10 DIY Plant Care Tips to Boost Curb Appeal

Boosting curb appeal starts with creating and maintaining the perfect lawn all year round. However, adding texture, color, points of interest, and functionality to your yard takes work. This blog post looks at 10 do-it-yourself plant care tips to help you achieve a timeless landscape with incredible curb appeal.

Ways to Boost Curb Appeal Now

1 – Test Your Soil

The first step to boosting your curb appeal is knowing what you’re working with as the foundation, which means you should test your soil. Your soil make-up will determine the type of fertilizer, if any, you need to add. a soil test will tell you which nutrients are present and where you might be lacking. We walked through the different soil types and how to test soil earlier on the blog.

2 – Select Native Plants

To boost curb appeal, use native plants whenever possible. Native plants typically require less maintenance. For starters, they often need less water and pruning than non-native species. Exotic plants demand higher levels of pesticides, fertilizers, and supplemental water. Equally, you get to have a thriving garden because the plants are well-adjusted to your specific area or zone.

3 – Choose a Variety of Plants

Although ornamental leaves are usually visible year-round, the flowers bloom at various times depending on the season. For this reason, it’s essential to select a variety of plants for your yard. Be sure to keep this info in mind when planning your new flower garden. Doing this will ensure your yard has pops of color throughout the year and that your curb appeal is at its best. 

4 – Incorporate Containers 

Start making your yard more versatile by incorporating potted plants. Containers are a great way to incorporate seasonal flowers for an additional pop of color – an easy way to boost curb appeal. Potted plants can be lower maintenance since you can customize the soil at planting. Also, it is easier to add color to various yard sections through potted plants because they are highly mobile. 

5 – Define Your Routine Maintenance

Routine maintenance is critical for optimal curb appeal. You should plan to dedicate some amount of time to it at least weekly. This plan will allow you to cull, prune, and deadhead your plants as much as needed. For example, deadheading encourages new growth by removing the old flower blooms. Pruning controls growth by cutting back on branches. And, culling creates more space for your lawn to flourish by cleaning up the unhealthy bits. Finally, it is important to clear out undesired portions and hidden pests as part of your regular maintenance.

6 – Water Less

Proper watering impacts curb appeal. Watering early in the morning is best for your yard because it lets every drop soak in before strong sunlight hits. However, too much water makes your yard more susceptible to diseases and promotes weed growth. It will help to create a watering schedule to avoid overwatering. 

7 – Eliminate Weeds

Getting rid of weeds in your yard will help ensure you have healthy plants throughout the year and thus boost curb appeal. However, ensure you use good timing and minimize the use of weed killers to protect the integrity of your soil. Vinegar, for example, is a natural weed killer that will not have adverse effects on your lawn. We talked about how to keep weeds out earlier on the blog.

8 – Stake Your Plants

Staking is an excellent way of reinforcing your plant stems and keeping them from breaking or bending. It is a straightforward process that involves attaching sticks or stakes to the ground and using a thread or cloth to tie your flower stems to them. The extra support allows the flowers to spend their energy producing blooms rather than working to stay upright, which can dramatically impact your curb appeal.

9 – Clean Your Tools

Proper control of diseases starts with maintaining your gardening tools. You don’t want to transfer dangerous elements such as bacteria into your lawn. Additionally, proper equipment maintenance helps protect your garden and keep your curb appeal on point. A dull mower, for example, can turn your grass brown because it works by shredding rather than cutting.

10 – Try Using Raised Beds

Using raised beds can help increase your plant’s longevity. These beds are excellent for boosting curb appeal when you want to start small with numerous plant varieties. They offer proper drainage, come with a barrier, and keep your plants safe from weeds and other menaces. If you are a new gardener, you may not be sure whether to grow your plants in raised beds or pots. We discussed several considerations around using raised beds or containers earlier on the blog.

Boost Your Curb Appeal with PlantTAGG

A simple rule of thumb to boost curb appeal is to give it your best shot. If you’ve worked to make gardening part of your routine, then you’re already halfway there!

Even minor tweaks to your plan to water, prune and fertilize the optimal amount at the optimal time can work wonders. Not sure what that looks like? Try PlantTAGG! PlantTAGG makes gardening easy and fun. Plus, it’s free to use with nothing to download or install. Simply text “PLANTS” to 46376 to get started.