In the United States, the grassy lawn has become the primary feature of the front garden. Oftentimes when a homeowner inherits a small property with a mostly grass-based turf area, they are afraid to reduce the lawn in favor of a more ornamental garden. Why? Lawns are traditionally an indication of success. According to ScientificAmerican.com lawns “are a physical manifestation of the American Dream of home ownership. To have a well-maintained lawn is a sign to others that you have the time and/or the money to support this attraction.”
However, there are many benefits to reducing the lawn, which can save money and enhance a home’s value and image. It is worth reducing the lawn a bit and adding beautiful landscaping. Most specifically, it saves homeowners time and energy with lawn maintenance, there is less water consumption, and of course, there is less yard waste to be composted. Less lawn represents long-term money savings. Adding trees, shrubs, mixed borders, or perennial beds can increase the value of your house and beautify your home and community.
Small gardens can look quite large with the addition of hardscapes, structures, and ornamental landscaping. Reduce lawn size by adding outdoor entertaining space such as a grilling area, water-feature, outdoor patio and seating area, or a fire pit. Surround your feature with perennial beds, shrubs, and trees to bring a feeling of intimacy.
Use the iScape app and try a simple transformation. Convert a small yard from mostly lawn to mostly beautiful by removing a significant portion of grass and adding an explosion of flowers around the borders of the smaller lawn space (see the before and after photos). Once a homeowner can see how it looks with less lawn and more flowers in digital form, it’s easy to have more confidence to implement a project, which will bring beauty and curb appeal to their small property.
Download iScape now and create landscape designs that fit in a small or a large landscape. So easy to use - iScape it!
