It is absolutely essential when creating a low maintenance landscape garden to plan first. Regardless of whether you are renovating an area or starting afresh, if you don’t prepare meticulously, the chances are you’ll be spending more time than you anticipated tending to the garden. Having said this though, you must realise that if you achieve low maintenance, there will still be a certain amount of work to do; no landscape garden will completely look after itself.

The first thing you should consider is the needs of your family, or anybody else that is likely to use the garden. If you have children it is advisable to plan a play area for them, whereas if you are elderly, or expect elderly relatives to use the garden, you should consider things such as access and aesthetics. You will also need to take into account things such as tool storage space, the need for a clothesline, areas for refuse storage and the needs of any pets. No two families’ needs are exactly the same, so it is best to plan, in order to work out your own requirements. The clever planner will also consider the needs of the family now, and the needs in a few years time. The toddler’s wants are somewhat different from an energetic teenager, for example.

Next you need to analyse the site, the place where your landscape garden will be situated. Consider storm runoff and soil drainage. If a slope has a lot of water flowing over it, you may have to change the gradient of the slope to prevent erosion. Use a soil testing kit to analyse the soil. Peat or compost may be required in order to make it nutritionally sound. Decide which areas are going to have a major use, such as an area for a barbecue. Define these areas clearly and try and stick to them. Take note of which areas receive the most sunlight and best views, then arrange your plants and amenities accordingly.

Subsequently, you should begin to create your low maintenance landscape garden, and there are several tips to help make this possible. Avoid excessively large turf areas that require high maintenance. Instead, opt for low maintenance plant options, small trees or shrubs being an excellent option. If you are worried that you’ll be left with too little space for entertaining opt for a patio instead; they require far less maintenance than lawns.

  
Arrange groups of plants together. They require less tending to if grouped. Also make sure each plant serves a purpose. If it doesn’t, it is an unnecessary addition to the garden, causing maintenance to become higher. When you are planting, make sure the hole that receives the plant is shallow and wide, and no deeper than the pot that the plant was originally in. This will help them to develop a quality root structure. Add mulch around plants to prevent weeds and conserve moisture, hence less watering will be required.

If you have a large garden it is an excellent idea to target a smaller area to landscape, allowing the rest to naturally develop. If you try to landscape too large an area, you may find it takes vast amounts of time and effort to tend to.

Ultimately, it is up to the individual how much work they want to put into their landscape garden. Be warned though, one that is exceptionally aesthetically pleasing will probably take a huge amount of work. Conversely, one that takes very little effort will probably look very bland. It is best to try and find a happy medium that is suited to your own time limits and horticultural capabilities.