:\/\/lawnlove.com\/blog\/author\/rachel-abrams\/"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/lawnlove.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8842","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/lawnlove.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/lawnlove.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lawnlove.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/18"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lawnlove.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=8842"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/lawnlove.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8842\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lawnlove.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/8846"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/lawnlove.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=8842"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lawnlove.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=8842"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lawnlove.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=8842"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
2. Get rid of grass<\/span><\/h2>
Artificial grass<\/span><\/h3>
Ground cover<\/span><\/h2>
3. Choose native plants<\/span><\/h2>
4. Add hardscapes<\/span><\/h2>
5. Automate irrigation<\/span><\/h2>
6. Plant perennials<\/span><\/h2>
7. Mulch<\/span><\/h2>
Work with your landscape<\/span><\/h2>
Call a pro<\/span><\/h2>