All of us want the picture-perfect green lawn that makes neighbors envious when they drive by, but when you get busy with actually landscaping it can be more difficult to know where to start. Regardless of how you want your lawn to look, there are always ways that you can incorporate sustainable landscaping into your routine and making sure that your lawn is everything you’ve dreamt of. To achieve this aspiration, homeowners should value the water access that they have, the soil, and work to preserve materials that they have.

Regardless of if you’re working directly on your lawn from scratch, building a garden, or revamping an already existing garden, there are always choices that you can make to incorporate sustainable landscaping into your project. Whenever you’re working outdoors, and specifically with your landscaping, you use eco-friendly ideas to help our planet and give back. In case you’re at a loss of what these ideas are and how you can be more eco-friendly with your landscaping, we’ve collected a list of ideas for you below!

Use Rainwater For Your Plants  

Instead of using your garden hose or a sprinkler system, reuse the rainwater to water your plants. This way may seem complicated and difficult to do, but once you get started it’ll not only be worth it but will benefit your sustainable landscaping efforts also. There are plenty of pre-made options that you can use to collect rainwater or you can put some hard work into it and DIY your own! Either way, you’ll then be able to transfer the water to a watering can or bucket that you can to water plants and your lawn.

Put Plants That Are Similar Together

By putting plants that are similar together and that have similar needs you can cut down on what they need and the attention they should get. By choosing to stick together all your low-maintenance plants that don’t need much watering and those that do require a lot of water it’ll make your job easier and make sure that you don’t waste water.

If you’re using multiple garden beds then put plants that need to be watered regularly in one bed and those that have to be watered less in different beds. In some cases, plants can even protect each other from pests and diseases when they’re planted together. Overall, putting plants together that are similar has a lot of benefits for sustainable landscaping design!

Install An Irrigation System

One of the most popular and smartest ways that you can conserve water for your sustainable landscaping needs is by having a drip irrigation system installed. Using collected rainwater with your own irrigation system is the most eco-friendly, smartest, and least expensive way to conserve water there is.

Not only does this work to conserve water, but it also helps with keeping your plants happy and well-watered. Instead of sprinklers, which work by spraying drops of water over large areas that need to be watered, drip irrigation systems trickle out just a small amount of water for the plants.

Use Compost

Maybe an obvious one, but one of the simplest things that you can do for sustainable landscaping is to use compost to retain water in your plants. The average bag of fertilizer that you pick up at the store may seem like the obvious choice, but using compost is the better choice.

The chemicals that are in your typical bag of fertilizer contain chemicals that could potentially be harmful if they runoff into lakes and rivers. To better take care of the water, animals, and wildlife you should use your own compost for your plants. You can either choose to buy compost at your local garden supply or make your own compost bin for your plants.

Use Drought Tolerant Plants

Your typical plant may need to be watered a couple of times a day, while those that have adapted to conditions with less water and hotter weather may only need to be watered as little as twice a month. Plants that have adapted to drought conditions will need less water, letting you conserve water to help the environment. By choosing hardier plants that need less you can cut down on consumption and possibly even lower your water bill.

Think About Your Hardscape Features

Boulders, stone walkways, and other hardscape features play a crucial part in sustainable landscaping. You can make your landscape greener by choosing material that is local and better for the environment. If you search hard enough you’ll find that there are plenty of other stones that you can use for walkways and walls on your landscape. Choosing to use local materials instead of having them shipped to use is always the better option.

Have A Planting Plan  

Having a plan for your plants in advance can help you be smart about watering, growth, and soil decisions. Knowing the type of soil that you have in advance can help you decide what plants to get and how to plant them in your yard. In some cases, certain plants may not be able to be kept in your soil due to the type that you have. Knowing what plants you’re getting, where they’re going and grouping alike plants together can save you money and conserve water.

Summing It Up 

You can have a beautiful lawn while still be eco-friendly and without too much extra work on your part. Having an eco-friendly lawn starts with incorporating sustainable landscaping ideas into your space that will not only keep your lawn looking amazing but also be eco-friendly. If you’ve had some trouble thinking of ways that you can do this, our ideas above can help you!