I found a recent article that describes 5  Home Improvement To Do in 2010. This is a great article about improving the energy efficiency of your home to make it greener. I thought linking to it would be a great blog entry to kick off the new year. Even though it doesn’t address  landscaping, it highlights changes to make your house more energy efficient. 

There are, however, a number of Green benefits that professional landscaping provides:

Professional landscaping improves a property’s resale value. A study by the American Nursery and Landscape Association found that beautiful landscapes can increase property value by seven to 14 percent and can accelerate the sale of a home by five to six weeks.

Landscaping also adds energy efficiency to your home. According to the U.S. Department of Energy, carefully positioned trees can cut as much as 25% off a household’s energy consumption for heating and cooling. Properly designed landscapes promote healthy living by filtering outdoor noise and improving air quality, as well as providing safe habitats for wildlife.

Landscaping also enhances a property’s aesthetic value and creates a desirable living environment. We are spending more time at home than ever, and the benefits of adding an outdoor room to your home is appreciated instantly.

This is all important information as we trend towards sustainability. “contact our design team today”  tolearn how Plantique can help you ‘Go Green in 2010′.

The Lehigh Valley is in the midst of a severe cold spell. In case any of you haven’t already done so, we suggest you take a moment to make sure all garden hoses are disconnected from the spigots around your house. The danger in leaving the hoses connected is that they can cause the spigots to freeze and break. If this happens, water can leak inside the home when the spigot is finally turned on in the spring, potentially causing lots of damage.

To prevent them from bursting or breaking in freezing winter temperatures, it’s best to store your garden hoses out of the elements and completely drained of water. If they must stay outdoors, at least make sure they are empty.

For more great landscaping and gardening ideas from Plantique, visit our tips & FAQs, newsletter archive and photo pages.

These photos are a great example of how creative designs and expert installations can blend landscaping and architecture in a way that is both decidedly classic and modern and the same time. Plantique designer Brian Richardson created this plan for the Stauffer Family of Pennsburg, who wanted their landscape to harmonize with the Florida style architecture they had chosen for their home. They were looking for clean lines and an uncluttered look that would still harmonize with the flowing and softer forms of perennials and grasses.

A must for the homeowners was a main entry walkway that would encourage guests to come through the front door. Lighted entry columns and a large, circular paver pattern lead in to a seven-foot wide walk beautifully achieve this goal. When approaching the home, a large planted berm conceal the driveway and garage doors from view.

The property’s unique combination of native boulders and plantings harmonize well with walkways and stone wall. By keeping the planting bed design uncluttered, the tones of both the pavers and the boulders complement each other and the design seamlessly moves between the clean lines of the pathways and patios to the natural and un-constructed forms of the planting beds and retaining walls.

A breezy, unfettered style was created with the client’s Florida theme as it’s inspiration, yet with plants and materials well-adapted for their Pennsylvania location.

Feeling inspired yourself? To contact our award-winning design team today, please call 610-395-6940 or email us.

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