Planning Checklist: The Ultimate Guide to Spring Landscape Design Projects

What do you think of when spring comes to mind? Fresh flowers, bright green lawns, and warm, sunny days? Whatever you envision, it’s certainly not the same tired landscaping you saw languishing through the colder months. Spring is the ideal time to redo your landscape design. Lush landscaping plans give your home (and, you) a fresh start to the new year. Many different plants bloom in the spring, so you have a wide variety of options. But choosing plants isn’t all you need to do when dreaming up a new landscape design. There are physical boundaries depending on how much space you have and your desired functionality. Helping you consider all these different things is why we’ve put together our ultimate guide to spring landscape design projects.

1. Know What You’re Working With

You need to know what you’re working with as a starting point before you can go any further. The first step of planning a spring landscape design is understanding your existing setup. At Centerpoint Landscaping, we start by measuring the square footage of your space. Next, we take photos and interview you on many topics, such as what you want to achieve, your budget, and your lifestyle to help create the best plan possible to suit you and your property.

Do you have room to install the hedge wall you’ve dreamt of, or will it dwarf the other plants? Is a grass lawn a practical choice for a sprawling half-acre, or would desert landscaping be more economical? Don’t forget to look at which direction your landscaping will face. Many different plants thrive in high sunlight, which is bad news if your home turns away from the sun. You should even consider what kind of irrigation you want. For new landscaping, it is essential to make sure your irrigation system is correctly set-up.

2. Set Up A Budget

Speaking of budget… You need one for any new landscape design. How much an attractive landscaping design costs depend significantly on what you choose. Do you prefer a functional space with an outdoor BBQ, but not too many plants? Are you hoping for lush greenery with mature trees? In drought-prone areas, desert landscaping may be easier on your water bill than grass. Whatever you want, our team at Centerpoint Landscaping can make it happen.  When  you are working with us, we help you establish the budget. Someone seeking a place for entertaining may want to invest in high-quality turf that won’t wear down through a few parties. If this is you, we can put more money into the ‘turf’ part of your budget.

3. Find Your Inspiration

The best part of any design project is the inspiration part. Head to our website and  check out some of our previous projects. Look through a few magazines with landscapes you find appealing. Collect the ideas and save your inspirations. It can help us to source plants or materials to recreate your ideal plan. To make this process easier, give your inspiration board to a trusted Landscape Designer at Centerpoint Landscaping so they can find what’s available, and what will work within your space.

4. Assess the Neighborhood

While you may not want to consider your neighbor’s tastes when working on a new spring landscape design, you may have to. Several communities have HOA guidelines outlining what is allowed in a private yard. Check your community Rules and Regulations to see if there’s a master list of which plants you can have. Your HOA may even require you to submit a drawing for your plans. Don’t worry! We can create the plan for you to submit.

5. Think About Functionality

The next step we  take in creating a new spring landscape design is to think about the functionality. Here are a few of the considerations we note:

• Do you have steep hills
• Do you need a vehicle turnaround 
• Are there drainage problems?
• Where do you need additional parking? 
• Do you have areas needing shade?
• Do you have areas with too much shade?
• Do you have noises to be masked?
• Do you have views to be screened?
• Do you have views to be featured?
• DO you have unsightly features?
• Do you have circulation problems? 
• What kind of lighting do you need?
• Is there fencing to put up?
• Do you have pets who may tear up your new landscaping?

All these little details are essential, so take some time to think through the functionality before finalizing anything. And our unique 3D Landscape Design software helps you visualize the final plans before we even begin the work! Remember, you can always contact our team at Centerpoint Landscaping with any questions.