The winter blues are fast approaching, but The Landscape Design Center has the perfect solution: Buy an indoor plant or two to add freshness and color to your interior space, and lighten the mood this holiday season.

Quickly dropping outside temperatures put a halt to landscaping activities yearly. Since more time is typically spent indoors, the air you breathe becomes stale with increased amounts of carbon dioxide. Plants are a great way to boost the freshness in your space with the oxygen they produce. The more plants you have, the better the air quality.

According to the science of the U.S. Department of Energy, nearly 350 house plants are needed to make the same amount of oxygen you breathe in each day. While that number is probably too many for you to have, even a few more plants than you have now supplies the added benefit.

Choosing the right plant adds a pop of color to any of the backdrops around your house. There are many types from the ordinary fern to the exotic Bird of Paradise. The amount of light, the size of the plant and its watering needs are all requirements to bear in mind when purchasing greenery.

Let your friends and family reap the benefits and consider giving them the gift of green this year too.

When you are out shopping for your presents around the holidays, head over to the Annapolis Mall and come see us, The Landscape Design Center, at our garden. We are going to be there talking to clients and giving advice on all your landscaping needs.

With over 30 years of experience, we are a full-service, environmentally-conscious landscape design company that specializes in turning your outdoor space into a high quality retreat. Having designers and builders on staff we are able to implement our plans for you from start to finish, not missing any detail in between.

Let us get you through the cold weather now and prepare you to begin your outdoor projects in the spring this holiday season.

Clean up and prepare for winter by doing the following:

-Rake up old leaves. They are known to cause mold and fungus to grow, especially in planting beds and grass.

-Secure evergreens to prepare for inclement weather. Harsh wind can wreak havoc on them!

-Prune everything that may have a problem dealing with heavy snow. Snow drags down branches, making them brittle. In worst cases, they won’t survive the winter.

-Use burlap to cover sensitive plants, bushes, and trees that have the potential of being damaged by wind or snow.

-Winterize your irrigation system. This will save you thousands if a freeze bursts your pipes!

-Winterize your water feature if it needs it. Or, if you prefer, install heaters to keep your water feature or pond from freezing completely over.

If you have specific questions or would rather hire a professional landscape company to winterize your yards or garden, contact the specialists at The Landscape Design Center. If you plan to visit the Annapolis Mall around the holidays, stop by and see them at their garden. They’ll be there every weekend leading up to the Christmas holiday and are more than happy to answer questions and offer landscape advice. They’d love to meet you, so make sure you stop by and say hello!

For more information, tips and tricks, check out their website: http://thelandscapedesigncenter.com.

But you have alternatives to sitting inside and gazing out at your lovely but unusable patio. A fire feature can provide the warmth you need to enjoy your patio well into the fall. You can choose between temporary and permanent fire features. There are pros and cons to each type.

Temporary fire pits offer a number of advantages. They are portable, so you can move them among multiple seating areas on your patio. They’re less expensive than permanent fire features. However, they’re also smaller and generally less attractive than a permanent feature. Temporary fire pits can range from the traditional barbecue type grill to a cast iron or copper round fire pit, a chiminea made of metal or terra cotta, or a Sojoe fire pit.

Permanent fire features are more expensive, but they can be designed to enhance the look of your patio and surrounding landscape. Although the fire pit isn’t portable, it can function as the focal point of one section of your patio or the entire area if that’s what you prefer. A landscaping designer can help you determine whether you want to install a gas or wood-burning fire feature. Fire pits are the most common design, although traditional fireplaces are becoming a popular outdoor fire feature.

Consulting with a landscaping company designer will help you determine the type of fire feature that will work best for your patio, landscape and budget. Then you can start enjoying the beauty of fall outdoors on your patio, rather than simply observing it from inside your home.

Plants help protect the inside of your home in several ways. If you place them in front of windows, as you should they protect the contents of your home by blocking the view of the inside of your home. If the only thing that outsiders can see is plants, they will assume that there is nothing of value inside your home. Also, by placing plants close to windows, the sun will shine through the window to the plants creating more oxygen in the home and creating solar energy to heat the home with. This will help you save on your overall heating bill.

Because the fall and winter months are approaching, it is important that you bring in any plants that you may be concerned about dying during the winter. You should bring in all plants before the first frost. If a plant gets frost bitten, then it can kill the plant and prevent it from coming back the next year. You can dig up bulbs as well as bring in any hanging plants that might die.

