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Author: Title RESIDENTIAL Pages: 12     Balance: 0
WILLIAMS : LANDSCAPE DESIGN Status: IN ACES
PubID: ANR-0813 STORE Printable Copy (PDF)  

Residential Landscape Design

ANR-0813 Reprinted July 2006. J. David Williams, Professor and Department Head, and former
Extension Horticulturist, and Ken Tilt, Extension Horticulturist, Professor, both in Horticulture with
Auburn University.

Landscape design is
the art of developing
property for its greatest
use and enjoyment.
Effective landscape
design is also a science
because it involves
understanding the
environment around
your home and
selecting plants that
perform well in that
environment. In either
case, a well-conceived
landscape design, properly installed and well maintained, adds value to your
property and enhances the quality of your life. There are four ways in which the
landscape is valuable: aesthetically, economically, functionally, and
environmentally.

Aesthetic Value
An attractive landscape is aesthetically valuable because it adds beauty or is pleasing to your senses.
The visual beauty of your home and property can be enhanced through creative landscaping while
undesirable features can be downplayed. The sounds that a landscape offers, like a breeze rustling
the leaves in the trees or the sounds of birds or of water splashing in a fountain, enhance the
aesthetic qualities of your home environment.

The aroma of flowers or the smell of a freshly mowed lawn and even the taste of fruit from plants that
you might have in the landscape are soothing. The sense of touch also can be an aesthetically
valuable feature of the landscape. Consider lying on the lawn in the shade of a stately oak, the feel of
the cool grass on your back on a hot summer day. What else can soothe the mind like that?
Economic Value
The well-done landscape adds economic value to your home and property. The value of your home
can be increased by as much as 6 to 15 percent as a result of a good landscape. However, the
landscape is not the most valuable feature of your property; the house is. The function of the
landscape is to enhance the beauty and therefore the economic value of your house.

Thoughtful landscaping can also reduce energy bills by buffering seasonal temperatures. In addition,
trees and shrubs can be used to reduce wind speed, making your outdoor living area more
comfortable.

Functional Value
Landscaping offers a special functional value, too. Well-placed trees, shrubs, turf, and construction
features increase your use of the property. A little shade in the right place, a little sun in another, a
place for the kids to play, a private patio, pool, or deck—all add to the enjoyment of being outside.

Landscaping helps you solve landscape problems and cut down on maintenance. For example,
groundcover used on a steep hill in the yard can help you avoid lawn maintenance headaches and, on
a very steep slope, groundcover may be essential to prevent erosion.

Environmental Value
The landscape not only has functional worth, but it can enhance the environment, too. Through
careful landscaping, temperatures can be buffered in the summer and winter. Glare and wind can be
reduced and water can be used more efficiently. In addition, plants in the landscape help clean the air
of dust and some pollutants. Your landscape also provides a habitat for all kinds of wildlife.

Decide On Your Level Of Commitment

A good landscape starts with a landscape plan. The landscape plan puts on paper your designs for
your property. Essentially, the design for your landscape is the scheme for increasing the aesthetic,
economic, functional, and environmental value of your property. The plan is a guideline or blueprint for
using plants to make that scheme come alive in the land.

True landscape design involves far more than just buying a plant that happens to look nice and
sticking it in the ground. Design requires careful thought and learning how trees, shrubs, and
construction materials can be used to develop a long range plan for your property. If this sounds like a
lot of work, you�re right!

Your level of commitment to the task determines the approach you decide to take in developing a
landscape design for your property. Three approaches are commonly used to landscape a property.
Each reflects a different level of commitment, and each has clear advantages and disadvantages:

1. Some people prefer to hire a professional landscape designer to prepare a comprehensive

landscape plan and then contract to have it installed.

An advantage of this approach is that it takes the least amount of time and effort on your
part. You simply don�t have to go through the thought and planning process for designing
the landscape. You also don�t have to study the kinds of plants that you should use; and
you don�t have to do all the work of hauling and planting the plants. This approach also
offers the least risk of plant loss or other problems resulting from poor design, plant
selection, and incorrect plant installation.

The most obvious disadvantage of this approach is the cost. You have to pay for the
services of a professional. But don�t rule out a professional designer based on fear of
expense. The design is the least expensive part of landscaping. If you do not have the
 time, talent, or desire to engage in this type of work, the landscape design professional can
fit the design to your budget, help you avoid mistakes, and provide you with a
comprehensive plan that can be installed over time, as money becomes available.

