You can significantly transform your home or business premises and make the space more attractive by using succulents. These plants can withstand arid environmental conditions, but proper maintenance is vital for the excellent growth of the plants. If you want to transform your landscape with succulents, The Landscape Expert is ready to take you through the process step by step and ensure you have a well-executed landscape plan. We are based in the Orange County, California, and our landscapers are well-skilled in planning, executing, and maintaining any of your landscape ideas as well as giving expert advice if you are thinking about starting a project.
General View on Landscaping
Landscaping is the process of making a piece of land in your business, home or any other place more attractive. It involves changing the design of the portion of land and adding decorative features. This can be done by planting trees, succulents, or shrubs.
Benefits of Landscaping
- Economic benefit: A beautifully landscaped piece of land looks more attractive than a plain piece of land. The good looks increase the land's value and reduce its marketing period because the looks will lure a lot of prospective buyers if you are looking to sell your home or property.
- Health benefits: Landscaping beautifies the environment, and according to psychologists, beautiful surroundings reduce a person’s stress level. Additionally, landscaping provides cleaner air, since it mainly involves the planting of trees and shrubs that help to filter pollutants. It can also help to increase your pain tolerance through horticulture therapy.
- Environmental benefits: Landscaping provides shape to the environment. It also helps to filter the dust and pollutants from the air and regulate temperature to coolness during summer and warmth in summer. Landscaping also helps to maintain the water quality, helping to reduce the loss of soil in waterways.
- Social benefits: An attractive surrounding is vital for your relaxation and entertainment. Landscaping also helps to reduce noise and heat in the locality.
What are Succulents?
Succulents are plants that mainly grow in arid areas. Their leaves are fleshy and thick to assist in their water storage. Succulents can be used in both the indoor and outdoor settings. Succulents such as Aloe Vera, snake plant, and ponytail palm tree are best for indoors while sedum, hedgehog cactus, and jade plant are best for outdoors.
When planting succulents, always ensure that you keenly choose the best soil. Unlike other plants that mainly flourish in moisturized soil, succulents need soil that holds little moisture. Additionally, the soil should hold the succulent firmly and drain water fast to prevent water retention that may cause rotting.
Reasons Why You Should Use Succulents on Your Yard
Succulents are drought resistant due to their water holding properties. This makes the plants easy to care for, while sometimes requiring little or no attention. Their different shapes, colors, and sizes make them perfect for landscaping. Furthermore, these plants can change their color under different conditions of lighting to make your home even more appealing under different lighting conditions.
If propagated, the succulents multiply quickly. Propagating involves the chopping the part of another plant and using it to form a new one. Hence they are the best plants to use since they can be replicated easily.
There are many benefits of using succulents for landscaping. First, succulents add a touch of green to your space making it brighter irrespective of the climate. They also bloom in season. Therefore, they splash the canvas of the area you are landscaping with color.
Secondly, succulents help to purify the air by changing the pollutants into plant foods. Succulents also emit water vapor that helps to keep the environment cool and increases the humidity. This, in turn, helps to improve health by preventing sicknesses that might be brought on by dry air.
Thirdly, succulents add fresh oxygen to your environment and this helps to improve your health and breathing.
To conclude, succulents helps to improve your life in many ways it has even known to increase your focus, increase pain tolerance through horticulture therapy and enhances your memory.
A Guide on Choosing the Ideal Succulent
There are so many types of succulents and getting the right one can be challenging. Below are some factors to consider when choosing the best succulent that suits your landscape space.
Consider your succulent style: Some succulents need proper care than others. If you have time to take care of your plants, you can choose the succulent that requires a lot of attention. However, if you do not have time to take care of the succulents, you can go for a cactus type plant.
Whether you will plant the succulents indoors or outside: In case you want to plant the succulent indoors, you can choose Aloe Vera, Haworthia Fasciata or even the panda plant. In case you want to select an outdoor succulent, you can choose plants such as sedum and jade plant. You should also ensure that the color of succulent you choose meets your preferences and goes well with the rest of your landscape.
The size of the succulent: Succulents come in different sizes. The size of the succulent determines the ease of maintaining them. A large succulent is very easy to care since they are less fickle and do not dry out quickly, while the small sizes are very cumbersome to maintain needing lots of care.
The cost of the succulent: When choosing the type of succulent you have in mind make sure it is affordable. Budgeting can help you know the amount of money you need to set aside to purchase a succulent. You can also compare the prices of different succulents from different vendors. The rates of the succulents depend on the size. However, if you want high-quality succulents, the cost is not a significant issue, because quality succulents can be very expensive.
