Summer Gardening Tips for your Richmond Landscaping

There usually is one on every street: The home that turns heads with its lush, green and vibrant looks.

It might be a cliché to say that you’re green with envy, but would you like to know how your neighbors’ yard and garden are able to thrive in the Richmond heat while your own are turning brown and wilting before your eyes. What do your neighbors know that you don’t?

In all likelihood, your neighbors are acting on five simple landscaping tips from Oriole Landscaping. You can, too, when you:

• Raise your mower blade. Keeping your lawn at least 4 inches high might be a taller look than you prefer, but consider the benefits: Taller grass retains moisture, reduces water evaporation and triggers deeper roots, which prevent weeds from growing.
  
• Position new plants near taller and similar “neighbors.” Partial shading is the key here, which is another way of saying that partial sun is, too. While young plants establish their roots, they can benefit greatly from the cool, protective cover of taller plants.
  
• Apply a layer of mulch around plants, shrubs, flowers and trees. Mulch shields soil and nutrients from the sun, reducing water evaporation and the need to water while blocking weed growth.
  
• Water your garden early in the morning. Watering in the full heat of day can be counterproductive since leaves get saturated with water and then can get scorched by the sun. Watering at the coolest time of day prevents plant dehydration. Otherwise, consider a using a soaker hose, which can be placed beneath mulch to deliver moisture directly where it’s needed on your landscaping.
  
• Balance your landscape. The right blend of grass, ground cover, shrubs, plants and trees doesn’t necessarily require more maintenance; it actually can require less. Balancing a landscape is part art, part science and is best achieved with the assistance of a skilled landscape architect.
  

To get the personal landscaping advice and service that will keep your yard and garden from wilting in the summer heat, call Richmond’s premier landscaping design and installation company. Oriole’s sensible landscaping advice has turned plenty of homeowners green with envy – and we can do the same for your neighbors.