A good designer has the artistic skills to create a landscape that uses and enhances what
you already have with plants and construction materials to create a valuable landscape.
The designer should also have knowledge of plants� aesthetic qualities and maintenance
needs to provide you with a landscape that offers year-round beauty and a maintenance
program that suits your lifestyle.

A more subtle disadvantage, which is usually not a problem for most people but which can
cause some annoyance for a few homeowners, is that the personal tastes of the designer
can differ from yours. Most landscape designers go to great effort to develop a design that
suits your tastes and meets your landscape needs, but each designer has his or her own
unique design preferences.

2. Some homeowners hire a professional designer to prepare a comprehensive landscape

plan and then they install it themselves.

This option cuts down on the time and effort needed to select plants and develop a
landscape design. This removes the guesswork of plant selection and reduces the
potential for landscape problems later. For those who like to work in the yard, this
approach allows them to keep the hands-on element of putting the plants in themselves.

Of course, you do have to pay for the plan, but that is a minor cost compared to the cost of
the plants and installation by a professional. There is still the potential for problems down
the road, however, if you are not careful to plant correctly.

3. Some homeowners take on the task of the design and installation of the landscape by
themselves. This is the least expensive option in the short term, and it is probably the most
fun for the serious gardener.

This do-it-yourself option, however, offers the greatest risk of poor design and poor plant
selection and incorrect installation—any of which may cost you more in the long run. It is
obvious, too, that this option requires the greatest time and effort on your part.

The Design Process

Whether you want to do-it-yourself or
leave it to the professional, it is helpful to
understand the process that is involved
in designing a landscape:

Analyze your site and develop a

base plan.
Determine your landscape needs
and sketch out ideas to meet
those needs.
Choose the plants and
construction materials that
you will use to achieve your
ideas.
Create your design on paper.

Site Analysis
 The first step in designing your landscape is to perform a site analysis. Site analysis begins
with a base plan or base map and an inventory of what already exists on your property
(Figure 1). Sketch out your house, existing structural features of the property, and plants.
This is done in a plan view, from the perspective of looking down on your property from the
sky. Measure the dimensions of the house and draw and label existing features and plants
on the base map. Draw to scale, such as 1� = 8� (1 inch on the ruler represents 8 feet on
the plan). Or, draw on graph paper where each square on the paper represents 1 foot.

Consider and note factors that can affect your landscape:

1. Locate the boundaries of your property and the house�s location on the property.
Measure the dimensions of your house and the location of the house within the
boundaries. Draw the outline of the house on the plan.
2. Find the boundary or point on the property that is in the north direction. This is
needed when plotting the directions of the sun and winds.
3. Locate the position of utilities, the above-ground power lines, and underground gas,
water, and sewer pipes. Record these on your base plan.
4. Indicate where existing plants are located on the property. Name them if you can.
Measure or estimate the size of the plants or the space they occupy and draw them to the
scale you selected for your plan. You may want to keep these plants or remove them in
your final landscape.
5. Note functional areas of your yard that have specific uses. Examples are play and
recreation areas (anything from a sandbox to a tennis court) and areas for storing tools
and growing vegetables. Also, note where you or others usually walk or where you might
want to direct such foot traffic.
6. Note environmental factors. These are important to note on any site. Mark the path of
the sun from east to west and observe sunny areas as well as shaded areas cast in your
yard by surrounding trees and structures. Mark the direction of winter winds (NE) and
summer winds (SW). Indicate characteristics of your soil—clay or sand, wet or dry, fertile
or infertile. Your county Extension agent has information on getting your soil tested. This
test is simple to do and very important when you begin planting your landscape.

Indicate the topography of your lot—the way your lot slopes, how much it slopes, ravines
or ridges, and rocks or outcroppings. You may already have a survey map of your property
with such facts on it, or you may wish to get one made by a licensed surveyor.

7. Indicate whether views are on or off your property, good or bad, and whether these
need screening or framing. Views are not just how others see your property but are also
how you view your landscape from within the house.

