We have previously talked about in other blogs in detail about what questions to ask yourself when starting a landscape design . So far we have gone into depth on, Evaluate your likes and dislikes , Evaluate your Purposes , Evaluate your Timeline , and Evaluate your Future Projects .

Today, I want to talk about Evaluating your climate. What does this mean exactly? Well, there are many factors that can determine the climate of your property. The first thing to know is, which direction does your house face? Knowing that the sun rises in the east and sets in the west, gives us a good idea of which side of the house is the coolest, and which side is the hottest. Many plants that say full sun/part shade, really mean they can tolerate morning shade and afternoon sun. Afternoon sun, just about always qualifies as full to part sun.

Another factor to consider, is your house brick or siding? That can change the daytime heating of a plant dramatically. If the circumstances are correct, I have seen ‘tropical’ plants survive the winter when planted next to a semi protected brick wall, because it stayed warmer than usual.

The last thing to watch out for, is there a tree in the way of the sun? Sometimes trees that away from the house can cause just enough shade to change a full sun side of the house to a part shade. Which can make a huge difference in which kind of plants need to be installed. I remember planting some ornamental grasses on the west side of a house, sweating the whole time, cause it was HOT. They just about all but died before I moved them somewhere else, because there was a Maple tree 50 ft. from the house that gave shade from mid afternoon on. Very frustrating to have missed that part of the design.

Using just a little bit of evaluation around your home can make a huge impact on installing the correct plants. Watch out for those nooks and crannies that can get shaded quickly and you will be just fine.

Happy Climate