The number one request we receive from our landscaping clients is for us to create a low-maintenance landscape. While no landscape is entirely maintenance-free, there are things homeowners can do to create one that’s less demanding. Before we start planting every pretty plant we can find (and so many of us are guilty!), let’s put a plan together…
First, let’s debunk some common, low-maintenance misconceptions when it comes to these attributes and activities:
- Drought tolerant means I don’t have to worry about watering. Not true! If plants are not getting what they need from Mother Nature, you’ll have to supplement.
- All native plants are low-maintenance: Again, not true. Just because it’s native to our area, doesn’t mean it can adapt to any light, soil, or environmental situation.
- Any plant can live in in either full sun or full shade: Definitely not true. Plants won’t thrive if they’re planted in the wrong light location.
- I never have to prune. Not true. Most plants need some kind of upkeep, grooming, cleaning up or making adjustments for the health of the plant.
- Will have ZERO pest and disease issues: Nope, not true.
Yes, there are some plants that are less hands-on than others, but none fit the above descriptions as all living organisms need some care and attention. A low-maintenance landscape is less about picking plants that can survive the nuclear apocalypse and more about preparation.
In fact, preparation is the key to low maintenance because it places the right plants in the proper settings for optimal growth and health, therefore reducing the amount of time spent on care.
Example: Consider conifers… They provide evergreen attraction (screening, winter interest) and come in various shapes, sizes, and colors. They can be weeping, upright, blue, red, chartreuse, broad, tight, tall, and short. Pruning isn’t necessary except occasionally, AND they are drought tolerant.
1. Determine the amount of sunlight or shade you have to ensure a low-maintenance landscape.
The most common error in developing low-maintenance landscapes is wanting that peony (or fill in the blank with your plant of choice) to grow where it isn’t happy.
The axiom “Bloom where you’re planted” doesn’t apply to plants. If peonies are in the shade, they won’t bloom. If rhododendrons are in full sun, their leaves will turn yellow. Plants thrive where their cultural requirements (sun, shade, wet, dry) are met. Full shade isn’t going to produce those big, fragrant peony blooms, only full sun will.
Knowing your sunlight/shade situation is the first and most significant step to determining what to plant in your landscape; accepting the sunlight/shade situation is the second step to achieving a low-maintenance landscape.
How to know your light conditions?
Take a day during the growing season and note the hours of direct sunlight, filtered light, and full shade.
Look up. Are you in a dense canopied forest? Is it primarily deciduous trees or evergreen? What about your neighbor’s trees or house? What shade does that create? We often hear that the landscape is full sun in winter, which helps to grow spring bulbs, hellebores, and other woodland plants, but with a few exceptions, most plants are dormant during winter and blooming in the spring, summer, or fall. Knowing your light situation and the requirements of the plants you want will help save time, effort, and money.
- If you need to change your landscape to allow more light infiltration for your dream sun-filled garden, do that first.
- If your landscape is primarily shady, don’t despair, there are many plants for shade gardens.
Example: Viburnums can be evergreen or deciduous. They bloom in early spring, have fall berries, some are fragrant, and most tolerate shadier conditions (although not full shade). And bonus, their mature sizes can range from 5′ tall to 20′, making viburnums multi-use shrubs that are beautiful and relatively low maintenance. Our friendly (and knowledgeable!) B.B. Barns staff can help you pick out appropriate plants for your site.
2. Choose plants that fit your landscape.
When shopping for plants at the garden center or nursery, read the tags or ask us about the mature sizes of plants. Many homeowners want instant happy in the landscape, but plants aren’t couches! They change. They grow bigger. Read the plant tags for the plant’s mature size (and its cultural requirements, i.e., sun/shade, wet/dry) to ensure that the Japanese maple by the front door won’t be hanging over the sidewalk in three years.
A favorite shrub for homeowners is Cyrptomeria japonica ‘Globosa Nana,’ or Japanese cedar. An evergreen, low-maintenance shrub, it has finely textured foliage, turns reddish-bronze in winter, and is perfect for foundations, borders, and containers. These plants are like puppies. They’re adorable when little and in their nursery pots. So cute that homeowners and builders will plant them as close as one foot apart, creating a pretty foundation planting now, but in three to five years, they’re unintentionally making a mess because they grow to their mature size: about four feet tall by four feet wide! And remember, plants don’t read our tags, and they don’t stop growing, meaning these sizes are based on a ten-year average, and some may grow larger.
