Landscaping, in plain English.
Grading, drainage, irrigation, hardscape and a yard that works.
The lingo.
- Aeration and overseeding
- Pulling plugs of soil to relieve compaction, then spreading seed. The fall routine that thickens a tired lawn.
- Backflow preventer
- The required device that keeps irrigation water from flowing back into drinking water. Many cities require annual testing.
- Drip irrigation
- Low-pressure tubing that waters beds and trees slowly at the roots, using far less water than spray heads.
- French drain
- A gravel trench with a perforated pipe that collects water and moves it away. Different from a surface channel drain or a downspout extension.
- Grading
- Shaping the ground so water runs away from the house. The first six feet should drop about six inches. Most wet basements start with grading and gutters, not foundations.
- Hardiness zone
- The USDA map of average winter lows that tells you which plants survive your winters.
- Hardscape
- The built parts of a landscape: patios, walks, walls, steps, fire pits. Softscape is the plants, lawn and soil.
- Irrigation zone
- A group of sprinkler heads run by one valve. Zones separate lawn from beds and sunny from shady areas so each gets what it needs.
- Landscape fabric
- Woven cloth under mulch or gravel meant to block weeds. Useful under stone; under mulch it usually ends up a mess within a few years.
- Low-voltage lighting
- 12 volt path and accent lights run from a transformer. Safe for homeowners to touch and a common add-on to a hardscape project.
- Mulch
- Shredded bark or wood chips over beds to hold moisture and block weeds. Two to three inches; never piled against trunks and stems.
- Native plants
- Species that evolved in your region. They need less water and care and support local pollinators.
- Pavers
- Interlocking concrete or stone units laid on a compacted gravel base and sand bed. The base is what keeps them from heaving; ask how deep it is.
- Retaining wall
- A wall that holds back soil. Walls over about four feet usually need an engineer and a permit; drainage behind the wall is what keeps it standing.
- Sod vs. seed
- Sod is an instant lawn at a higher price; seed is cheaper and takes a season to fill in. Both fail without soil prep and watering.
Guides.
- Before you call a landscaper
Water first, then hardscape, then plants. What to settle before you get a design.
- Paying for the work: deposits, draws and financing
How much to pay up front, when progress payments are fair and what to watch in a financing offer.
- Hiring a Pro: five questions before you sign
License, insurance, references, a written scope, and who is actually showing up.
- What a written warranty should say
Workmanship, materials and the difference between them. What to ask for and how to make a claim.
- How to read a contractor's estimate
Compare scopes, not prices. What every line on a good estimate means and the questions to ask before you sign.
Reading list.
Articles from around the internet that our Pros trust. They open on the source's site.
- Landscaping for energy-efficient homes · U.S. Department of Energy
Shade trees, windbreaks and plantings that cut heating and cooling bills.
- WaterSense outdoors · U.S. EPA
Smart irrigation controllers, drip and drought-tolerant planting.
Articles from HomeMaxx.
All articlesStorm season: the week before, the day of and the day after
Hurricanes, derechos and hail all give some warning. What to do with it, how to document the house, and what to do when the storm chasers knock.
3 min readSeasonsThe fall checklist: twelve things to do before the first freeze
An afternoon of small jobs in October prevents most of the emergency calls Pros get in January. Here is the list, in the order to do it.
2 min readSeasonsHurricane season: the house, the plan and the paperwork
June first is the start, and the preparation that matters is done by then, not the week a storm is named. The roof, the openings, the water, the paper and the thirty-day rule on flood insurance.
3 min readMaintenanceDecks and fences: a summer of care that adds ten years
Wood outdoors lasts as long as it is kept dry and sound. The yearly inspection that catches the failures that drop decks, the cleaning and sealing, and when it is time to rebuild.
3 min readSeasonsThe summer checklist: keeping the house cool, dry and standing
Summer is hard on a house in quieter ways than winter: heat in the attic, water in the basement air, sun on the paint, and the storms. What to do in June so August is uneventful.
2 min readMaintenanceIrrigation: watering the lawn without watering the house
A sprinkler system left on its spring settings is the most common cause of a rotten sill and a wet basement that nobody can explain. The heads, the schedule, the backflow preventer and the fixes.
3 min readSeasonsThe spring checklist: finding out what winter did to the house
Freeze and thaw, snow load, ice dams and four months of heating leave marks. A spring walk-around finds them while they are small. Here is the list, outside then in.
3 min readImprovementThe improvements that pay you back, and the ones that mostly do not
Appraisers, agents and contractors mostly agree on which projects return their cost at sale and which are for you alone. Both are fine reasons to build. Just know which one you are doing.
2 min readMaintenanceDrainage and grading: the yard's job is to move water away
Wet basements, cracked foundations and soggy lawns usually trace back to the same thing: the ground slopes the wrong way. What to look for after a spring rain, and the fixes from cheapest to most.
3 min readMaintenanceGutters: the cheapest maintenance that saves the most
A clogged gutter is behind more foundation cracks, rotten fascia and wet basements than any other single thing. Twice a year, and here is how.
2 min readFrom the Pros.
Written by the people who do this work every day, in your area.
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