Top Tips for Landscaping Your Florida Home in Sunny Spring

What’s the easiest facelift you can give the exterior of your home? Landscaping! With sunny, spring weather upon us, now is a great time to beautify your flower beds and the curb appeal of your home.

In this temperate time of year, gardens start to come to life thanks to the number of warm-season crops that can be grown at our Central Florida homes. As suggested by the Institute of Food and Agricultural Services (IFAS) at the University of Florida, Central Floridians can continue to plant warm-season crops in April, such as:

• Annuals: For a simple way to add bright and vivid colors, coleus is a perfect annual for spring as it is capable of growing well in either sun or shade.
• Bulbs: Daylilies (early-, mid-, and late-blooming varieties) are also favorable in the spring and provide many months of beautiful blooms with little maintenance.
• Herbs: For something different from the norm, try nasturtiums, in your herb garden–the leaves and flowers of this member of the watercress family have a peppery flavor. Since herb plants are small, they are perfect for container gardening. Sweet basil, coriander, mint, rosemary and sage are a few popular herbs that can serve the dual purpose of eye-catching greenery and delicious flavor in your favorite dishes.
• Vegetables: Warm-season crops, including cantaloupe and okra, can continue to be planted in Central Florida in late April.

Other tips for spring planting include using mulch to help provide water and prevent weeds.

When it comes to incorporating new plants into your landscape design, use these eight suggestions from the experts at HGTV to create a well-designed landscape that is easy to maintain:

• Plan for equipment access: Future home maintenance or renovation projects could take a toll on your beautiful garden if not designed to allow machinery access into the yard.
• Create a focal point: Just as home decorators maintain each room should have one décor item that draws your gaze; your landscape should do the same. Whether it is a small statue or uniquely colored plant, pick one visually engaging object — just make sure it connects with the style of the other landscaping.
• Avoid landscapes that are too formal: Symmetry in a garden can be challenging to maintain, especially if a plant needs to be replaced with a matching specimen. It is best to go with something more natural and free-form.
• Add curves to your landscape (but not too many!): While curves add interest to the space, too many can quickly become overkill and leave you feeling confused rather than enchanted.
• Add movement: A static landscape is like looking at a picture - add plants like ornamental grass that will blow in the breeze, as well as flowers to attract birds and butterflies.
• Accent your home: Use plants to soften the edges and blend with surrounds, just don’t let them overgrow and take over!
• Don’t take your landscaping for granted: If designing your landscaping around existing landscape features proves to be challenging, consider removing those old features and completely redesigning your garden.
• Keep plant size and growth rate in mind: Experts suggest planning your garden space properly so faster and larger-growing plants don’t dominate (or sabotage!) your entire landscape. Design with air circulation around plants, which prevents problems with fungus and insects.

Springtime in Central Florida provides pleasant weather and conditions for planting, and embracing a landscape project for your home’s exterior this season will provide you pleasurable outdoor living in the upcoming summer months.

As a leading builder of new homes in Central Florida, Highland Homes is pleased to offer tips for Florida living and home decor. Highland Homes builds more than 30 home plans, priced for your budget and designed for your life, in communities throughout the Orlando, Tampa, Lakeland-Winter Haven, Sarasota-Bradenton, and Ocala regions. For more information on our Florida new homes, visit the Highland Homes website.