Landscape Maintenance
by Dr. Robert Black, Consumer Horticultural Specialist

In any type of landscape development, maintenance is a very important consideration. This phase of landscaping and gardening should be planned in the original design.

Design and arrangement should not be too fancy. Useless curves, odd-shaped flower beds and hedges only add to confusion and to maintenance work.

Avoid a scattered arrangement of beds, shrubs, trees and garden features. Every object in the garden should have some reason for being there. Spotty design is difficult to maintain. Group plantings of shrubs and flowers are more attractive and much easier to care for.

Steep terraces are quite a problem when lawn mowing is necessary. Long, gentle slopes look more natural and allow free movement of lawn-mowing equipment. A retaining wall oftentimes is the more economical method in the long run.

The choice of plant material will definitely affect the maintenance work. Try to choose some of the slow growing and dwarf type shrubs, particularly for small properties because pruning of the shrubs can become quite a job.

Present-day gardeners are using less of the clipped-hedge type of plant such as ligustrum, privet, boxwood and others. Dwarf yaupon, Indian hawthorne and holly are some shrubs which require a minimum of pruning.

A walkway that is flush with the ground with no edging material is much easier to maintain than one that has a flower border or some other low-edging material.

More maintenance is required for flowers on a square foot basis than for any other plant in the garden. However, flowers are usually the most desired plant in the landscape because of color. Select flowering plants such as daylilies which have minimum maintenance requirements.

Flower beds can be edged with bricks or flat stones that are sunk into the ground to allow a tract for the lawn mower wheels. Grass in a flower bed is a nuisance, especially the running grasses such as Bermuda and centipede.

A mulch will help keep down weed growth, conserve moisture and save work. It is very easy to take in too much lawn area, especially for homeowners in rural areas. Never overextend your capabilities. A small, well-kept lawn is much better than acres of weed growth. A large portion of the big front yard could be planted in pines or fruit trees.

Design and plant your yard to be enjoyed, and not to be a continuous job of pruning, watering, spraying, mowing and weed pulling.