{"id":10284,"date":"2023-03-02T19:45:03","date_gmt":"2023-03-02T23:45:03","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.fromh2h.com\/?p=10284"},"modified":"2024-11-23T01:15:36","modified_gmt":"2024-11-23T06:15:36","slug":"low-maintenance-garden","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.fromhousetohome.com\/garden\/low-maintenance-garden\/","title":{"rendered":"16 Tips For Creating A Low Maintainenance Garden"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

If you love your garden but find it too much work, these low maintenance gardening tips are for you. From choosing drought-resistant plants to optimal soil nutrients to using the right tools, there are many things you can do to reduce the amount of time and effort it takes to maintain your yard.<\/p>\n\n\n

\n
\"Tips<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n

Anyone who knows me, knows that I love my garden. It’s the perfect place to entertain, play with the dog, or just sit and read a book.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What I don’t love (or have time for) is all of the work that can come along with it. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Which is why I try to have the most low maintenance garden possible.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Over the years I have learned a few things about what works and what doesn’t. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

So in case you’re also looking to reduce the amount of time you spend working in your yard, here are my tips for creating a low maintenance garden.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

1 | Pay Attention to Plant Size<\/h2>\n\n\n
\n
\"Comparison<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n

I’m sure I’m not the only gardener that has had this problem at some point in their gardening experience. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

You buy some plants when they are little and plant them fairly close together because the garden looks too bare with all of those little plants. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Then a few years later, you have to dig up half of those plants and move them somewhere else because they are too crowded. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

And what used to be a sunny border may now be a shady nook. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Which probably means a lot of the plants that are left are no longer suited for the space.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If you don’t want to do that extra work of digging plants up and moving them, pay attention to the plant size on the label. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Make sure to leave enough space around the plants for their future size when you put them in the ground. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

If the label says the plant will be 6′ wide, that means it will need 3′ on all sides of it. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

If you don’t like all that bare ground, try filling up the spaces temporarily by planting some annuals or installing some move-able garden art.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Also if you’re gardening in a small space, dwarf varieties of bushes and trees are usually your best bet. They won’t require a lot of pruning to keep them the right size.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

2 | Use A Lot of Bushes And Trees<\/h2>\n\n\n
\n
\"Garden<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n

Bushes and trees come in all kinds of shapes and sizes with all different colors of flowers and leaves. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

By planting different sizes of bushes together, you can create planting layers that give your garden a lush look in the summer.<\/p>\n\n\n

\n
\"Patio<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n

Since most of them don’t die back to the ground, they continue to provide some structure in the winter.<\/p>\n\n\n

\n
\"Hydrangeas<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n

Most bushes live for many years and don’t take a lot of work to keep them looking good…perfect low maintenance plants!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Just make sure to keep the last two tips in mind when you are choosing the bushes to plant. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Buying ones that don’t suit your location, or are going to be too big for your spot will lead to more work in the future.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

3 | Plant Native Plants<\/h2>\n\n\n
\n
\"Native<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n

Native plants are the ones that grow naturally in your area. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Which means they usually require less watering and maintenance than other plants would.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

They are available in many pretty colors. And many have been cultivated so they have more color options available but still have the native durability.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

You can even help to keep some of the species that are endangered in the wild from becoming extinct (like the Benjamin Franklin Tree above).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If you want more information about native plants in your area, check out plantnative.org.<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

4 | Use drought-tolerant plants<\/h2>\n\n\n
\n
\"Drought-tolerant<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n

Along those lines, putting in plants that don’t require a lot of watering will save you time and money.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Many of them can go the whole summer without requiring water, especially after they are established in your garden.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

See our list of drought-tolerant shade plants<\/a> for some ideas.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

5 | Buy Plants For Your Zone<\/h2>\n\n\n
\n
\"USDA<\/a>
USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map By Henry M. Cathey while Director, U.S. National Arboretum, Agricultural Research Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture, Washington, DC 20002, via Wikimedia Commons<\/a><\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n

Another important thing to keep in mind is what gardening zone you live in. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Your zone is determined by your area’s low temperatures in the winter (and sometimes high temperatures in the summer.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

To look it up, find a gardening zones map for your area and then look up where you live to find the zone number.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

You can find the U.S. zones here<\/a>, the Canadian zones here<\/a> and European zones here<\/a>. If you live in an area that doesn’t have a gardening zones map, you can figure them out by looking at the temperature ranges listed with the maps.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Note that if you live in Canada, the zones are generally one higher than is listed on the USDA map. So if you are looking at an American plant site, their zone 5 is considered zone 6 in Canada.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The tag on most perennial plants, bushes or trees you buy will list the zones that it can survive in. And if it doesn’t a quick google search will tell you.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

To create a low maintenance garden, buy plants that are supposed to grow in your zone. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

If the plant has a range of zones, it’s better if your zone is in the middle of the range. These are the areas where the plants will be the easiest to grow.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

6 | Pick The Right Plants For Your Location<\/h2>\n\n\n
\n
\"Diagram<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n

Before you buy anything, make sure you know where the plants are going to go, and what the conditions are in that spot.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Is it a full sun or full shade spot? The rule of thumb is:<\/p>\n\n\n\n