Why Install Outdoor Landscape Lighting?

December 7, 2012 By Bruce Koehler

The Benefits of Installing Outdoor Landscape Lighting

Santa Barbara homeowners sometimes leave outdoor landscape lighting as an afterthought to the work they are doing on their property. In fact, lighting might be the most overlooked facet of a landscaping project.

At Down To Earth Landscapes, Inc, we like to offer a different way to think about landscape lighting. We believe that it is central to any landscaping project. Consider it the icing on the cake for your new landscape design and installation. Why should sundown prevent you from enjoying a newly landscaped front or backyard?

Creating Mood and Atmosphere

Landscape lighting adds accent to a space and can set a particular mood and create atmosphere. At night, outdoor landscape lighting draws the eye toward the parts of the garden you wish to highlight. It fills the space with warmth, opening it up, and is often entertaining those who encounter it.

Safety Considerations

Beyond aesthetics, however, perhaps the most important reason not to neglect your landscape lighting is safety. Lighting protects you from falls and offers the illusion that you are home when you cannot be there to keep an eye on your property.
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Filed Under: Landscape Design, Landscaping Tips, Uncategorized Tagged With: Landscape Lighting

Santa Barbara Autumn Lawn Care Checklist

November 8, 2012 By Bruce Koehler

Fall Lawn Care Tips

In our previous blog, we talked about how autumn is the perfect time to create a checklist for “winterizing” your Santa Barbara gardens. As a part of your landscape maintenance education, it is important to know about lawn care during the autumn season.

Dethatching the Lawn

Thanks to Glenn Hardebeck, Agronomist, Purdue University for the photo

This is often called lawn thinning. De-thatching refers to a process of removing dead grass in a lawn. A certain amount of thatch protects the roots, but excessive amounts negatively affect the health of the lawn. This is necessary because dethatching encourages the flow of nutrients and oxygen to the lawn. Regular dethatching forces buds to grow near the base of the grass stems, preventing the grass plants from being dead underneath and only green on top. Thatching frees new grass shoots to grow in thick and lush. Think of it as a body cleanse for your lawn. It balances the lawn’s chemistry. There are a couple of ways to do it.

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Filed Under: Garden Maintenence, Uncategorized Tagged With: Autumn Garden Care, lawn, lawn care tips, thatch, thatch removal

Planting a Herb & Spice Garden in Santa Barbara

October 9, 2012 By Bruce Koehler

Grow Herbs and Spices All Year Long in Santa Barbara.

Last week our blog was unusually quiet because my wife and I went on a trip to Milwaukee to attend a conference. While we were there, we discovered an amazing store called The Spice House. Check out their website— The Spice House. They ship!

Rosemary

Although we relished the cool days and beautiful autumn leaves, the realization that fall would quickly turn to snow there made us realize how lucky we are to be designing and installing landscapes in Santa Barbara. Reflecting on this special boon of the Santa Barbara climate causes us to decide that a blog on Santa Barbara herb gardens was in order.
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Filed Under: Landscaping Tips, Planting Tips, Specialty Gardens, Uncategorized Tagged With: herb garden, landscaping tips

Fixing Landscaping and Planting Mistakes

September 18, 2012 By Bruce Koehler

Common Planting Mistakes

Our maintenance clients often call on us to fix landscaping and planting errors made by other contractors. Here is a case study of a recent landscapee rescue project we just completed.

Case Study – Poor Soil Preparation

Recently we’ve been reworking the planting in the front yard of a client whose has lost trees and shrubs due to a fungus named armillaria and compaction of soil.

Problem:

A large row of Texas Privet hedge and various shrubs were lost. The client desired these to be replaced as the Privet hedge offers them privacy against the street traffic. As that point, we tested the soil to determine the severity of the problem.

Planting and soil Poblem in Santa Barbara

Problem: Undetected Soil Fungus plus Irrigation and Electrical Conduits Not Buried Deep per Code Requirements

Diagnosis:

The causes of the problem was determined to be an undiscovered fungi in soil which caused root disease and poor planting techniques used by previous landscaper.

It is imperative that landscapers test the soil for harmful elements that can cause plant disease. An example of a harmful soil condition is Armillaria. A root disease commonly found throughout temperate and tropical regions of the world.
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Filed Under: Planting Tips, Uncategorized Tagged With: Planting Mistakes, Soil preparation

Landscaping for Autumn Colors in Santa Barbara

September 1, 2012 By Bruce Koehler

Autumn color Landscape design in Santa barbara

Autumn Colors in Santa Barbara - Viburnum Opulus, Common name is Snowball

Autumn Colors in Santa Barbara

The bustling sound of Santa Barbara’s children returning to school has the staff at Down to Earth Landscapes yearning for the beginning of autumn colors. Although the autumnal season does not technically begin until Saturday, September 22, 2012, the signs of our favorite season begin early here in Santa Barbara County.

Many transplants to the area will say that there is no such thing as autumn colors in Southern California and especially Santa Barbara, but natives know that you can feel changes in the environment, including temperature, the angles of the shadows, and the smells in the air, as early as August.

We’ve been feeling those changes this week, which naturally made us think about autumn leaf colors. Those spectacular oranges, reds, and yellows are often considered out of reach here on the central coast. But that is not necessarily true. It is possible to have fall color in Santa Barbara.
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Filed Under: Landscaping Tips, Planting Tips, Uncategorized Tagged With: deciduous trees, fall color, Landscape Design