Most homeowners wish they could enjoy their yard without having to spend hours taking care of it every week. But is it really possible to have a beautiful, low-maintenance yard? Won’t the grass grow too long if you don’t cut it? What will happen to the plants in your garden if you don’t regularly water, prune, and fertilize them? It might seem like an impossible endeavor, but with a little bit of creativity, you can achieve your dream low-maintenance oasis. Here are some tips for creating a low-maintenance yard.
Turf Instead of Grass
Turf is the outdoor equivalent of a carpet. Basically, it’s a sheet of synthetic fiber that mimics grass and can be laid over your lawn. This description might not make it sound very appealing, but it’s much more attractive and beneficial than it sounds. Compared to grass, turf is extremely low maintenance. To keep it in good condition, just occasionally clean it and fluff it. It doesn’t require water, mowing, or fertilizing, and it’s almost entirely weed-resistant. Many homeowners hesitate to make the switch from grass to turf because they’re worried that the turf will look fake and detract from their yard’s overall appeal. Low-quality turf might not look perfectly genuine, sure, but high-quality turf is almost indistinguishable from the real thing.
Create a Rock Garden
A rock garden will creatively improve your landscaping without you needing to plant rows upon rows of high-maintenance plants. As the name suggests, a rock garden uses rocks instead of flowers. You can use a range of different-sized rocks, from pebbles to boulders, to arrange the perfect rock garden. If you want to include a little bit of greenery, you can even intersperse a few drought-resistant perennials, such as lavender or black-eyed Susans, among the rocks. Rocks are a fantastic decorative tool for a low-maintenance yard because they don’t really require any upkeep. At worst, you’ll have to use a leaf blower to blow away debris in the fall and a hose to remove unwanted moss.
Go Automatic
The final tip for creating a low-maintenance yard is to automate it. If you don’t want to manually water your garden, consider letting an automated sprinkler system do all the work for you. You can set these sprinklers to go off at a specific hour each day and turn themselves off automatically. If you hate mowing as much as you do watering, there’s a solution for that as well. Robotic lawn mowers are (essentially) free-range Roombas equipped with blades sharp enough to cut grass. Buying them outright is a bit expensive, but if you’re worried about the excessive price tag, some companies will allow you to rent these robots for a much more affordable cost.
