Guys, we work on all kinds of yards: small yards, large properties, steep slopes, overgrown lots, formal gardens, and wooded landscapes. We’ve quoted and serviced just about every style. And one thing keeps coming up: the simplest yards are usually the easiest and least expensive to maintain.
One summer, I spent some time in Vancouver driving around, trying different food, and seeing different neighborhoods. The landscaping stuck with me. A lot of the properties I passed had a lawn, a few shrubs, and maybe a tree. They were green and looked cared for, but they weren’t complicated.
Back around Seattle and Bellevue, I see a lot more variety. One yard has a Japanese maple, ferns, and garden beds. Another has laurels, arborvitae, ivy, and bamboo. Some of these properties are beautiful. Some are overgrown. But the more plants and separate areas a yard has, the more work it usually takes to keep everything looking good.
Think about one of the simplest yards we service: a lawn, two or three shrubs, and a medium-sized tree. We mow and edge the lawn, trim the shrubs, rake the leaves, blow off the walkways, and we’re done. The homeowner can do much of that work too. It’s straightforward because there aren’t sixty different plants asking for attention.
Of course, not every Seattle property can look like that. We have townhouses, duplexes, older homes with established gardens, wooded lots, and large estates. Each property has its own shape and its own problems. But the same question applies to all of them: How much of this yard do you actually want to maintain?
Maybe you keep the lawn and three shrubs in front, but remove plants you never liked. Maybe you keep one garden bed and a usable lawn in back. Maybe a side yard doesn’t need to be a garden at all; it could be a simple gravel path. You can always add plants later. You can also take things away.
Every plant comes with work. It grows branches, drops leaves, spreads, or needs pruning. Trees give you shade on a hot day, which is valuable, but they also create cleanup. That doesn’t mean you should get rid of every tree or garden bed. It means you should understand the trade-off before adding more.
Some people love gardening and want a yard full of plants. If that’s you, enjoy it. But if you’re tired of paying for cleanups or spending every weekend catching up, simplifying the yard can give you time back.
You don’t need sixty plants to have a nice property. Keep the parts you use and enjoy. Make the rest easy to care for. The less work your yard creates, the less time and money it takes to keep it clean.