All of these factors will influence the way you landscape your home and the location of plants. You
don�t want to place a tree under power lines. In a few years you may have to severely prune it to
prevent electrical problems. Some plants, like elm trees, have very vigorous root systems. If planted
within 50 yards of water or sewer lines, elm roots can grow into the pipes, either cracking or clogging
them.
Whether views are good or bad will determine where you place plants. If your property is attractive,
you may want to leave views of it open. If you sit on your patio and view your neighbor�s garbage
cans, plant a shrub screen to hide this or other unattractive views.

Environmental factors have a great influence on plant placement and choice. An attractive, healthy
plant placed in an unsuitable site may have poor growth, disease, and insect problems, or it can die.
This might occur from too much shade or sun, poor water drainage, or poor fertility.

These are some examples of the careful thinking you must do to design a landscape. Planning is
important because it will determine how plants should be used; planning can be critical in helping you
decide what kinds of plants are the best choices for your landscape. Careful consideration of these
and other features of your property will help to prevent later problems.

In site analysis, you are assessing both the negative and positive aspects of your property and how to
downplay or highlight them successfully with landscape plants.

General Use of Space

The next step in your design is
to very generally organize the
outdoor living area to meet your
needs or desires. You do this
much like you determine how
you will use rooms in your
house. There are three major areas in the
landscape: the public area, the private
area, and the service area. The bubble
diagram is used to lay out a general plan
of how you wish to use landscape space
(Figure 2). A piece of tracing paper taped
over your base plan can be used for
sketching your ideas for the broad, general
use areas.

The public area is usually the area in front

of the house that is visible to the public.
The house is the central focus of this part
of the landscape. The public area design
should be kept simple and uncluttered.

Allow space for your guests to park. If your

lot is small they may have to park in the
street. Otherwise, you could design a
double driveway, a circular one, or one
with parking areas near the house.

Through the use of plantings and walks, direct your guests to the public entrance to your home. If you
want them to notice and use the front door, focus their attention on it. A few bright flowers and
specimen or unusual plants may do this.

A walk leading from your drive to the front door will also guide guests. Design the walk wide enough
for two people to walk comfortably side by side. The walk should offer a fairly direct path with perhaps
a few slight curves for interest. A long, winding walk with large curves may be attractive, but if it is
never used, there is no reason for having it. This applies not only to walks in the front yard, but any in
your landscape. Unless you desire a formal effect and your guests park on the street, avoid walks
leading down the middle of the front yard.
The private area is traditionally located near the family portions of the home, usually the back yard. Its
main purpose is privacy for your family. This may be obtained by an attractive border or screen
plantings and walls or fences made from wood, stone, or metal.

The private area should also serve as a place to entertain guests and a place for rest, relaxation, and
recreation. To fulfill these desires, you may include a patio, terrace, pool, lawn, shade trees, or a
greenhouse. You may have a play area for small children or sports� areas for older children. The
private area is also the place for your favorite flowers, flowering shrubs, and roses. This is where your
family and their guests spend the most time and can enjoy them to their fullest. You may also include
a few specimen plants in a border or leave a vista open to enjoy distant views.

The service area does not have to be attractive or large; its size and use depends on the family
needs. It should be located nearest the kitchen or garage. The service area is the place for the
garbage cans, air conditioning condenser, a utility building, firewood pile, compost bin, or a vegetable
garden. Usually, this area is screened from the view of the other areas.

These general landscape areas should relate to each other in much the same way that rooms in the
house are related. You can tie them together with the use of a continuous lawn (corresponding to a
wall-to-wall carpet inside). Often each area is separated to some extent by plants or physical
boundaries, much as rooms of a home are separated by walls. Don�t block areas off completely.
Allow for movement between them, as in a lawn or walk from the front yard to the back. This is similar
to interior doors and hallways.

Principles of Design
All effective landscape designs rely on basic principles. An understanding of these
principles can keep you from creating a landscape beast instead of the beauty that you
dream about.

Unity, simplicity, variety, balance, sequence, and scale are terms often associated with art.
These terms are used to guide an artistic expression, and in landscape design they are just
as important as in other art forms.

Unity describes the idea of tying the landscape together into an orderly design. Different parts of the
landscape should relate to each other. You should get a sense of visual flow from one part of the
landscape to the other so that features of one part remind you of another. Some repetition of a feature
of the landscape is good, but it should not be carried to the point of monotony. Unity in the landscape
can be achieved through a theme of colors, forms, or textures without using exactly the same plants.
For example, a red color may be used
as a theme, but you could use plants
with reddish foliage as well as other
plants with similar colored flowers or
foliage. The plants would be in different
areas of the landscape, but the color
theme unites the overall landscape.
Other themes, such as kinds of plants,
curves or straight lines, and
construction materials, can be used to
create unity in the design.

