You don’t need to spend a fortune to spruce up your facade or enhance the look of your home. You just need to get creative with the tools you already have and put some time-honored techniques into practice. Here are just a few simple, affordable landscaping upgrades that you can make right now.
Trim Your Trees
Trimming your trees might seem like a no-brainer, but you’d be surprised how much a simple trim can improve the look of your landscaping. When you look at your trees every day, you might not even notice that they’ve gotten overgrown, out of control, and riddled with dying branches. Other people do notice, however.
By cleaning up the overgrowth, removing the dead branches, and ensuring that everything looks neat and symmetrical, you can add space and harmony to your entire yard. The area will seem bigger, less cluttered, more inviting, and more aesthetically pleasing.
Edge Your Trees
Edging your trees is easy to do and can instantly enhance the look of your yard. All you have to do is create a clean border around a tree, which can then be filled with soil and adorned with flowers, bricks, mulch, or other features. Edging also serves a practical purpose, as it works as a buffer against other trees in the yard.
In general, you’ll just need a lawnmower and some basic edging tools like seed trimmers and a spade. Spade-cut edging is the simplest type of edging to do on your own. Use the spade to dig a narrow trench in your desired shape, then sever the grass and add some fresh soil. From there, you’re free to fill in the trench however you want.
Draw the Eye to Your Front Porch
A few meticulously placed plants and a bit of trim around your front door can create a bold central focal point for your home. If you really want to make the area pop, you can also paint your front door in a color that contrasts with its immediate surroundings.
If your front porch has been neglected in recent years, you can spruce up the columns and walls with a fresh coat of paint, add an area rug, and remove any clutter that has piled up.
Install Outdoor Lighting
Better Homes & Gardens recommends outdoor landscape lighting as an instant curb-appeal enhancer. It can illuminate your walkway, spotlight your flowerbeds, or just add an overall sense of class and sophistication to your home’s exterior.
Best of all, outdoor lighting can be found in almost any home improvement store and is extremely affordable. You can find solar lights that require no wiring and have no impact on your electric bill.
Update Your Gutters and Downspouts
Old or poorly maintained gutters can make your entire home look rundown—and if they’ve collected a lot of debris over the years, they could make proper water runoff almost impossible.
If you’re looking for an easy upgrade, consider replacing those old, stained gutters with a vinyl gutter system. Vinyl is cost-effective compared to other gutter systems, it lasts for years, and it’s virtually weatherproof.
Select the Right Plants for Your Space
The right plants can instantly enhance your space, but the trick is finding the ones that really work for you. According to HGTV, one of the most common landscaping mistakes that people make is choosing the wrong plants for their home environment. Just because a plant “looks pretty” doesn’t mean it’s a good fit for your yard.
If you’re not quite sure where to start, consider plants that are native to your area. They’ll usually grow well and complement your environment. You can also visit your local nursery for expert recommendations.
Add Some Colorful Outdoor Art
Attractive outdoor art complements your natural landscaping, makes your space unique, and brings your whole yard together. There are myriad options available including metal sculptures, fountains, and birdbaths. Find the art that adds beauty to your environment, and place it in a location where it’s visible but not intrusive.
Nurseries, home improvement stores, big-box stores, and department stores are just some of the places where you can find affordable outdoor art. Also, shop online to find great deals on outdoor accents. Places like eBay, OfferUp, and even Facebook Marketplace often have incredible discounts on art from owners who are just trying to free up space.
Finally, Consider What Inspires You
The most important thing is to manicure your landscape in a way that makes you happy. It’s your space, and you see it more often than anyone else. If you love the appearance of trumpet vines, plant some. If you’re partial to lawn gnomes, go for it. Most simple landscaping upgrades are relatively affordable, but they can bring you years of enjoyment. Make your landscaping your own.
Author Bio: Katie Tejada is a writer, editor, and former HR professional. She enjoys writing about events, travel, decorating trends, and innovations for the home, but also covers developments in HR, business communication, recruiting, real estate and finance.
