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Landscaping An American Pass Time

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Landscaping An American Pass Time

Landscaping has been a favorite American pass time for hundreds of years. Recently through the added exposure of popular TV shows, the interest in sprucing up one’s landscaping has become greater than ever. Today, many shows are introducing everyone to new and fun ways to enjoy landscaping. There are even dedicated television channels, such as the Home and Garden Channel, that explore all things beautiful to improve one’s living space and take it from just functional to luxurious through improved landscaping.

Landscaping is a pass time no longer limited to just seniors or those that enjoy a relaxing activity. Today, all across our great country, and in Charlotte County, FL families from Punta Gorda to Port Charlotte are finding landscaping to be a great activity that everyone from Grandma and Grandpa down to the youngest children can enjoy together. Landscaping is a family activity that everyone can get on board with.

Landscaping, although relaxing, can also be a good source for exercise. With an ever increasing spot light on weight loss, adding landscaping to your routine can increase calorie burn.

Landscaping’s appeal has so many facets. Those looking to improve the look of home they want to sell as well as those looking to improve the look of their current home and neighborhood are finding landscaping to be a viable option. Ask Heidi Schrock from Re-Max Palm Realty and Discover Florida Houses in Punta Gorda, FL what curb appeal does to the listing and selling price of a home in Charlotte county. It is simply amazing to see what a difference a little landscaping can do to add curb appeal to a home or neighborhood. Many communities are improving their aesthetic appeal with professional landscaping.

To be an expert in landscaping, one must understand that it is not as easy as it seems. You need to do appropriate research, design and implementation in order for any landscaper to appreciate the outcome. Contact Terra Landscaping today for any and all of your Landscaping needs from a simple question to a full blown service. We love to help you and our community grow!

The beauty is in the eye of the beholder. Take that into landscaping and you’ll see results that you never thought you could achieve.

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Backyard Landscaping – An Important Area To Landscape

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For homeowners around Punta Gorda and in Charlotte County, a big part of owning a home is landscaping the yard. Front yard landscaping or backyard landscaping, the work must be done. While the front yard is important because it’s more visible to neighbors and others who drive by, the backyard is no less important. The backyard is where families and friends gather for barbecues and birthday parties and where some families place their swimming pools. Most backyards are landscaped with careful thought and preparation. Special consideration is put into the positioning of every blade of grass, each decorative stone and all of the species of flowers that beautify a backyard.

Backyard Landscaping – Terra Landscaping Punta Gorda FLFlowers, stones and grass are just some of the ways to landscape a backyard. Large shade trees, waterfalls and herbal gardens are some other ways. The theme of your landscape will depend on your hobbies, interests and goals for your backyard. Backyard landscaping can be a lot of fun, especially when you make it personal. Landscape your yard to reflect your personality and your homes personality. If you and your family like to entertain, add a bar to your back patio. Clean up the barbeque grill and don’t forget the citronella candles to keep the bugs away. Maybe you’ll want to build a croquet course, mini golf course, or put in a sand lot for some sand volleyball. Whatever your preference, make backyard landscaping fun for the whole family.

Keep your family in mind too, when it comes time to maintain the backyard landscaping. Backyard Landscaping – Terra Landscaping Punta Gorda FLLarge yards will require a lot more maintenance and grooming. Taking care of the yard can be a nice family activity. You can mow the lawn, pull the weeds and get the kids involved in watering the plants. If you have a fruit tree in your backyard, you’ll probably be spending some time picking up the fallen apples or cherries. And of course, you’ll also need to reserve time to tend to your herbal garden. It can be surprisingly rewarding to grow your own herbs and use them in special recipes that you cook when you’re entertaining friends and neighbors.

 

Backyard Landscaping – Terra Landscaping Punta Gorda FL

If you are the type who would rather keep your backyard to yourself, then maybe you don’t need to worry about the huge, green lawn. Perhaps you’d rather have a quaint yard with basic backyard landscaping. You can put in some grass, strategically place some shade trees and plant some of your favorite flowers. You may want to include some bigger bushes, if space allows as they will add some gorgeous green to your colorful backyard. This type of backyard may require the same maintenance as a large backyard, but not nearly the time commitment. No matter what your personality says about your backyard landscaping, one thing’s for sure—homeowners everywhere will tell you to create your backyard just the way you want to and Terra Landscaping will too!

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Landscaping Do’s & Don’ts

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When you are designing your landscapes, as homeowners you may envision a grand garden with lush lawn and beautiful patio that would become the envy of the neighborhood. But that dream is better to remain a dream, as such designs are very difficult to maintain. Plants have a tendency to grow and landscapes have a tendency to wear out with time. So after a few months, it would feel not worth the money and time.

Planting the Wrong Trees

When planting new shrubs and trees in your property, there are so many varieties to choose from. This decision can be confusing. In such a situation it is always better to choose varieties that would not grow too big and overwhelm the property. A big or too large a tree can always mask the other elements of a landscape and they can take a lot of effort to maintain. Decide on the types of plants you want on the property, and their size.

Choosing Wrong or Non Native Plants

Another mistake that most people do is plant non native trees. In order to give their landscaped garden an exotic look, most homeowners plant trees that are big on maintenance or not suitable for our climate in South West FL. Native plants have the inborn capability to adapt to the local climate; they can withstand the worst weather without you having to put a lot of effort. Exotic plants might add that aesthetic appeal to the garden but this appeal will only be short-lived. Moreover the maintenance of these plants over time will cost more.

Plan less Planting

When you are planting new tress, you are so overwhelmed with the property that you forget to plan where to plant what. Turning the garden into a jungle. It is always better to remember that as plants grow in favorable condition; they take enough space for their development. So when you plant trees without strategizing, the landscape can look real haphazard. Planting trees too close can become a security hazard. Planting trees too close will weaken the foundation of the home as the roots will grow deeper in the ground.