Too many design themes can be

confusing, however, and unity of
design lost, so you need to keep the
design simple. Simplicity is an
important principle of design, but it is a
hard one to achieve. Too many
different colors, textures, and forms
result in visual confusion, and any
sense of design can be ruined. One way to achieve simplicity is by using a limited range of plant
species.

On the other hand, you need to provide some variety in the landscape. Oversimplification is boring;
some variety must be sprinkled in for interest and to focus attention on the desirable aspects of your
property. Don�t use the same kind of plant everywhere. A long hedge of the same kind of plant can
be very monotonous, for example. Instead, break plants up into groupings, maintaining some of the
same plants in the groupings but adding other plants for variety.

A fourth principle of design is balance. In landscape design, think in terms of visual balance. The idea
is to balance the visual weight of objects in the landscape. Balance can be symmetrical—one side of
an area looks just like another (Figure 3). It gives a sense of stability. The overall effect is very formal.

Balance can be asymmetrical, also

(Figure 4). Asymmetrical balance
can be achieved with a mass
planting of shrubs or a tree on one
side of the house visually balancing
a chimney on the other side.
Asymmetrical balance is dynamic. It
tends to suggest movement.

A change in form, color, texture, or

size should be gradual in the
landscape. A gradual change is part
of the principle of sequence.
Sequence is used to direct the eye
smoothly to a desired focal point like
the front door or a specimen shrub.
Sudden changes in appearance
break the visual flow around the
landscape.

Proportion or scale refers to the

way in which objects, like plants,
people, or structures, relate to each
other in size. Proportion can be used
to evoke emotion. Large scale
causes a humbling of the observer;
a large tree or massive screen can seem imposing, for example. Small scale gives a sense of
dominance or perhaps a desire to care for the smaller objects; dwarf plants, such as miniature roses,
are examples.

Plants As Elements Of Landscape Design

Plants are used as materials, or building blocks, to apply the principles of design. Plants offer qualities
that help to direct foot traffic in the landscape, moderate the environment around the home, hide
objects, or lead the eye and stimulate other senses like smell and touch. Plants should be used
together to enhance the best features of your property.
 The basic elements that plants offer to the
landscape to express the principles of design
are form, texture, and color.

Plants grow in a characteristic general form

determined by genetics or the environment.
Form generally refers to the silhouette or
outline of the plant (Figure 5). A plant can be
selected for the way its form can be used in
the landscape to complement the house or
achieve the principles of design. For example,
a prostrate plant can be used under a low
window. Rounded trees or shrubs can be
used with oval, spreading, or weeping plants
in a pleasing border. Use conical plants
carefully; they tend to dominate a landscape
because of their prominent form.

Texture can refer to a plant�s feel, but

generally in the landscape visual texture is
the main consideration. Large leaves cast
distinctive shadows in the plant canopy,
offering a coarse appearance. Finer-textured
foliage offers a more uniform shade pattern.
Texture can be used to affect the sense of
scale. A fine-textured plant used near the
viewer with a coarse-textured plant farther
away gives a subtle sense of decreased
distance. It makes your property or structure
seem smaller.

Color has a strong effect in the landscape;

use color with discretion. Don�t plan the
landscape only with use of flowering plants in
mind. Use 80 to 90 percent of the plants for
foliage effect. Some variety in foliage color is
needed, but green provides the continuity as
well as the backdrop for carefully used color. Color should be used to focus attention on an area of
the landscape and to complement the house. Colors should complement each other as well. Use
similar hues together. Mass colors, don�t alternate colors. Alternating breaks up visual sequence
and is distracting.

Selecting Plants
The artistic qualities of landscape design have been discussed, but there is also a very important
aspect of plant science to consider. Plants are living things and, therefore, have basic environmental
and maintenance requirements. As you select the plants that you want to use for your landscape
design, it is very important that you consider these requirements. By giving careful attention to the
growing conditions and unique needs of certain plants before you use them in your landscape design,
you can reduce pesticide use; reduce maintenance efforts, like pruning; and encourage longer-living,
better-looking plants. In other words you can save a lot of effort and money.

