How's the View from Out There?
Using a few outdoor design elements,
sellers can give their exterior all-around appeal. By Barbara Ballinger
Sellers today are walking their
property in buyers’ shoes—and giving their exterior all-around appeal. Here are
10 ways to add exterior flair.
1. Mobile gardens
One way to extend gardening
enjoyment is to plant in pots, which can be easily carried or wheeled indoors
when weather turns chilly. What goes into the pots can vary from flowers to
vegetables, herbs, and ornamental grasses. "This trend gives home owners
plants for decoration or consumption all year," says Valerie Torelli,
founder of Torelli Realty in Costa Mesa, Calif., who calls her 36-inch mobile
pots that she wheels to sellers’ listings Torelli Portaplants. Mobile pots add
other advantages, she says: They can solve problems—create a barrier when lined
up—or be moved to another location when sellers move.
Perfect for owners who enjoy
maintaining plants all year.
2. Ground cover and ornamental
grasses instead of lawn
More home owners are looking for
alternatives to high-maintenance, water-guzzling lawns. "Sustainability is
the buzzword in yard care," says John Algozzini, director of design and
creative services at Kinsella Landscape, in Blue Island, Ill. Practical
suggestions from his colleague, landscape architect Erin Canterbury, are bella
bluegrass, Legacy and Prestige buffalo grass, creeping lily turf (Liriope
spicata), barren strawberry, and low-growing thyme. For those who still want
some lawn, Batchelor suggests a meadow mix, which requires infrequent mowing,
sometimes just once a season.
Great for conservationists and busy
people.
3. Vegetable gardens
Choose a sunny spot; include
vegetable favorites, a few new types (600 variations of heirloom tomato seeds
are listed at www.heirloomtomatoes.bizland.com), some herbs, edible flowers,
and a border to keep it all looking neat, and you’ve got a vegetable garden to
rival Michelle Obama’s at the White House. To keep animals away, carefully pick
plants they’re not interested in or use sprays that send them scurrying yet
don’t hurt the edibles, says landscape architect Clara C. Batchelor, principal
of CBA Landscape Architects in Somerville, Mass. Deer, for instance, tend to
avoid blue and northern sea oat grass and liriope. If you must, consider
fencing in the garden with a material that relates to the house and any
hardscape, and plant it with flowers or vines to camouflage it a bit.
Appeals to chefs and locavores.
4. Adventurous path to the door
Even if it’s a short walk to the
front door, it doesn’t have to be boring. Handsome natural materials, such as
brick or slate, or one of the new resilient perennials that tolerate foot
traffic well (www.stepables.com) can be accented at the beginning, end,
or along the way with attractive plants or sculpture to create an aesthetically
pleasing journey. Algozzini thinks a rectilinear walk with a few right angles
offers more adventure than a curved one; he softens straight lines with plants
that feather over edges. Canterbury likes to introduce a curve or two, maybe
with a fountain or bench, for a pause. Laurie Van Zandt of The Ardent Gardener
in Huntsville, Utah, enjoys adding fragrant smells such as lavender and mint.
A wow for owners who hate ho-hum
treatments.
5. Small topiaries and dwarf trees
Artistic and charming, small
topiaries and dwarf trees can be paired or used in a grouping in front of a
walkway, door, or architectural feature to lend a more formal mood, says
landscape designer Michael Glassman of Sacramento, Calif. The downside: more
maintenance and thus greater expense, says Van Zandt. Almost horizontal Mary
Potter crabapple trees are among Van Zandt’s favorites because they’re
"super showy in spring and loaded with berries."
Right for those seeking a whimsical
focal point.
6. Year-round color, texture, and
shape
Enjoyment of trees, shrubs, flowers,
and ground cover shouldn’t be limited to spring and summer when flowers bloom
and greenery grows lush. The right choices display vivid leaf colors, plump
berries, interesting bark, and sculptural branches all year. Van Zandt
recommends ornamental grasses since they grow in a range of colors from green,
blue, reddish purple, or buff in spring and summer to red, orange, or tan in
fall. They also require minimal care. Cut them down in early spring, and
they’ll start to grow and flourish, says Batchelor.
A must for sellers in four-season
climates.
7. Mature trees
Trees take time to mature, but home
owners who need instant curb appeal are in luck. Many nurseries have recently
had excess crop, which allows them to lower their prices for what has
traditionally been an expensive garden choice, says Algozzini. A caveat to
sellers, he says: Consider how much taller a tree will grow, since you don’t
want it blocking sunlight or views of the house from the curb, or of the
exterior from inside. When planting trees, leave room between them for future
growth and pick those with a final height that fits the yard and home’s scale,
adds Canterbury.
A solution for spots where saplings
just won’t do.
8. Mix of hardscape materials
With the unmatched look considered
chic in interior decor, it was only a matter of time before the trend
flourished outdoors. Why have only brick when you could pair it with limestone?
Landscape design pros recommend complementary materials that share a common
denominator—perhaps scale, color, or texture—and limiting the number of
materials, since too many confuse a display. Algozzini suggests borrowing a
choice or two from a home’s exterior.
Great for stone lovers.
9. Architectural features
Outdoor architectural components can
add a focal point in the way that fireplaces, columns, and arches do inside.
Outside possibilities run the gamut: fireplaces, fire pits, birdbaths,
fountains, pergolas, and gazebos. How large and how many to include depend on
the size of the yard, house, and budget, says Batchelor. But, "better too
few than too many, which may distract the eye," she says.
Extras for owners who want their
yard to be an extension of the interior.
10. Natural ponds
Ponds today are constructed to look
more natural than in the past, with freeform shapes, carefully arranged
indigenous rock-rimmed borders, unstructured water-loving plants, koi fish, and
adjacent stream beds. Many ponds nowadays are also equipped with an autofill
feature so home owners don’t have to fill a pond with a hose, possibly
stressing fish.
Appeals to those who like the sight
and sound of water and Mother Nature’s handiwork.