~Landscaping Ideas for Rockland County, NY & Bergen County, NJ~
The weather may be frightful in Rockland County, NY and in Bergen County, NJ, but that doesn’t mean that you need to give up on your winter landscape.
Indeed, backyard landscapes and hardscapes can bring you cheer as you look out your windows during the harsh winter months. Even if you don’t have some of these features below, you can add them to your 2016 outdoor living list. Here are 10 ways that your winter landscape can bring some beauty to remove your winter blahs:
- Fountains, sculptures, fireplaces, and boulders. If you have these features in your backyard, they’ll bring you joy as you look at them from inside your home. Snow on top of your fountains and sculptures can set a mood that you may not notice during the summer. Imagine snow on your elegant outdoor fireplace. And boulders provide lots of interest with their varying shapes and sizes. And snow-covered boulders can only add to the charm of a winter wonderland.
- Patio, deck & other outdoor features. Your patio, deck or other outdoor features can provide a great background for snow. Also, the railings, seat walls, and other borders provide a framework for a picturesque winter scene.
- Ornamental grasses. Ornamental grasses provide texture and interest in the winter landscape. Their soft shapes delicately dance in the winter wind.
- Winter trees. Evergreens are associated with winter. Their green color adds pop to the white background. You can grow cedar, juniper, pine and spruce to use as privacy screens during the summer and as a punch of color in the winter.
- Birds and bird feeding. If you need some natural entertainment, consider hanging birdfeeders throughout your backyard. You’ll attract cardinals, chickadees, juncos, titmice and a host of other winter birds to your feeders. These feather friends, with their different colorings and sizes, will entertain you as they feed and play.
- Deciduous trees and shrubs. In New York and New Jersey, a landscape can look bleak with just leafless, deciduous trees. Yet, if you pair them with other plants and trees, you’ll have a variety of shapes, colors, and textures throughout the winter. Consider adding colorful dogwoods to your New York or New Jersey landscape. Their gentle flowers and leaves in the summer will provide a privacy screen as well as fit nicely in your yard or beds. And in winter, you’ll be treated to their brightly colored bark. Imagine seeing bright cherry red, to blazing orange, to sunny yellow in the middle of January. The dogwood’s leafless shape and colors will illuminate your landscape on the bleakest winter day.
- Arbors, benches, fences and pergolas. Snow-covered arbors, benches, fences and pergolas remind you of the lazy days of summer where you would curl up to read a book or where you sat to meditate. These outdoor features look enchanted with a winter landscape in the background.
- Did you know that people keep their holiday lights up all year round? Low lighting along steps, seat walls, and pathways brighten those cold nights as well as provide a clear passageway to your front door. Plus, your pergola and other outdoor features look less lonely when they’re lit at night.
- Colorful containers, window boxes, and urns. Just because it’s winter doesn’t mean that your colorful containers, winter boxes, and urns need to stay empty or put away. Cut some of that vibrant dogwood, evergreens, and add a bow to your urns to delight people walking up to your front porch. You can spread your colorful containers with winter greens or branches throughout your flower beds and gardens. And you can fill your window boxes with evergreens, a brightly colored bow, and lights to add a touch of magic to the front of your home.
- Make a list and check it twice for 2016. When you make your list for Santa Claus, don’t forget to add your landscape and outdoor living ideas. Maybe Santa will connect you with a landscape company to make all of your 2016 outdoor living wishes come true.
Remember, your Rockland County, NY or Bergen County, NJ landscape doesn’t have to be blah this winter. Add some color and life into your backyard oasis to chase away the winter blues.
If you have a 2016 wish list for your landscape, call us today at (845) 708-2988 or fill out our contact form to make your spring appointment.
Sources:
Better Homes and Gardens.com. “Winter Landscaping Tips.”
Renea, Amy. “10 Ingredients of a Beautiful Winter Garden,” Houzz.com.
Schmidt, Genevieve. “Winter Interest in the Garden,” Landscaping Network.com.