You need to consider several factors about a plant before you use it in the landscape:

Cold hardiness or heat tolerance.

Light requirement.
Moisture requirement.
Soil drainage needs.
 Soil pH requirement.
Pest susceptibility.
Rate of growth and mature size.

Cold hardiness and heat tolerance. Many plant reference books provide a USDA hardiness map of
the United States broken down into zones of average minimum temperatures (Figure 6). References
will indicate the hardiness zone for each plant. Select only plants that can take the average lowest
temperature in your region. Alabama covers two hardiness zones: Zone 8 reaches from about Clanton
southward; zone 7 is above Clanton. Average minimum temperature for the southern half of Alabama
is 10° to 20°F. The northern half of the state averages 0° to 10°F minimum temperature.

Plant heat tolerance is harder to get a handle on. Fewer references provide this information. But, look
around your community, especially in the southern half of the state: spruce, white pine, or lilacs are
not doing well, partly because of the stress of long, hot summers.

Light requirement. Plants can differ greatly in the amount of light that they need to thrive. For
example, daylilies need full sun, while hostas can be damaged unless partially shaded. Select plants
that require the amount of sun or shade available in your landscape.

Moisture requirement. As with light, plants can differ in their need for water. Santolina thrives in a
dry site but dies if kept too wet. Try to select and group plants together that have similar water needs.
This encourages plant survival and improves efficiency of water use in the landscape.

Soil drainage. Even plants that need a lot of water can be killed if they are planted in a poorly drained
soil. Plant roots need some oxygen to function normally; this is supplied in air spaces in the soil. If a
soil has small air spaces between soil particles, it is more likely to hold moisture instead of draining
out and being replaced with air. The result can be root death followed by plant decline. Many hollies,
azaleas, dogwoods, and junipers are lost causes if soil has poor internal drainage or percolation.
Check or correct soil drainage or select appropriate plants.

Soil pH requirement. If the soil pH is not in an acceptable range, some plant species have a difficult
time taking up certain nutrient elements. The result can be a chronically yellow and poorly growing
plant. Azaleas and other acid loving plants need a low soil pH. Check the pH with a soil test. In some
naturally high pH soils, acid loving plants should not even be considered for the landscape.

Pest susceptibility. Some plants are very susceptible to insect and disease problems. You can
spend a lot of time and money on pesticides to keep those plants looking good. Excessive use of
some pesticides can also be environmentally unsound. The problem can be reduced from the start if
you are careful about the plants you select for your landscape. Red tip (photinia) is just about
guaranteed to have real disease problems. You can count on scale insects if you use Japanese
euonymus.

Rate of growth and mature size. A common mistake in landscape design is to underestimate how
big a plant will get. Keep mature size of the plant in mind when designing the landscape. Select plants
that will reach an appropriate size for the location you have in mind. Or, select plants that can be kept
in bounds with little effort.

Arranging Plants In The

Landscape
In most residential landscape situations,
plants are used or arranged in seven basic
ways (Figure 7).

The specimen plant is a center of

attention. It deserves a prominent place in
the landscape. However, you should use
plants sparingly in this way because the
specimen can dominate the landscape so
much that it detracts from the overall
landscape unity.

An accent is like a specimen but more

subtle. Consider it a featured plant in a
grouping of other plants.

Corner plantings are groups of plants

used to �tie down� the corners of the
house. Corner plantings blend the vertical
line of the wall with the horizontal plane of
the ground. The corner planting should not
grow higher than two-thirds of the height of
the eaves, although this is not a hard and
fast rule and creativity can be the
overriding consideration. However, the
corner planting should involve a sequence
of lower-to-higher or higher-to-lower
plants.

Foundation plants, like corner plantings,

help anchor the house to the ground. The
foundation planting should also direct the eye of the viewer to the entrance. Generally, taller plants
are placed on, or beyond, the corners with height of plants descending toward the entrance. Do not
think you have to put plants all the way across the foundation. The main idea is to anchor and direct,
not camouflage.
Plants used to identify an entryway like the driveway, a garden gate, or an entry to the house are
called entrance plantings. Groupings of plants should be used in such a way to clearly invite the
viewer to the designated place of entry.

