Creating a beautiful home exterior with curb appeal doesn’t have to mean spending every weekend outdoors doing manual labor. With the a little planning, the right plant choices, and some creativity, you can design a gorgeous landscape that is easy to maintain and inexpensive.
The key is choosing aesthetic looking plants that thrive in your environment and require minimal upkeep once established. Below are some of the best low maintenance landscaping ideas that combine curb appeal, beauty, and ease of upkeep.
Low Maintenance Yard Ideas
When planning out what to add to my yard each year, I like to add budget items to get the best use of my money. The ones to have the greatest potential for the least amount of coin are perennials because once they survive the first year, they come back again each year. Low maintenance trees are also good choices. Some of my favorites are:
- Hydrangeas
- White flowering bush
- Boxwoods
- Climbing vines
- Spring flowers
What to Do Before Landscaping
Before beginning your landscaping, some research and planning can help the long tern success of your yard. Here are some things to think through before planting.
Amount of Sunlight
First, evaluate how much sunlight your yard gets throughout the day. My home faces North and is a tall two story home. The flower beds in the front of my home get only a few hours of sunlight.
I took this into serious consideration when adding plants to the existing garden beds. Some plants thrive in full sun, and others prefer partial shade.
Soil Type
Next, consider your soil type. In Northern Alabama, we have a lot of red clay, which is formed with weathered limestone and is rich in nutrients. This soil is good for crops and certain ornamental shrubs.
The red or rust color comes from the iron oxide in the soil which is a good indicator of well draining soil. It has lots of nutrients because of the weathered limestone being made of calcium, magnesium and other minerals.
If you don’t have the best draining soil, you can add compost or gypsum to help. We also always add fresh mulch every spring to help the look of the garden beds and to keep out weeds.
Source Local Plants
Now that we know what our sunlight and soil are like, it also helps to choose plants that are local to thrive in the soil and where to place them based on the sunlight needed.
Think about how often each plant needs to be watered and whether that fits your lifestyle. I chose perennials and shrubs that could be locally sourced.
When Perennials Bloom
Once you’ve chosen which perennials to use, consider when they bloom!
I love peonies and they bloom from late April through Mother’s Day. Hydrangeas however, depending on the type, can bloom from late spring to late summer or early fall.
Choose a variety of perennials that bloom throughout the seasons to keep garden beds lush and full for months.
Watering
Water is another big factor that can determine the type of perennials that will thrive in your yard. Is it chronically dry or more of wet climate?
I live in a very hot climate for a good 5-6 months out of the year, but the air has TONS of moisture that makes it HUMID. Especially in the summer. This only increases the temperature which may change the plants needs requiring more water or even partial shade.
Upkeep Required
Finally, consider how much maintenance the plants need and whether certain plants need less water than others and may need some additions to the soil.
Do the plants need pruning like hydrangeas or certain trees, or no maintenance at all like peonies? To keep your landscaping low maintenance, choose plants that require little to know upkeep beyond watering them.
Picking The Right Plants
Make sure to choose the right plants for your landscape. Plants should be placed at least a few feet from the house and well spaced from any other shrubs, trees, flowers. The roots need space to grow without interfering with another plant’s growth. They also don’t need to damage housing foundation, brick, or any concrete.
Hydrangeas (Limelight, Annabelle, Snowball)
Hydrangeas are a favorite for low maintenance landscaping because they deliver big, beautiful blooms with relatively loweffort. There are many varieties of hydrangeas like Limelight, Annabelle, and Snowball.
These are especially popular for their hardiness and ability to thrive in changing conditions. Hydrangeas require a lot of sunlight which is why, unfortunately, the don’t do the best in front of my house, but are still a great low maintenance alternative.
They also require pruning right before the start of the spring season so they can get that big beautiful bloom. In the winter, they turn into lovely dried hydrangeas, which are great for decorating. Oakleaf hydrangeas are said to work really well in my area.
Boxwoods (Evergreen Foundation Bush)
When I was considering plants for my front garden beds, I knew I wanted to change some of the foundation bushes. These kind of establish structure and a green backdrop for your other plants and flowers to blooms against.
I chose boxwoods because I already had some other boxwoods that were smaller in the front of the beds. Boxwoods are a classic landscaping staple. As evergreen shrubs, they maintain their shape and color throughout the seasons, making them ideal for foundation planting along the front of your home.
They require very little upkeep except the occasional trimming to keep the shape.
Climbing Vines (Confederate Jasmine)
Another low cost and low maintenance landscaping idea is climbing vines. Confederate jasmine looks beautiful growing on a trellis or creeping up a brick home. I just planted some in my front garden and I can’t wait to watch it trail up the front of our brick house.
It is a great way to add vertical greenery without much maintenance. It doesn’t have to just climb brick, it can also cover fences, trellises, or walls, creating a lush, green backdrop.
Confederate jasmine also produces fragrant white flowers, which is going to look so charming against my red brick home.
Peonies (Spring Flower)
Peonies are so beautiful and are a great option because they look great and require very little upkeep. They are known for their big beautiful blooms and vibrant colors.
Pink peonies are my favorite, so soft and romantic. They look great in the yard as well as clipped and in a vase inside. While they bloom for a shorter time, their remaining foliage looks aesthetic with your other plants the rest of the season and require minimal maintenance and watering to bloom again the next year.
White Flowering Bushes (Gardenias)
As I said, my house is made of red brick and white flowers are always a classic favorite. Gardenias are one of my favorite flowers. They are a gorgeous option for adding elegance and fragrance to your yard.
Their creamy white blooms and dark green leaves work well along side the pink peonies. These are the flowers that require the most upkeep in this list, but it is still relatively minimal for the reward of a gorgeous and fragrant flower.
You need a well draining soil, which I have already established we have in North Alabama. They also require partial to full sun, some fertilizer in the soil when planted, and high humidity. Their timeless beauty makes them well worth the minimal effort.
Final Thoughts
Designing a low maintenance yard is all about working smarter, not harder. By choosing the right combination of local low maintenance perennials, evergreens, and foundational staples, you can create a the curb appeal of your dreams that requires minimal upkeep throughout the spring and summer months. Take time to plan based on your sunlight, soil, and lifestyle, and your yard will reward you with lasting beauty and less work in the long run.
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