Landscape Design for large Backyard

Check the local nursery or home center and find out if there are fruit or nut trees, or berry producing shrubs and bushes that do well in your area. Here in the south, we have pecan trees, blueberries, and grapevines which are often used in landscaping and provide a food source for wildlife, as well as ingredients for favorite recipes.

• Choose the right plants. It is better and smarter to choose native plants. Although it can also be tempting to go for plants that are uncommon in your place, it is still best to opt for native plants as these kinds of plants are already familiar with the natural habitat you have in your property. It will be easier for you to grow them.
• You can actually put other variety of plants, but make sure that you do not overcrowd your yard space with imported plants and always make room for the native ones.

Measure any areas where you will need to add fill material to grade and smooth the existing site. Look for other areas you can "cut", or take some soil off to spread to these places. Often in large landscaping projects you will find that you have to "import", or haul in additional soil to level out the lawn, and it is best to bring this material in before any underground utilities are installed.

Calculate how much fill you will need to import. This is a math problem, and if the area is irregular in shape, try to imagine it as a square or rectangle, multiplying width X length X depth, to give you a cubic volume of material. Large volumes are measured either in tons or cubic yards or meters. If the amount is very large, you will need to hire someone to haul your material in with a dump truck, smaller amounts may be brought in with a pickup truck or utility trailer.

Spread the new fill material and level all areas of the yard. If you have a large amount to move, you may want to rent a small tractor with a front end loader bucket and a grader blade or box blade to do this job for you. Very large projects may require a bulldozer or other heavy equipment, but this may be too much for the average homeowner to attempt on their own.

Mark off any flower beds, tree plantings, or other features you are putting in your landscape, and also consider any permanent structures you may want to add now or later. After the landscaping is complete is not the time to build a swimming pool or utility shed!

Leave some additional soil in areas where you want raised flower beds, garden areas, or other features that need it.

Remove plants, bushes, or undesirable trees from the area so that areas to receive grass will get maximum sunlight.

Plant all the shrubs, bushes, and trees that you have planned for each area, and remember, it is often easier to start working one area and finish it before moving to the next. Large landscaping projects can be overwhelming if they are not broken down into a series of smaller projects.

Lay out and install whatever irrigation piping you have planned, install conduits for underground electric to power landscape lighting and to operate pumps for fishponds or fountains you are building. If you use an electric mower, leaf blower, weed eater, or edger, you may want a couple of remote ground fault receptacles to eliminate the need for long extension cords. You will need to mount these with weatherproof boxes and covers on posts or attached to some type of structure.