A Light for Your Path

Don’t rely on that garish garage-mounted security floodlight to provide a clear and welcoming path to your front door.  Add warmth and security with attractive path lighting.  And instead of flanking the path like a runway at ABIA, try tucking some solar-powered spotlights into garden beds and aim them along the walkway up to your door.

Update Porch Light Fixtures

While we’re on the subject of lighting, changing out your old, outdated front porch light fixtures can instantly improve the look of your home, both day and night.  Exterior lights are worth a little extra investment, since they get quite a bit of abuse from our crazy Texas weather.  Inexpensive fixtures and hardware may show wear more quickly and need to be replaced more often.   Choose brass or copper fixtures, which are typically more resistant to corrosion than those made from aluminum.

Uplight Parts of the Yard or House

Highlight a specimen tree, your front porch, or a neat row of shrubs by angling a spotlight or “bullet” light toward the canopy of a tree to add depth to your lighting scheme.

Try Moonlighting

Moonlighting is the opposite of Uplighting.  With Moonlighting, you place light fixtures in trees so they shine down on the pathway and lawn for a soft, natural glow.

Bring On the Bark

Not only does mulch give your flower beds color and contrast, it also helps keep the soil moist and prevent the spread of weeds.  Always avoid dyed mulches, which can contain contaminants, and go for simple materials native to Texas, like hardwood chips or shreds. Layer about two inches of fresh mulch onto your beds each spring.  It will break down throughout the year and provide vital organic fertilizer for your plants.

Spruce Up Your Shrubs

If your shrubs are looking “leggy,” or show more branches than greenery (Texas Sage are especially prone to this), they likely need some extra snipping.  You want to bring light and air to the plant so it grows on the inside as well as the outside.  This will make it denser and fuller.  It’s best to prune manually, using very sharp tools; motorized pruners simply skim the surface, which can lead to blocked light and poor air circulation.

Granted, not every shrub in your yard has to be pruned. Popular hedge plants, like boxwood, holly, taxus, privet, and cherry laurel, do become lush and neat with regular pruning, but other shrubs may not respond well to it.  Talk to an expert at a gardening center or do a quick internet search to find out how much maintenance your plants require.

Clearing a Path

While you have your pruning shears handy, take a look at any shrubs – or trees – that are interfering with your neighbor’s ability to easily walk down the sidewalk in front of your home.  No one wants to get their hair caught in a low-hanging tree branch or get whacked in the leg by an unwieldy shrub.  Many kiddos are learning to ride their bikes and falling into a shrub is just going to add insult to injury!

Time to Make the Beds

The prettiest gardens are full of layers. Ideally, find a mix of evergreen and deciduous plants of different heights and textures, and put the tallest in back and the lowest in front.  Consider plants with a vibrant impact, long-lasting blooms, or interesting foliage, and take into account what blooms when so you can have color several months throughout the year.