Planning to build an outdoor living space at your Tulsa home? These outdoor additions are a great way to create more “livable” space for your home, increase your property value, and provide an ideal spot for entertaining friends and family or just relaxing on the weekends. But before you get started on the project, here are some mistakes toavoid.
Forgetting to plan. A well-thought-out design plan is a must for any outdoor living project, large or small. Decide what style or theme you want for your Tulsa outdoor space.
Determine how you and your family will use your outdoor environment. Choose where various shrubs, plants, and trees will go. Decide on a budget for your project. Even if you’re going to build your project one piece at a time, it’s good to have a design plan for the whole project so that in the end, the entire outdoor living space has one complete look. Often, it’s best to hire a Tulsa landscape designer who understands all the nuisances of the various outdoor living elements and can bring all of your ideas and goals together into one design.
“ . . . A beautiful, well-designed landscape costs the same as a poorly designed one. This difference is with the designer. Well-trained landscape designers who work with a large palette of plants and materials as well as a wide range of styles are geared to give you a fine project,” The Landscaping Network noted.
Choosing the wrong plants. Without a plan, you may be tempted to go to the nursery and buy whatever catches your eye, but you should give much forethought to your choice. How tall will the plant be when it reaches maturity? Will it overcrowd other plants? Although at first you may want to cover every bare spot you have in your garden, you need to give your plants enough room to grow and not overcrowd each other when they’re mature. Also, will the tree you plant block a view or overtake your sidewalk or patio?
What will the plants you choose look like in winter? It may be good to plant some shrubs or trees that have winter interest and that will look good all year like evergreens. It’s also good to choose a color pallet when planning your outdoor living space in Tulsa so flower colors don’t get overwhelming to the viewer or look mismatched.
Also, plant foliage with similar watering and sunlight needs together. This will make watering and maintenance much faster and easier.
Not thinking about erosion, drainage, and irrigation. Erosion can be devastating to your landscape. Plan ahead by building a retaining wall into the overall design of your outdoor space. Retaining walls are not only functional but also aesthetically pleasing if designed correctly. Proper drainage and irrigation can also do much to prevent erosion as well as flooding and other landscaping issues. Make sure you carefully plan out the drainage and irrigation system for your outdoor space before you begin.
Not planning with your home in mind. This might sound strange, but the elements of your outdoor living space – hardscapes in particular – should complement the style and architecture of your home so that the interior flows seamlessly into the exterior. When you look at your Tulsa outdoor living space from inside your home, does the outdoor space seem to be an extension of your home or does it look out of place? Although you may like how the outdoor living space looks when you’re outside, make sure it also looks great from inside your home and that it creates a cohesive theme for your property.
Forgetting the front yard. Although you’re excited about your building your backyard outdoor living space, you can’t overlook your front yard. Curb appeal is priceless. Whether you want to sell your home right now or not, you’ll want to create a welcoming home and landscape for your guests and your family. So in your busy planning and planting, don’tforget to give your front yard some planning too.
Not building big enough. While you don’t want to go overboard and build outdoor elements that are so big that they overpower the space, you also need to plan for their many uses. Patios, for instance, are one area that can be built too small for functionality. It must be big enough, not only for a patio table and chairs, but also for people to walk around the table and chairs comfortably.
This might seem overwhelming, but the Tulsa outdoor living experts at Oklahoma Landscape can help. Our landscape architects are experienced in designing and building outdoor living spaces of all types and sizes. We can create the perfect outdoor space for your family. Whether you want a pool, outdoor kitchen, outdoor fireplace, patio, deck, or just help with your lawn maintenance and planting, we can take care of all your landscaping and landscape design needs.