Groupings of plants used to divide and define spaces in the yard are called borders. Borders,
especially in the corners of the property, often should be taller near the center and taper to the ends.
Leave spaces between borders to avoid monotony and create windows to enhance views. However,
borders don�t have to be tall. For example, a low border can be used to separate a driveway from
the lawn. It can serve to direct foot traffic.

Screens are groupings of plants used to hide or cover unwanted views or objects. Evergreen plants
are an important part of screens, but they should not be the only plants used. Add deciduous plants
for variety in color and texture. The screen needs to be at least 6 feet high to be effective.

Landscape plants should be arranged in defined, mulched beds. Planting beds should have either
straight or gradually curving lines to make maintenance easier and to make them useful to easily
direct the eye. Sudden dips and jags are unattractive. Bed lines should be oriented at a 90-degree
angle where they meet a sidewalk or structure. This gives a sense of completion to the bed line.
Where possible, include trees in mulched beds. Even a mulched area around specimen trees is
desirable to protect them from lawnmower and string trimmer injury.

When planning your landscape design and choosing plants for it, always keep in mind an idea of what
you want to create. This guiding idea is the same as an approach, concept, or theme. It should fit with
your home and its surroundings. If you have a wooded lot and rustic home, you might take a
naturalistic approach using such plants as azaleas, dogwoods, and oaks in groups. If your home is
formal, arrange shrub and flower beds in more symmetrical patterns with straight lines and use such
formal plants as clipped hedges of boxwoods.
Yuccas and junipers complement Spanish
architecture, and old-fashioned plants such as
crapemyrtle and jasmine complement colonial
homes. A landscape design without a guiding
theme can be neither effective nor attractive.

Keep your landscape simple. Use a small

number of plants with different characteristics;
and repeat these. Use even fewer unusual
plants. Use simple lines for edges of borders,
walks, and drives. And, use simple
arrangements for groupings of plants. Take
your plan to your local garden center for
suggestions or help in plant selection.

Simplicity is the key to both lower

maintenance and effective landscapes.
Simplicity, combined with your creativity, is
the key to a landscape which your family can
use and enjoy.

Putting Ideas On Paper

Standard symbols are used to
depict on the plan the kinds of
plants and structures to be used in
the landscape (Figure 8). For
example, a broadleaf deciduous
tree, like a dogwood, may be
depicted with a rounded canopy line or as
leafless branches. Broadleaf evergreen
shrubs, like azaleas, might be illustrated as circles with rounded edges. Pines and other needle
evergreens are often pictured with sharp edges. The use of fancy symbols in your landscape plan is
not essential; simply using circles drawn to scale with a circle template is all right as long as you are
consistent. But, it is helpful to be familiar with the symbols that are typically used so you can
recognize the general kinds of plants used as you look at the plan of a professional landscape design.

Keep in mind that the circles used to represent the plants should be drawn to scale such that the
plants are illustrated at their mature size. Put plants on the plan as if someone else would need to
know exactly where you want plants to be planted.

The landscape plan is of little use unless the plants are identified on the plan (Figure 7). This is known
as keying, and, although it is somewhat tedious, it is very important. After all, you may put your plan
away until you can afford to install another portion of your landscape. You may forget what plants
were selected; without the key, you are lost. On the key, be sure to include the number and size of
plants that need to be purchased. Also include the scientific names of plants to avoid confusion when
you purchase them.

It is most common for homeowners to install their landscape design in stages. It certainly doesn�t
have to be done all at once. If limited funds or other reasons cause you to spread out the installation
of your landscape over time, consider this priority system for getting the design from the plan into the
ground:

1. Establish a lawn or a groundcover first to prevent soil from washing or blowing away.
2. Put trees in next, because they take many years to become established.
3. Then add foundation, corner, and entrance plantings. These plantings around the house
add to its appearance, adorn the house, and tie it down.
4. Use borders and screens to create spaces and serve other functions; (a particularly bad
neighbor may warrant use of screens first).
5. Refinements such as flower beds, ponds, lighting, and specimen plants are all possible
additions for many areas of the landscape.

The landscape is dynamic. It changes by the hour as sun and shade move across the yard. It
changes by the day as flowers bloom and fade. It changes by the season as leaves change color and
flowers develop into fruit. It changes through the years as plants grow, expand, and reproduce.
Balancing and using these factors and others to enhance the beauty and value of your property are
part of the challenge and joy of residential landscape design.