The backyard space can be unpleasant to the eyes if not well kempt hence reshaping the outdoor space is the greatest kindness to Mother Nature. This does not mean giving a dry and barren look, but use of earth-friendly ideas for landscaping. Home landscape is at the forefront of homeowners’ minds to ensure they have yards which are not only comfortable and beautiful, but eco-friendly as well. There are various ways to weave eco-friendly elements into your backyard. Here are a few eco-friendly tips for your backyard while still creating an inviting environment for your home.

Planned Planting

This includes planning for the right plantings in right places in your backyard. Besides providing comfortable and low energy environment shading, they can actually facilitate in cooling the surroundings. The plants release moisture through their leaves in hot weather, keeping the atmosphere cool and fresh. Some flowering vines also will add fragrance and beauty to your outdoor area.

However, to save water and reduce pruning maintenance, you may opt for low maintenance plants which are drought-resistant in nature. These may include cactus, yucca, ornamental grasses, marigolds, asters, tulips and pansies. Planting clover is an advantage as it contends well against weeds and is naturally insect-resistant.

To maintain a thick and healthy lawn, you should ensure there is constant water supply which is however done less for longer periods of time. Interestingly, regularly trimmed grass requires less water. Regular fertilization and dethatching are also a prerequisite to help plants grow well. An ample atmosphere and nutrients are needed for the plants to thrive well.

Pool and Eco Pool ideas

If you opt for a swimming pool in the backyard of your home, one question to ask yourself is whether your swimming pool is eco-friendly. This may be in terms of reduced water consumption benefits, cost savings relating to electricity use and heating or toxicity to the surrounding environment. To respond to this question, you can make adjustments to your pool to put into operation upgrades and improvements so as to provide cost savings as well as give environmentally friendly advantages.

One such idea to make your swimming pool eco-friendly is by adjusting swimming pool pump upgrades from a single speed pool to a variable speed. A variable speed pump is more cost-effective to operate and is programmed to work at lower speeds for regular circulation. You could also opt to run the pump for a whole day and it will still operate cost effectively. In countries with high temperatures where the water could be continually circulated to prevent algae bloom, the variable speed pump could be of great advantage. Running a swimming pool during off-peak hours is also a money saver. Many electric companies normally lower the rates in the night hours thus it adds up to run the swimming pool pump at night.

While chemical use in the sterilization or cleaning of pool water has been said to bring allergies and asthma effects, and which when the pool is drained are toxic to plants and aquatic animals in both surrounding environment and waterways, pool cleaning systems have conversely resulted to harnessing the power of ozone to sanitize pool water. These ozonators break down oxygen into ozone by use of electricity. This has reduced chemical use hence prompting eco-friendliness.

Image credit: d1gglasspoolfencingsydney.com.au