By ddmg Landscape • News • Tips and Tricks • • • 0 Comments

5 Olathe Landscaping Trends to Pay Attention to in 2017

Winter is here, but it’s about to be long gone. We may have a few more snows here and there, but the frost will be an afterthought in a month or two. Soon the sun will shine down, and spring will be here. I don’t know about you, but that excites me. When spring has sprung, it’s time for landscaping fun.

Now, you already know your landscaping and gardening efforts should have been taken care of before you the first frost hit in the winter. Preparation is essential, but that’s not what we’re here to talk about. Nope! It’s time to talk about some Olathe landscaping trends in 2017.

Olathe Landscaping Trends to Pay Attention to in 2017

It’s time to talk about what all the “cool” gardeners are going to be doing this year. It’s time to talk about what will be in your garden in 2017. Here are five landscaping trends to pay attention to:

  • Your Home is Your Garden

Times have changed. Back in the day, only old cooks used to keep a ton of plants in their house. Indoor gardens just weren’t that cool. Nowadays, it’s completely different. Many of the popular landscaping mechanisms call for your outdoor garden to seamlessly flow into the inside of your home. Having a lot of plants inside your home is definitely popular in 2017.

  • Edible Landscapes

One trend for the coming year is incorporating edible trees and plants into your whole landscape – not just in the garden. These blended views not only look great, but they taste awesome, too. Try adding a few fruit trees throughout your landscape to start.

  • Quality is Key

While price is always important, Olathe landscaping is like a lot of things: you get what you pay for. Using higher quality stones, mulches, and materials will always pay off down the road. You don’t want to undertake a massive landscaping project with low-quality materials that break down after five years. That’s just a waste of time and money.

  • Water Features

While water features have never gone out of style, there seems to be a spike in their popularity these days. Water features are being added to Olathe landscaping more than ever, but nowadays these features are becoming a focal point of the lawn – not an add-on. Fountains, streams, waterfalls, fish ponds, and more are all exceptionally popular, especially as spring rolls in.

  • Outdoor Living Spaces

This one shouldn’t surprise anyone. We’ve been talking about the popularity of outdoor kitchens for awhile now. Outdoor living is excellent, and each year, more families are coming around to the idea of incorporating living areas into their Olathe landscaping. We’ve yet to meet a family that didn’t love spending time in their new outside space once completed!

By ddmg News • Outdoor Kitchen • Renovation • 0 Comments

4 Outdoor Kitchen Trends to Watch in 2017

It’s that time of the year, again. It’s cold, but in less than two months the weather is going to take an expected turn for the better. Instead of below-freezing temperatures, we’ll be greeted with warm weather and the sunshine. If you’re anything like me, you can’t wait.

And what does warm weather bring? Cooking outdoors! There’s never a better time to get out in your Olathe outdoor kitchen and whip up some delicious eats.

Outdoor Kitchen Trends to Watch in 2017

With the excitement of the spring grilling season in mind, let’s look at some changes in cooking outside. Here are four Olathe outdoor kitchen trends to watch in 2017:

  • Fun and Functional

Gone are the days of prepping the food inside and then bringing it outside to grill. These days you can set up your Olathe outdoor kitchen so you can get all of your cooking done with nature. And how can you do it? By adding functional zones to your outdoor kitchen.

Add more counter space. When designing or adding on to your outdoor grilling mecca, make sure you add more counter space than you think you need. Think of a plan that seamlessly flows from the refrigerator to the counters to the grill. If socializing is on the docket, don’t forget to include a bar area around the grill, too.

  • Open-Flames and Ovens

Traditionally, the grill has been the focal point of the outdoor kitchen. Pretty much everyone knows this. However, things are changing in 2017. Outdoor cooking options are becoming more robust, and people want variety. Hot dogs and hamburgers are only tasty so many times in a row.

Enter open-flame barbecues and pizza ovens. Many people who love cooking outdoors have added one of these two options to their outdoor cooking areas. If you’re feeling really crazy, you could even add a wood-fired pizza oven to your outdoor kitchen to up the ante in the neighborhood.

  • Cover Up

Olathe outdoor kitchens have been steadily evolving. At first, you probably had a grill, a few chairs, and an umbrella. Then people started adding counter space and stainless steel appliances. Now, it’s time to take things up a notch.

Some of the best outdoor kitchen designs we’ve seen have been incorporating open-air patio structures to protect their outdoor cooking haven. These covered kitchens feel outside, but still protect the space from rain, sleet, and snow!

  • Entertainment Options

If you’re going to invest into your outdoor haven, then don’t forget about the entertainment options. Beer taps, flat-screen TVs, plush lounge chairs, and wine refrigerators have all been incorporated into modern outdoor kitchen designs.