Consider where to purchase the succulent: Buying locally grown succulents is the best idea. This allows you to physically choose the succulents and ensure it is firm and healthy. You can do this by touching the succulent to know if it is rotting or not. Make sure you choose a succulent that has no scars, mushy spots, bumps, or bugs. You can also decide to buy the succulents online. The online market has a variety of succulents to choose from both local and international markets. Hence, you get a chance to compare and select the best variety. The only shortcoming is that you can’t determine the quality of the plants.
How to Take Care of Your Succulents
Well-maintained succulents look more healthy and attractive and in return, beautifies the environment more. Below are some ways to take care of your succulents.
Regulate the amount of light and heat that reaches your succulents. The succulents require full sunlight exposure for at least half a day to help maintain its health and stability. You should also regulate the amount of heat reaching the plant by, for instance, planting trees to provide afternoon shade.
Use more permeable soil types. Ensure that the soil has proper drainage to prevent rotting. If you are planning to plant it in a container, you can mix volcanic rock or gravel with the soil to produce a more permeable mixture. Always drill a drainage hole in the bottom you are going to plant the succulent in a pot, to provide an escape for excess water.
When watering the plants, ensure that it has drained the water well. Succulents are conditioned to survive in dry areas. Hence, they do not need too much water.
Always use fertilizers on the succulent plants. Fertilizers are growth boosters for all plants and succulents are no different. However, always ensure that you accurately measure the amounts to enhance their growth.
Finally, hiring a landscaping company can also help boost your succulent’s growth. Here are more benefits of choosing a landscaping company.
- It helps you to get quality services: Landscaping companies bring professionals on board to ensure proper growth for your plants. They know the best plants to use depending on the area they are landscaping. They also know how to deal with areas that have poor drainage. The agents are also trained in ways to deal with issues that may arise unexpectedly. For example, the companies purchase their succulents from trusted agents. That alone provides enough guarantee on the quality of succulents purchased. If by chance the succulents rot or don’t survive in your area, the company should compensate you adequately or provide a replacement. A landscaping company also offers you advice on the design to use and where to plant different types of succulent plants.
- Saves on time: Taking up landscaping tasks yourself can be very cumbersome especially if you are not a DIY fanatic. Hence, hiring a landscaping company is the best choice. The companies hold your hand from the beginning to the end of the whole process. You can opt not to be part of the whole process and just come in to see the results. They also work under strict timelines as stated in the agreement.
- Working on a budget: Most landscaping companies provide free quotes and free consultation. This gives you a window to choose a company that will give good services at very affordable rates.
- Makes the process smooth and consistent: The landscaping companies have well-trained professionals who can take up any Landscaping task. Most companies not only provide landscaping services but also have maintenance services at very affordable prices, saving you the burden of having to keep an eye on your succulents any time they flourish. This helps your environment flourish even without your attention.
Other Services offered by Landscaping Companies To Help in Your Succulents Growth
A landscaping company helps to keep the environment attractive. More than just caring for the succulents, they also ensure that the environment is well manicured. Here are some of the other services a landscaping company provides.
- A landscaping company helps to control pests, by recommending the right pesticides and using the right procedure to spray your homestead.
- Mowing is another service offered by a landscaping company. Mowing is the process of cutting grass down using a machine. It helps in edging and trimming and ensures your lawns always look beautiful.
- Mulching- This is the process that ensures you have well-kept plant beds that can conserve water. The cost of mulching depends on the types of mulch you choose. There two types of mulch: the organic and the inorganic mulch. Both help conserve soil moisture, but the organic type serves this purpose correctly. Mulching also helps to reduce plant injuries during the winter period and controls weed as well.
- Fertilization- The landscaping company ensures that they fertilize your plants accordingly. This helps to flourish them and add a deeper green color to your surroundings.
- Aeration- This is the act of pulling soil, grass and thatch plugs from the lawn. Holes are left on the lawn by the plugs. The holes allow the yard to breathe. They also allow easy access to the water and the fertilizers to the root. Aeration helps to reduce water runoff and assists in soil water intake.
- Grass planting- This option is mainly considered when you have dead patches of grass or missing pieces of grass in your home. The experts come on board and plant the grass accurately, and treat them till they reach the sizes of the grass planted earlier.
- The landscaping company also helps in planting trees shrubs and new flowers- Most landscaping companies have a variety of flowers and shrubs to meet your landscaping needs. They help you to choose one that matches your backyard perfectly and also provide planting services.
- They also help to pull out weeds. Doing this will ensure that the plants that are planted grow healthy. It will also improve the aesthetic value of the environment.
How to Find a Landscaping Company Near Me
Succulents landscaping helps to make sure that your lawn and general environment looks beautiful. You should ensure that you hire a landscaping professional to get the best service and value for your money. If you need landscaping services that are affordable and effective, contact The Landscaper Expert by calling 718-855-3479. We are based in Orange County, California, and we ensure that we give you the best landscaping services around town.
