Landscaping is one of those home improvement trends that just never died down, simply because of its practicality. There are numerous advantages to landscape design that benefit both the homeowner and their surrounding environment. For instance, landscape design helps find the balance between modern architecture and nature. It also enhances the quality of life for those living within the area. It can also help protect and preserve natural wildlife in a way that is both practical and aesthetically pleasing.
If you have a vision of your dream landscape, and you’re seriously thinking of reconstructing your existing surroundings to better suit your vision, you’ll need a landscape design plan—preferably one created by a professional. Here’s why:
Helps Reduce Changes During Construction
Immediately jumping into landscape construction with only a vague idea of what you want and no physical design plan to speak of is a logistically inefficient and ineffective approach. You might find yourself requesting changes and alterations throughout the entire process—consequently delaying progress, continuously pushing back completion date, and ultimately wasting a considerable amount of resources.
It’s not uncommon for homeowners to change their minds or to look for alternatives when they see the actual product coming to life, but most construction companies only allow a set number of minor and major adjustments under one contract. If you keep requesting changes, they might charge several times the original quoted price or draw up a completely new contract. If you don’t have the time or finances to accommodate this, you’ll be forced to accept a rather half-baked version of the landscape you really wanted.
Needless to say, this situation isn’t at all ideal. Use a landscape design plan before construction to minimize changes and alterations, effectively minimizing unnecessary costs and material expenditures.
Helps to Control Costs
As we mentioned earlier, constantly changing and alternating your landscape design can end up accumulating extra charges—not only with the construction company, but with the materials and equipment as well.
Landscaping is an art form that works primarily with the existing elements of a scene. However, that doesn’t mean that additional supplies aren’t needed to accentuate and add on to what’s already there.
For instance, patios, retaining walls, sculptures, and water structures are all features of landscaping that need to be installed. They also cost money to set up.
A landscape design plan ensures you know and are happy with the location of every addition and thereby won’t move, tear down, or reinstall them, consequently avoiding incurring additional labor charges, additional supply charges, and additional equipment charges.
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Better Budgeting
And on the topic of costs, working with a professional landscape architect to create a proper design plan can consequently help you create a more informed, more accurate budget for the entire endeavor. Knowing all the elements you want to include and how they’re going to integrate into the existing landscape means you’ll have a rough estimate of how much the entire thing will cost in terms of the supplies, materials, equipment, and labor fees.
Creating a better budget makes it easier for both you and the construction company to make decisions regarding readjustments or material selections during the landscaping process. Working within a budget also means that everyone involved will be a bit more cost-efficient regarding their choices and work methods.
All in all, a landscape design plan is less of an option and more of a non-negotiable aspect of the actual landscaping process. It’s essentially a blueprint to create your dream environment—one that you should refer to at every step of this endeavor.