By ddmg Construction • Design • Do It Yourself • Landscape • Renovation • Tips and Tricks • • 0 Comments

5 Quick New Year Tips From an Olathe Landscaper

As the New Year rolls in, we all make resolutions and focus on improving certain areas of our life. Some of us focus on fitness. Others make our family, friends, and relationships a priority in the coming year. Many focus on finances, too.  Whatever you choose to focus on in the coming year, we want to wish you the best of luck in achieving your resolution.

The Olathe Landscaper in us hopes you make your lawn, landscaping, and garden a priority in the coming year.

If you’re planning to improve your landscaping and lawn in 2017, here are five quick tips from an Olathe Landscaper:

  • Find Inspiration

Motivation is always necessary. No matter what you’re doing, you need to have the motivation to get it done. Landscaping is no different. You don’t need to drive around for hours on end admiring the neighbors’ lawns from the car. Just open a browser and start looking through landscaping ideas from around the world on the web.

  • The Perfect Plan

Once you have a few fun ideas and some inspiration, it’s time to plan your landscaping ideas out. Make a strategy and stick to it. How many days do you need to complete a landscaping project? Do you need to hire a professional Olathe landscaper?

To ensure your plan will work to perfection; you’ll want to map everything out precisely. Make sure everyone will have space to walk around your landscape. You’ll also need to plan for growth because your plants will grow during the year.

  • Stick to the Script

The best way to avoid a landscaping disaster is to stay on schedule and stick to the script. This means you need to plant your garden at the suggest time of the year. Listen to the horticulturalists. You can’t plant a perennial in the dog days of summer and expect great things.

  • Create the Contrast

Some of the best landscapes I’ve ever seen offer a stark contrast to the exterior of the home. For example, if you have a modern designed exterior, then a Zen-like garden could provide a tranquil, yet stunning contrast to your home.

  • Understanding Maintenance

Before you go head over heels on a challenging landscaping project, make sure to pay attention to maintenance. Be honest about the amount of effort you’re willing to spend on maintenance and only plant things that fit within your lifestyle.

Luckily, there are plants for every effort-level. You can find high and low maintenance plants. Just ask your Olathe landscaper to give you some helpful hints when picking plants in the New Year. 

Another interesting aspect of maintenance is pest planning. You’ll want to understand the pest found in your area and take them into account from a maintenance aspect. You may need to add fencing or wire mesh during certain times of the year to ensure your efforts don’t get destroyed.

By ddmg Do It Yourself • Landscape • Management • Tips and Tricks • • 0 Comments

How to Prep Your Landscape For Springtime

Fall isn’t exactly fun, and winter worries us. From a gardening and landscaping perspective, these months aren’t the most fun. So what season is spectacular? Springtime!

If you’re in love with your landscaping and giddy about gardening, then you love when spring has sprung. You know that a little effort on your part before the fresh weather finds its way to Olathe can add a lot of value to your landscaping efforts.

As Olathe Landscapers, we know this, too. We prepared a few quick tips to help you properly prep your landscaping and garden for springtime:

  • Clean It Up

As spring rolls in, you’ll want to clean up your landscaping. Keep the garden beds and the lawn fresh and clean as the weather changes. Make it a habit to pick up branches, debris, and more during the cold months. Once the good weather hits, you’ll be back doing the fun stuff – instead of cleaning up.

  • Prioritize Pruning

You’ll want to focus on primping and pruning right as spring hits. Start by removing any weeds in garden beds. Then give your perennials a good trimming and haircut. Next, focus on lightly pruning trees and shrubs. Make sure to remove any and all dead branches.

  • Maintain the Mower

A huge part of your landscape is your lawn. You may hire a professional Olathe Landscaper to mow your lawn, or you may do it yourself. If you mow your lawn, then make sure you sharpen the mower blades before taking a crack at the lawn for the first time in the spring. If you don’t, you may damage the grass, as unsharpened blades tear the grass instead of cutting it.

P.S: Make sure to mow your lawn a little higher in the spring. The grass is still starting to grow during this time. You can damage it by cutting it too low too soon.

  • Fertilizing Fun

Your plants need proper nutrition to grow. So make sure to feed your plants some fresh compost and fertilizer as the weather changes. Test your soil before you do anything. This can help you find out if the soil is deficient in any nutrients your plants require.

  • Mulching Mania

Don’t forget to get out the mulch as spring comes. You’ll want to add a 4-5 inch layer of the freshest mulch to all your garden beds. This will reduce the amount of weeds you’ll deal with this year.

  • Transplanting Plants

If you want to move plants around or plant some new ones, then the springtime is perfect. The temperatures are comfortable, and your plants will be able to adjust to a new area much easier. Trying to transplant during a drought or high heat just won’t work as well. Trust your favorite Olathe landscaper on this!