Whether you’re considering selling your home or want to freshen its exterior, many lawn and garden projects can help boost curb appeal. One simple but powerful addition is mulching.
Mulch is a natural product that Mother Nature invented. Forests produce organic mulch from fallen leaves and branches, fostering healthy soil and plants.
Plants
Whether you plant flowers to celebrate the seasons or have shrubs that tell a story, greenery is an easy way to elevate curb appeal. You can add color to your yard with easy-to-grow blooms like daylily or hydrangea or create interest by planting shrubs and trees that complement your home’s exterior.
Mulching helps maintain a lush, attractive look by reducing evaporation and slowing weed growth. Choose mulch with a finer texture for smaller spaces and shrubs, while coarse pieces are ideal for larger areas or around oversized plants.
In addition to mowing and cleaning, homeowners associations can help enhance curb appeal by regularly washing concrete walls, walkways, and porches. Keeping these surfaces pristine prevents dirt and grime from accumulating and makes for a more appealing community appearance.
Another way to boost curb appeal is to provide residents with a way to maintain beautiful homes and yards. HOA can hold best-kept lawns and front yards contests with cash prices, offering discounts on landscaping services.
Weeds
Transforming a yard overrun with unsightly weeds into a vibrant green lawn can elevate the beauty of your home and neighborhood. The journey from a weed-infested landscape to a verdant grass carpet requires meticulous preparation and regular care.
Start by removing invasive plants from the landscape, then reseed or sod bare areas using a grass variety that’s appropriate for your location and climate. Regular mowing, watering, and fertilizing are critical to a lush and appealing lawn.
Mulch is a cost-effective way to tidy up flower beds, shrubs, and garden paths while reducing weed growth, retaining moisture, and adding vibrant color. The right mulch can also help protect against fungal diseases that can cause wilting and discoloration.
Soil
Mulching provides a finished, manicured look to your landscaping. In addition to adding color, it helps conserve moisture and extend the growing season, suppresses weeds, moderates temperature extremes, and keeps weed seeds from blowing in. A good-quality mulch, such as finely shredded tanbark or extra-fine wood chips, will help the soil retain water and nutrients.
Natural ecosystems have been creating their organic mulches since the world began. Forests are the master mulch-makers, blanketing the ground with leaves and branches that decompose and give the soil a rich nutrient boost. To create organic mulch:
- Mow your grass on the lowest mower setting and kill the resulting weeds by sheet mulching (laying newspaper over the turf).
- After killing the grass, cover it with 2 inches of organic compost or well-rotted manure.
- For optimal results in enhancing the quality of your garden soil, generously spread a layer of mulch at least 3-4 inches thick.
- Avoid putting mulch near or touching woody stems and roots to prevent rot.
Water
If you’re a homeowner or community board member looking to improve your community’s curb appeal, there are plenty of inexpensive ways. Power-washing exterior surfaces like concrete walls, walkways, and porches is a straightforward technique that can make them look brand new.
Plantings that create a visual impact can also elevate a lawn’s curb appeal, especially those with colorful blooms or attractive foliage. Easy-to-grow flowers like daylilies, hydrangeas, and shrubs with unique foliage, like evergreen or Japanese maple, are excellent choices to add color and texture to the landscape. Plantings can also disguise eyesores, like vent pipes or garbage bins, and help draw the eye away from them to increase a home’s visual appeal.
Aside from enhancing a yard’s aesthetic, mulch also prevents unsightly weeds by blocking sunlight and preventing their seeds from germinating; some types of mulch even have natural weed-fighting properties. It also reduces soil water loss and moderates soil temperature to prolong the life of plantings and trees.