If your plants end up growing too large while inside the home at an even temperature, you can always clip them and plant them in another pot as a new plant. If you accumulate too many of them, you can always give them away as gifts for others. There are several plants that you can keep in your home that have medicinal properties such as aloe vera plants, and several herbs that you can grow inside the home.

Plants are a huge part of our lives whether we know it or not. Without them, we have no clean air to breathe.

Also, don’t forget to check out these events coming up!

Maryland Avenue Fall Fest!  September 18th! 10am-5pm.  Live music, face painting, and wonderful vendors!

Edgewater Fall Festival!  October 1st.  Live music, face painting, pumpkin painting, pumpkin bowling, and wonderful vendors (like us!).

1st Sunday Art Festival!  October 2nd.  Live music, face painting, pumpkin painting, pumpkin bowling, and wonderful vendors (like us!).

Oktoberfest!  October 2nd.  Live music, beer, yummy food and wonderful vendors (like us!).

As we swelter and simmer in the searing sun, we must stop for a moment to think of our fellow heat victims… our lawns and gardens! Unlike us, they can’t sit in the shade sipping lemonade or relax in front of the air conditioner. They rely on us to help them stay refreshed during dry periods.

One good option that doesn’t waste water, which is a pretty important consideration during a drought, is to install an http://www.hunterindustries.com/”>irrigation system.  These systems drip water slowly, directly to the roots, giving your lawn and garden that long drink of water they so desperately need.

If installing a full irrigation system isn’t in your budget right now, consider installing a hose bib timer with a soaker hose. You’ll get most of the benefit of an irrigation system for a fraction of the price and your plants will love you for it!

Although it might seem like keeping a short lawn will use less water, thus keeping it greener, you will actually be doing it a favor by letting it grow a bit longer. If you cut your grass too short, the grass will get stressed and get burned out. Letting it grow will allow it to “rest” a little, and it will look and feel much healthier in return.

To help drought-proof your garden in the future, consider replacing some of your needier plants with more drought-resistant plants. Some good choices include:

– Shrub roses
– Ornamental grasses
– Sage
– Eucalyptus
– Lavender
– Honeysuckle

As an added benefit, many of these plants are wonderfully fragrant and will give your garden a whole new dimension.

As a last resort, you can always replace the lawn and garden with decorative gravel and cobblestones. They’ll never need watering and will always look nice, regardless of what Mother Nature decides to throw at you!

To talk more about your lawn and garden, and maintaining it in all kinds of weather, come visit us at the First Sunday Festival in Annapolis!

It is hard to generalize for every place on the earth, but chances are if the weather is warming and the grass is green, weeds are poking through the earth and taking up all the extra space in the dirt. Weeds like crabgrass, dandelions, morning glory, poison ivy, and pig weed are just some that appear relentlessly every year.

And all those weeds quickly become such an annoyance, so it must be understandable that action will be taken to rid the soil of weeds. The development of chemical products to control or kill natural things began as an impressive and effective way to manipulate what grows and what doesn’t, but has grown into a vast environmental concern.

The chemical warfare against weeds uses herbicides to quickly kill massive amounts of weed. It is often overlooked, however, that these herbicides destroy more than just weeds: they destroy our drinking water, chemicalize our food, and harm the earth.

“RoundUp”, perhaps the most popular herbicide, claims to be the most environmentally-friendly weed killer, promoting itself as “safer than salt”. Studies of the product have proven not only that this is a faulty claim, but that the extensive use of this product has caused other unseen changes.

“RoundUp” is used not only by household gardeners, but is employed in bulk by farmers. The food sold at any local grocery store may have originated from a farm where herbicide was use, causing a build up of unnatural and toxic chemicals that we eat without second thought.

To add to the problem of toxicity in the soil and in our bodies, every time an herbicide is sprayed it potentially pollutes water. Herbicides have the highest potential for ground and surface water pollution, and as water flows it caries the chemicals with it.

The solution: organic sprays are available for use and work just as well as herbicides, without the damage. Even more popular – and cheaper – is the use of vinegar, which kills weeds any without pollution. Corn meal can also be mixed with soil to not kill weeds, but prevent them from sprouting.

Flowering herbs can add visual appeal to any garden. Herb and vegetable garden design can be fun and creative. The first step is to plot out the area where the garden bed is going to be located. Once the spot is chosen, scale it out on paper to size. Make sure to leave plenty of room for mowing, walking, fences and lighting. Using raised beds can improve water flow through the soil and allow the soil to stay warmer in cooler seasons.