Too Much Lawn Area

While green and large lawns look nice and appealing to the eyes, a yard filled with grass can be expensive and extremely hard to maintain. Lawns without trees are very hard to maintain as they are more susceptible to damage from harsh weather condition. Overwatering can damage the grass roots; excessive sunlight can dry and burn the grass. A lawn filled with grass incurs expensive water bills. Planting more trees and balancing between too much lawn and trees can help considerably.

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Fun Facts

All too often, children think parents know nothing.  And, as the years progress, it seems like the less we remember.  So, when your children are asking help with homework and we baffle them with our big words because we truly do not understanding what in the world they are doing, we can salvage our pride.  Below is a list of fun facts that all parents should keep stored in case of emergency… you know those “okay, well I don’t know that but let me show you what I do know” moments.

Here you go parents, dazzle your children with your brilliance!

  • Tipping in Iceland is considered an insult.
  • People swallow about a pound of insects per year! There are even tiny pieces of insects in food!!
  • The average life of a taste bud is 10 days.
  • Ketchup was originally sold as a medicine in the 1830’s.
  • Butterflies taste with their feet.
  • A duck’s quack does not echo, and no one knows why.
  • Average lifespan of a major league baseball: 7 pitches.
  • American’s eat an average of 18 acres of pizza a day.
  • A crocodile always grows its teeth back to replace the old ones.
  • American Airlines saved $40,000 by removing one olive from every salad in 1987.
  • An ant will always fall on its right side when intoxicated.  (did someone pay money for this study?)
  • The Chico, CA city council enacted a ban on nuclear weapons, setting a $500 fine for anyone who detonates one in city limits.
  • Starfish don’t have brains.
  • The bible is the world’s most shoplifted book.  (sad but true)
  • The Main library at Indiana, University sinks 1 inch every year because when it was built, engineers failed to take into account the weight of all the books that would occupy the building.
  • Odds of hitting jackpot on a slot machine are 889 to 1.
  • The liquid inside young coconuts can be used as blood plasma.
  • Giant tortoises live between 150-200 years. (no wonder they are so slow!)
  • If the entire population of China were to walk in front of you in a single file line, it would never end because of the rate of reproduction.
  • A ‘jiffy’ actually means 1/100th of a second.
  • Canada is an Indian word meaning ‘big village’.
  • In America, you’re more likely to be hurt by a vending machine than a bear.
  • The deer is the most dangerous animal in America.

Parents, these fun facts are to be stored for safe keeping.  Keep them handy and available.  You will need them!

Kids love to come home with their new facts that they learned in school.  Some of those facts we actually remember, but all too often we look like deer in headlights!  We parents may not know everything or even remember enough to keep up with the kids as they get older, but if we keep a storage of absolutely useless information, we can still dazzle the kids with our brilliance!

The Perfect Lawn

The Perfect Lawn

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[lead]Do you strive for the perfect lawn? Do you want your lawn to rival even the best kept baseball diamond outfield, soccer field and golf green?[/lead]

Lawn Memory
When you brush or comb your hair in the same way, over and over again, it gains a memory and begins to fall in the same way. Lawns are the same when they are mowed in the same direction and pattern over and over again. Not only will the grass lay in the same direction but small ruts can start to appear in the soil from the wheels of your mower. The tires and the weight of your mower push down and compact the soil into ruts that follow your typical mowing pattern. This can be especially true of you mow when the grass and ground are wet.

Alternate Directions
Most of us follow a pattern when we mow that is the easiest and quickest way to complete the job. We fall into a routine and think nothing else about it. It’s important to remember, though, that blades of grass are like leaves on a tree. They take in the sun and, through the process of photosynthesis, nourish the plant. When grass is forced to lay in only one direction, it loses some of its ability to gain the sun because only one side of the blade is being used. Simply changing the direction that you mow can help the grass lay in a different way or even stand up straighter. Not only will this help the grass remain healthy, it will make your yard look fuller.

[blockquote size=”half” align=”right” byline=”Antoine de Saint Exupery” rating=”0″] Perfection is achieved, not when there is nothing more to add, but when there is nothing left to take away
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Alternate Patterns
The pattern that you mow your yard in should be varied every week. Actually, the best thing to do is to develop four or five patterns and use them consistently through the summer in rotation. That is, if your yard is large enough. Some side yards and small sections of yard can make it tough to use different patterns. In these cases, make sure to at least go in different directions, as mentioned above. For the larger sections of yard, try to make sure that the patterns you use are at least at ninety degree angles to each other. 45 degree angles are best. Not only will this help the individual blades of grass stand up straighter, it will allow you to make sure that the blades of grass are cut evenly.

It’s easy to find instructions for various patterns on the internet that can make your yard look great. Alternating straight lines or creating a checker board pattern can really help your yard stand out from the neighbors’. Professional grounds keepers use rollers on the back of their mowers to help the grass lay in different directions so shades of light and dark make your straight lines or curves really stand out.

A Few Other Suggestions
Make sure that the blades on the mower are sharp. This will insure that the grass is cut cleanly and not ripped at the top. Find the best height for the particular kind of grass you have in your yard. Different species of grass will look better or worse at different lengths. Do your best not to cut off more than the top one-third of your grass and, if the clippings are small enough, it is best to leave them on your lawn as opposed to raking them up or bagging them. The clippings will decompose, returning nutrients and further nourishing your yard. Raise the height of your mower deck when the weather is hotter. If you cut your yard too short in hot weather, it may burn and die.