Professional landscape designer and TV star Shirley Bovshow shares the most common landscaping mistakes people make and helps you create your own practical, personal Eden.
Shirley's Story
"I started landscape design by accident."
I was a stay at home mom. I decided I wanted to be home with the kids, but I'm very energetic. When the kids would sleep, I'd go to the front yard and start gardening. Since I didn't have any formal training, I didn't know the rules - so there were no rules to break! I made my own rules and came up with some really creative ideas. Eventually, my neighbors got curious. They would knock on the door and ask, "Who landscaped you?" I said, "Well, nobody did. I did."
After my kids started school, I started getting a lot of landscaping requests, and I decided that I wanted to go to school for landscaping so that I could start a business properly. I didn't want people to hand over good cash to just experiment with, so I learned all the nuts and bolts, non-sexy things like drainage and irrigation. Before I was even done with my training, I was landscaping for the neighbors who first knocked on my door.
"I want to help my clients and others overcome the most common landscaping blunders."
I did a special for HGTV where I talked about the 25 biggest landscaping mistakes that people make. I'd like to share the top four with you:
1. Starting without a plan.
It's not a good idea for a homeowner to start making holes and start tearing things down when they don't know exactly what they're doing, especially when they haven't called utility services first. They may not know where the gas line or sewage line are, and it's not fun to find them by accident.
2. Forgetting that plants require care.
People forget that plants need to be taken care of. Ask yourself, am I willing to keep up with the garden I have planned? If I want to go on vacation, is there a way to properly irrigate so I don't come back to a dead garden?
3. Overlooking seasonal changes.
Trees and plants change with the seasons. A beautiful deciduous tree may seem perfect in the spring, but it could leave you feeling exposed in the fall and winter when it drops its leaves. Think through these seasonal changes so you're not regretting your decisions later.
4. Working without a focal point.
Whether it's an existing tree or a whimsical piece of art, it's really smart to plan and design around a single focal area. By making everything around the focal point really subtle and quiet, you force the attention onto the item that you want people to pay attention to.
When I moved into my house, I inherited a beautiful 40 year old pepper tree, and I absolutely love it. I knew that tree was going to serve as a focal area because it's so grand. I decided to put in a pond and waterfall that would meander right to the side of the tree. Now, when you take in the tree, you also take in a beautiful feeling, a setting. It's more of a package deal instead of a la carte.
5. Not anticipating growth.
When you put a plant or a tree in your garden, you have to remember that they are going to need to put down roots, they are going to need room to grow. Many people put in plants without considering how they're going to mature. When you first install your landscape design, you may finish putting it in, but it's not in its finished form. Gardens get better with age, and you have to plan for the growing up that they do.
"I truly believe that success is having a garden."
Why do I think that's true? Because you see something through from start to finish. Gardens, like people, go through ups and downs. They get sick. They look ugly. Sometimes they look beautiful. The point is, hang in there with your garden. Nurture it. Address your problems and issues. Don't run away from them. Take care of them. And in the end, hopefully you'll have a little bit of heaven on Earth.