Explore which plants grow well together and what plants do not. Some plants complement another and this is called companion planting. Some plants can be planted while it is still cool while others like it to be warmer. Plants can be staggered throughout the season. A soaker hose running through the garden bed will water the roots where it is needed without damaging the leaves of some plants. Crop rotation helps some crops to grow better. Some plants put nutrients in the soil while others take nutrients from the soil.

Many plants do well in containers and containers save space in the garden. Herbs do well in containers and plants that typically spread out do well in containers and save on space in the garden bed. Small trellises can be used in large containers for tomatoes or cucumbers. Containers can also be used to decorate a deck or walkway.

Alternative insecticides are recommended for control of pests. Chemical pesticides are harmful to the environment and stay on the plant which in most cases is not washed off. The benefits of alternative insecticides are less damage to the environment and less toxic to nontarget organisms. Botanical insecticides work very well and are plant derived.

There are many alternative herbicides to control weeds in the garden. The use of clove oil mixtures, acetic acid and soap based herbicides dehydrated the leaves of weeds. There are many organic herbicides to choose from. The timeline of planting herbs and vegetables occurs over a two month span depending on what veggies are chosen. Cool weather plants and be planted mid March to the first of April. Tender plants need to wait until the soil has warmed considerably around the first to middle of May. Raised beds will be warmer than cultivated in the ground.

Check out our Upcoming Festivals here!

Now is an optimal time to get the planning stages of your landscaping projects set into motion and completed. Running around to job sites and attempting to get organized will take up much of a landscaper’s time as the warmer months come. Waiting until Spring to get a consultation and design laid out may mean you have to wait as long as the middle of Summer to get the work done.

Your landscape designer wants to offer you a unique setting that you will be able to enjoy and be proud of. It is not through their machinations that the warmer months mean a lesser ability to provide truly personalized service. It is simply a matter of Supply and Demand, the very cornerstones of the business world. You can get an edge on the rest of those Demanding by opting for consultation when Supply is readily available. The additional time will give you and your designer the opportunity to really explore different options and looks for your landscaping.

Creating a beautiful scene that is welcoming is an artistic process the same as painting, sculpting, or writing. The medium of the landscape designer is your exterior products and nature herself. Utilize this extra time to give your landscape designer the opportunity to create a beautiful work of living art for your space. There is no need to wait until Spring or Summer to get the consultation and development process started. In fact, now is the best time to get started.

Job Site Recycling
All extra material and debris is removed from all job sites. We take the debris back to our property where it is separated into different materials. Concrete goes in one pile, fill dirt in another, reusable top soil in another, and finally, wood. Wood, brick, and stone in good condition is kept and reused for applicable landscaping jobs. Other materials that can still be used are donated to the public.

Office Recycling
Although we have tried to make our office as paperless as possible, a true paperless office is a fiction. When dealing with customers and some vendors, paper comes into our office in greater quantities than we would like. We eliminate the printing of useless faxes by having all incoming faxes come into a computer digitally. We can then view and print only what is necessary. If scrap paper is reusable, it gets turned into message pads and note pads. Bills and invoicing is done electronically through email; paper invoices are used only on request. We pay our own bills online whenever this option is possible. In addition, we recycle all of our computer ink cartridges. Old electronic equipment is donated to local community centers, and when unwanted, taking to electronic recycling centers.

Shop Recycling
Going green in the shop was one of our most difficult endeavors, but we are so happy to have completed the recycling programs in this part of the business so we can be a totally green company. Part of process was making employee recycling mandatory. All of our employees are required to recycle not only work-related materials, but also, all personal materials.

When contemplating landscaping designs, you will want to consider how your choices will affect your year round curb appeal. Fall is the ideal time to plant perennials. It is also an excellent time to find a selection of perennials at reduced prices. The flowers will have reached the end of their peak cycle of beauty and garden centers often sell them quite cheap. Peonies, lilies, and irises are just a few perennials that will beautify your lawn in spring if you plant them in the fall.

Just as you like to vary the decor in your home, you may want to periodically redesign your landscape. Change is good. Fall is an ideal time to restructure your lawn design. Bulbs can be dug up and replanted in a different location to give your garden a totally different appearance. You can relocate your carpet of crocus or your explosive display of daffodils and tulips to give your lawn a face lift in spring.

Wildflowers should be planted in fall. You can create a kaleidoscope of color with a wildflower meadow in your yard. When contemplating the landscaping design you want to create, consider making your lawn or flower garden an inviting place for birds and butterflies. By planting wildflower seeds in fall, the seeds will experience the dormancy that they need to burst forth into a colorful field of flowers in spring.