What to do to ensure you’re choosing plants that fit your landscape:
- Keep in mind that it’s easier to add than remove (and less costly), so pace yourself when planting.
- Measure your space and calculate the square footage to determine the size and number of plants you need.
- Determine if you want a hedge (tighter plantings) or to see the plants individually. Remember that tighter plantings mean more competition for the plant’s roots, airflow, and sunlight. Allow for enough space between the plants for all plants to thrive.
- Fill in between shrubs and trees with perennials and ground covers while trees and shrubs grow.
- Be flexible. Plants are living organisms that don’t always perform as you planned. Allow for surprises in the garden.
3. Choose top-quality plants to help create a low-maintenance landscape.
Plant choices have never been better. Disease-resistant, more prominent blooms, longer-blooming, non-flopping, and smaller sizes help when making choices for your landscape.
Those favorite mophead hydrangeas are now repeating bloomers (Endless Summer®). The standby favorite ‘Annabelle’ smooth hydrangea is available, but there is also a beautiful new cultivar ‘Incrediball’ that has larger blooms with stronger stems and a longer bloom time.
Again, no plant is perfect or without care, but make your choices with some of these characteristics in mind.
What to look for in a low-maintenance plant:
- Cold hardiness
- Disease resistance
- Drought tolerance
- Repeat blooms
- Strong stems
Example: Hellebores prefer dry shade, bloom in winter, are evergreen, act as a groundcover, and rarely need division. They are relatively pest and disease-free, making them an essential low-maintenance perennial.
4. Think four-season plants. Let one plant do more work for the landscape.
Choose plants that give the most visual interest all year long. Such plants are referred to as four-season plants.
Breeders are developing repeat-blooming plants that extend the interest of the plant. Encore® azaleas are an example of this, blooming in spring and then again in fall. Their spring bloom is a late season, and their fall bloom lasts well into early November. It really is possible to allow one plant to do the work of four.
What to look for in choosing a four-season plant:
- Architectural interest
- Blooming and repeat blooming
- Berries, seed pods, flower heads
- Evergreen
- Exfoliating bark
- Fall color
- Winter color
Example: A dogwood is an understory tree that is suitable for small landscapes. Its spring blooms are stunning in spring, but don’t forget its fall display: berries and fabulous fall color in the fall. It’s the first to turn color in fall while holding its leaves late, and its winter architecture is lovely. It’s a workhorse of a plant in the landscape.
5. Low maintenance still requires good maintenance.
How many of us are guilty of planting a new tree and then remembering to prune it when it’s 25′ tall and full of interior branching? Often the next time a homeowner examines a tree or shrub after installation is when it’s overgrown, or when limbs start falling out of it. Proper maintenance, which leads to less maintenance, is a yearly undertaking; be sure to schedule for routine maintenance.
Things to help you have a thriving low-maintenance landscape…
- Create a map of your landscape plants (include common and botanical names). Note the planting date and where it was purchased. This helps if you ever need to replace plants, and it allows you to follow the growth of each plant.
- Know how to maintain your plants. Rhododendrons are pruned after blooming and best before July 4 for optimal spring bloom. Note cultural information for each plant on your map.
- Fertilize yearly with proper fertilization and follow the instructions on the bag. A second fertilizing is recommended for the winter months, but should be applied before July 31.
- Establishing plants is crucial to their longevity and drought tolerance. After installation, know your watering plan to help plants get fully settled.
- During extreme drought, set up a watering schedule, especially for shallow rooted plants and plants that form hedges and screens since the competition for water is greater here.
- Remove all dead, damaged, and diseased wood from plants regularly to avoid habitats for pests and disease. Pruning is done from mid February to early March and is a yearly task. Waiting several years in-between creates a big job and is stressful on the plants.
This may sound like anything but a low-maintenance landscape, but taking the time upfront to make proper choices based on your specific landscape equals less maintenance in the long run. And oh, what a nice place you’ve created for yourself!
