CURB APPEAL

We’ve all heard the term and we know it when we see it.  Just how do we get it?

Curb appeal is what happens when we use good design principles to landscape the “public area” of our yards.  The public area is the portion of the residential landscape the public sees and uses.  That area contains the driveway, parking, walks, open space and entrance area. The purpose of the public area is to enhance the home, provide comfortable access and lead the visitor to the entrance.   When the area’s landscaping is well designed, it is appealing to passersby.  Visitors will remark that you yard is nice, pleasant….appealing.  Hence, it has curb appeal.

You get curb appeal with foundation planting, a well manicured lawn and an inviting entrance.

Foundation planting is not all of landscaping but can be a vital part of functional landscape design. Too often foundation planting is overdone and left to stand alone. History reveals that foundation plantings were used to block the view of raised foundations and to slow cold air movement under the house. Although these needs do not often exist today, some landscapers and homeowners think it is a must to

cover every linear foot of the foundation with plants.  It does not have to be so. 

The objectives of foundation planting are to focalize the main entrance, compliment the architectural style of the house and to break long continuous lines of the house and blend it into the surroundings. The designer should avoid competing elements which detract from the main entrance and the house in general. An isolated bed in the middle of open lawn area is one of these competing elements.  Plants should be selected which can easily be maintained to proper scale with the house. This is probably the most common failure of foundation plantings.

A general rule of thumb is that the height of plants in the foundation planting should not exceed

two-thirds the height of the wall at house corner. Generally, plant height should not exceed the height of a line extending from the doorway to this imaginary point at the house corner.  This does not mean every house should have plantings this high.

Balance in landscape design is not always necessary. Imbalance may be used with architectural features of some houses to create desirable, interesting effects. However, when balance is suggested, it should be achieved.  Symmetrical balance is more formal. Asymmetrical balance is often more desirable for residential landscapes as balance is created with more interest.  Size is balance by mass and texture in this example.  Architectural style may dictate the use of symmetry or asymmetry.

Driveways, parking and walks must be functional. They must be positioned to provide easy access from points of entry onto the property to the entrance of the house. Too often walks are placed from the street to the front door with no consideration of access from the driveway to the front door. Many times a walk dividing the front yard is not necessary and may detract from the house.

No matter what design you use to give your home curb appeal, it will all be for naught if the design is not kept clean and neat.  Weeds, bare spots and yard trash draw much more negative attention to any yard than the best landscape design. 

For more information on this subject go to:  http://hillsborough_fyn.ifas.ufl.edu/

This article was taken (nearly word-for-word) from “Basic Principles of Landscape Design” CIR536, one of a series of Environmental Horticulture Department, Florida Cooperative Extension Service, Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences, University of Florida, publ 1991, Rev 2003, by Dewayne L. Ingram.