Landscape News - Spring 2008

Want the best yard in the neighborhood? Timely tips from the pros...ALCC members

Landscape Professionals’ Top Eight Trends for 2008

Warm spring temperatures have finally made the past winter a distant memory so now is the time to roll up the sleeves, grab the shovel and start planting! Before you begin, be sure to review the Associated Landscape Contractors of Colorado's (ALCC) top eight landscape and garden trends for 2008.

2008 - Top Eight Landscape Trends

1. Stay cool! The "in" colors are the cool hues - blue, purple, pink and white for perennials, annuals and flowering trees. Hot is not - forget about red, orange, yellow.
2. Less is more in landscape color. Less water and less maintenance mean smaller bursts of color where it makes more impact. Look for flower gardens placed in more noticeable places. Masses of colorful flowers will be targeted focal points instead of scattered throughout the landscape.
3. Foliage is the new fashion statement.  The leaves and blades of non-flowering plants with their subtleties in color, variegated patterns and assortment of shapes and textures, are bringing a whole new dimension to the landscape panorama. Also look for containers brimming with foliage—and not one single flower!
4. Transplants are here to stay. Recreating the look and ambiance of distant places with Colorado-friendly plants is a continuing trend spawned by global travel and furthered by the expanding number of plant choices now available.  You don’t have to travel half-way around the world to enjoy the tranquility of an Asian garden or the formality of an English estate. Many cultural styles are finding a new and welcome home in Colorado.
5. For container gardens, simple is superb. Non-complicated combinations of plants with the same water and exposure requirements will make show-stopping statements this year when set in gardens, patios, balconies and entryways. One to three plant varieties in containers with clean lines and simple style are the elegant alternative to a mish-mash of blooms stuffed in ornate pots.
6. Play to the hardscape café. Remember that while hardscape products like flagstone, patterned concrete and brick and structural components like pergolas and fences are the backdrop of the landscape during the growing season, they take center stage up to 6 months of the year. Aesthetic qualities are now just as important as practicality. When selecting, think color, texture and form in addition to function.
7. Sustainable strategies are smart. Sustainable landscapes are the most productive because they maximize available resources—water, light, the best plant combinations, local products and the human element for maintenance. Buying recycled products and recycling old elements from an existing landscape into a new one are part of being sustainably smart.
8. Your landscape better be great. To hold up property values and for sales curb appeal, maintaining the health and beauty of the landscape is as important as ever. This year will see a flurry of activity—from the maintenance basics like fertilizing lawns, adding more mulch to sparse areas, controlling weeds and pruning to major landscape renovations. Keeping the landscape great will definitely be a theme in ’08.