5 Small Outdoor Projects to Improve Your Yard
Helpful Tips that Won't Break Your Budget … or Your Back!
The first signs of spring may inspire many of us to get out and get busy in our yards, but this year's financial crunch might leave some feeling a little more creatively challenged than usual. The beauty of being a savvy homeowner is that you need not break the bank to make a few simple and refreshing changes in your back yard living space.
Read on for a few tips on each of our top 5 yard reno projects of the season.
Décor - Take the comforts of your home outdoors
After years of retrieving their décor accents from our childhood forts, our mothers probably never thought they'd see the day when almost every comfort for the home has been redesigned somehow for the great outdoors!
These few inexpensive décor elements will spruce up your old patio furniture and lower the need for continuous maintenance:
- Outdoor rugs – are commonly made of polypropylene, which is UV resistant to reduce fading, and quick drying to help prevent mold and mildew. Outdoor rugs are a great way to cover unsightly concrete pads and poorly cared for decks, while providing a safe play area for kids. Most outdoor rugs are simple to care for and can be left outdoors for the summer.
- Throw pillows – are a quick fix and an effective décor refresh for both the indoors and outdoors. Like with outdoor rugs, be sure to select pillows made from fabrics suitable for the outdoors if you intend to leave them outside.
- Patio furniture covers – eliminate the need to hose your furniture off every time you go to use it. Furniture covers keep outdoor furniture clean, and protect it from the elements, which is well worth the cost to protect the investment in your patio furniture!
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$56.99
at The Home Depot
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Sound - Install an outdoor sound system
Outdoor sound systems have experienced phenomenal technological advances which have found their way from portable iPod speakers a few years back, to all-season, built-in, outdoor sound systems.
Speakers are being disguised in creative designs like solar lighting, which removes the need for the unsightly mounted speakers of days gone by. Of course, the solar designs provide more than ambient entertainment: they are great for safety and security and require only solar energy to run!
Garden - Clean up your flowerbeds
$24.97
at The Home Depot
No Maintenance Yard
Most of Canada experiences a relatively short growing period, but during that time tenacious weeds find a way into even the most attended flowerbeds. Many savvy gardeners are eliminating the need to weed with the help of landscaping cloth.
The hardest part of installing landscaping cloth is preparing your flowerbeds. All weeds should be pulled and soil should be turned to catch any roots or rhizomes you may have missed the first go around. Installation beyond that is a cinch: just even out the soil, and lay down the cloth! Make sure to allow for a 4” – 6” overlap when seaming the cloth – this will ensure that weeds cannot make their way through to sunlight through any gaps.
Next, cut an “X” in the fabric - just big enough to hold a plant, but not so small that it could choke it. When you have finished planting, cover the fabric with mulch or cedar chips.
$11.99
at The Home Depot
Landscaping cloth can be installed in a garden that has already been planted, although it is a far more complicated task for obvious reasons!
Fencing and Edging
Often, something as simple as properly edging your flowerbeds is the final touch needed to complete your yard. Edging and ornamental fencing is inexpensive, easy to install and looks polished. Ornamental fencing goes one step further to help keep dogs out of your flowerbeds.
Lighting - Install landscape lighting & pathways
Steppingstones
If your lawn is wearing down in high traffic areas, look to easy and aesthetically pleasing steppingstones to fix the problem! You might have noticed unsightly pathways that lead to a backyard gate, or to a living area set up away from the house.
Installing steppingstones will turn a pseudo path into a safe and attractive walkway. Multifunctional solar steppingstones will even light your way once the sun sets.
$5.98
at The Home Depot
Flowerbeds
No need to feel guilt over the energy it takes to spotlight flowerbeds and ornamental features anymore! Solar lighting is affordable and earth-friendly, and a beautiful way to bring your yard to life at night. Consider spotlighting the features of which you are most proud like the peacefulness of an ornamental fountain, or the serenity of a sculpture nestled amongst the shrubs.
Pathways
Pathway lighting is no longer purely for safety. Gone are the days that a wall-mounted flood was your only option to light a walkway. Now our choices are beautifully designed and completely sustainable, because most run on solar energy.
Wildlife - Bring birds into your garden
$59.99
at The Home Depot
It has been said that to have birds in your yard is the greatest compliment a true gardener can earn. Birds are essential to our environment for the role they play in seeding and insect control, but they are also a treat to observe in the tranquility of our own backyards.
Like all living creatures, birds require food, water, and security to survive. For this reason, water features, birdbaths and feeders are surefire ways to invite birds into your yard. If you have pets that pose a threat to your new feathered friends, make sure to take the appropriate steps to confirm their safety.
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