In the words of landscape designer and
entrepreneur Glen Hubick, you can never underestimate the power of a beautiful garden. Outdoor landscaping
can add remarkable value and appeal to a property, and Hubick has seen extreme cases, such as when one of his
clients sold their acreage based on the landscape alone. The buyers never even went inside the home — they
walked through the landscaped property and had seen enough.
“[The landscape] can add a
tremendous amount of value and appeal to a home. As well, it can decrease the value and appeal of a home,”
says Hubick, founder and visionary for Country Landscapes and Garden
Centre in Dewinton,
Alta. (just south of Calgary).
Whether you choose to do it
yourself or hire professionals, there are important things to consider before taking action. What type of
yard do I want? What kind of space will best suit my lifestyle? What type of features will I use the most?
Which designs will make the space feel like an extension of my home?
Landscaping is taking after the
design world with a high demand for contemporary spaces with fine lines, symmetry and simplicity. The
eco-conscious trend has also made its way into outdoor landscaping, where according to Hubick, people are
asking for fruit and vegetable gardens, both in rural and urban properties.
“People are looking for more out
of their outdoor spaces,” he says. “Why not make food production part of outdoor living? It’s economical and
what could be healthier and tastier than eating freshly picked produce from your
backyard?”
If you choose the professional
route, Countryside Landscapes is as good as it gets. Founded in 1992 with
just three staff members, the national award- winning company has grown both in personnel and services, and
is renowned for its high-quality plants, stone and woodwork, not to mention its drastic landscaping
transformations.
But if you’re looking to turn
your yard into a summer project, visit Agro Equipment before you start for technical and design tips, as
well as machinery to get the job done. The company was founded in the early 1960s and has grown from just
five chains in Alberta to 43 all over Canada and in New Zealand.
Carrying top-of-the-line
John Deere equipment, whether you’re looking for a lawnmower
or a tractor to seed grass or plant trees and flowers, Agro’s variety will have you walking out with exactly
what your project requires. The delivery system and customer service will ensure you know how to work with
the equipment and feel comfortable about what you’re doing.
“[Clients] come to us to solve
their problems,” says Adam Jones, sales manager at Agro
Equipment. “Often we
can supply them with machines and products that are new to the market to make their jobs easier and make them
more productive and more profitable.”
In terms of design, the general
trend is maximal minimalism — keeping the designs clean and simple, while getting a lot out of them.
Landscaping your yard should be viewed as equivalent to renovating your kitchen or living room; it should be
an extension of your home.
The recent contemporary approach
to landscaping stretches beyond the design. At Countryside Landscapes, Hubick and his team of designers have a
unique process of turning ideas into realities. They work with new, cutting-edge technology and software that
allows clients to see realistic, 3-D visuals of their potential outdoor space.
If you’re not ready for a
complete transformation with features such as ponds, gazebos and outdoor kitchens, an eye-catching garden is
a good way to start. An effervescent garden blooming with an array of flowers and trees can create a serene
atmosphere, and also completes the look of your entire home — inside and out. For an instant, healthy and
vibrant-looking garden, look into different kinds of perennials. To add a personal touch, pick your favourite
flowers and annuals such as begonias, geraniums and petunias, which bloom non-stop from June to the first
frost. You can’t go wrong with prairie hardy trees from spruce and pine to apple, birch, chokecherry and ash.
And lastly, choose shrubs, including juniper, potentilla, dogwood, willow, ninebark, rose and other
varieties, that co-ordinate with the rest of your garden, and match your lifestyle in terms of
maintenance.
If the winter has left your lawn
scorched, yellow and dry, professional grass seeding is the best way to get rid of the hassle of constant
watering and maintenance. According to Countryside
Landscapes’ retail
addition, the Garden Centre, the “Mechanically Driven Seeding” method is proven to be cost-effective and
time-conscious. The seeds are planted directly into the soil, unlike broadcast seeding, where seeds are
scattered and often wasted.
The Garden Centre provides grass
seeding services in addition to plants and accessories such as pots and baskets, while Agro
Equipment provides
the tools you’ll need to revamp your yard with your very own hands. Agro’s John Deere tractors allow for the use of any one of 100 attachments, each with different
functions, whether for removing snow, planting trees, or even crafting a new driveway.
No matter how beautiful a garden
is, an eroded, damaged-looking driveway will steal the spotlight, and not in a good way. Agro carries a landscape rake that can make an abused
gravel driveway look as good as new. You can also find similar products for cleaning pavement, lawns and
gardens.
Whichever method you decide,
your outdoor space should be complementary to your home and the surrounding area, and forming a plan with a
theme, carefully chosen features and steps to bring your space to life are important in achieving the desired
outcome.
Sit down with one of
Countryside Landscape and Garden
Centre’s staff or
drop in to Agro Equipment and start discussing a customized space that you and your loved ones can enjoy and
benefit from year after year. •
