Custom Patio Blog

Houston landscaping means year-round gardening. To lessen the costs of maintaining your landscaped areas while still maximizing on the beauty of your surroundings, follow these 5 landscaping tips.

1. Install an efficient sprinkler system.
Don’t let your plants wilt and dry by ensuring each plant gets watered according to its requirements. If you only have a plot or two, manual watering can be done. However, if you have a larger area to cover, a sprinkler system may be more efficient since it allows you to water it less frequently but more deeply.

2. Take note of the amount of sun the landscaping area gets.
This will inform you into which plants will thrive best in that spot. Note some plants need a full sun to grow while some prefer partial sun or some even thrive best in a more secluded spot.

3. Group plants according to their care requirements.
Whether it’s the amount of sunlight or watering requirements, growing them together will help you easily maintain the landscaping areas more efficiently. If you’re using a sprinkler system, you’ll also have an easier time adjusting the sprinkler to cater to the uniform watering requirement of your plants.

4. When possible, always choose native Texas plant species.
These plants usually require less to no maintenance at all. By choosing plants native to the Texas landscape, your garden will add to the local biodiversity, attracting the local birds, bees, and butterflies. If you’re lucky, you may even have these native animal species choose to build its home in your landscaped area.

5. Plant seasonal plants beside evergreens.
Make your landscape always look fresh and new by including seasonal plants, too. While there is charm to picking evergreen specimens, it can easily look stale and ordinary—month in, month out. However, if you have a couple of plants with each having a particular season where it blooms its brightest, you’ll be assured of having a landscaped area which looks brand new every season.

Small front yards are just as daunting to landscape for as big yards with plenty of lawn space to fill. When the space is small, here are 4 design tips you can use when landscaping for your small front yard.

Do xeriscaping.

Xeriscaping is a term for landscaping against fire. A xeriscape uses fire-resistant and drought-resistant plants which are usually found in the desert. Most of these plants like the cacti and agave also has a small stature so it won’t block your windows or the façade of your house.

Plant small trees.

Make your front yard look aplomb with blooms by planting small trees which bear flowers all over its foliage. Consider Rose of Sharon, a southern staple which since has been modified and propagated enough to have longer blooming periods, a variety of colors and better stature.

Consider container gardening.

Container gardening not only defines the space you have to work with, it also highlights the plants in it. Contrary to the belief that it makes your front yard look smaller, container gardens actually create neat focal points which attracts the eye of passersby.

Choose quality over quantity.

A strip of front yard only has a few meters of space to spare. Thus, what you put in every meter, rather every inch for that matter, is important. This allows you to spend more for a fewer, high quality plants or features rather than stretching your budget to accommodate every design element. So, pick the design elements you’d like to focus on. Whether it’s a shrub, hedge, small tree or flowers, always think of its quality and what it can do for your front yard.

Need more tips or ideas for your small front yard? Call us today for a free, no-obligation consultation!

Feel like your pergola looks plain and unadorned? These climbing plants and vines thrive on Texas soil.

Trumpet Vine

If your pergola is located in an area where it will get a full sun, a trumpet vine is one of the best vines to plant. It grows up to 15 to 20 feet and can Another great thing about the trumpet vine is that it is native to Texas so you’re sure it will thrive spread as far as 8 feet. It blooms red orange flowers during summer, attracting birds and hummingbirds. This Texas native vine also grows faster than most vines.

Cross Vine

Another vine with red orange blooms is the cross vine. This vine is best for pergolas which gets partial shade throughout the day. The good thing about the cross vine is that it is evergreen so you’re assured your pergola will have a lovely cover all-year round. This twining vine blooms in spring and attracts hummingbirds.

Texas Clematis

Also known as Scarlet Clematis, this next vine only needs its roots in the cool shade to thrive. Its red or pink bell-shaped flowers bloom in spring and summer inviting all the nearby butterflies and bees. It can thrive in full sun or partial shade with a low to medium water requirement. It’ll fit pergolas whose height is 8 to 10 feet.

Pitcher Clematis

If you’re in a much drier area, pitcher clematis is a sturdy vine known to be heat tolerant. Like the Texas Clematis, this vine also needs its roots planted in a cool shade and the foliage receiving either a full sun or partial shade. This deciduous vine sports urn-shaped purple blooms in the summer and attracts butterflies and bees.

Carolina Jessamine

The perfect plant to prevent erosion, this vine is best planted when you have an uneven landscape. This vine also grows well on trellises and fences. Planting this evergreen vine needs careful consideration as all parts of this plant is poisonous—even its yellow flowers.

Do you have a sunny yard which gets just a little bit more sun than you’d like? Landscaping for sunny yards might look like a daunting task but with the right pointers, you’ll be well on your way to making something more of your sunny yard for your Houston home.

Trees

If you have the space for a tree, why not consider having one transplanted. Drought-resistant ones who love a full sun and has a huge foliage will give your yard a lovely shade and a cool atmosphere. It’s also one of the most sustainable and low maintenance solutions for a sunny yard. Texas redbud, bur oak and Loblolly pine are just some tree varieties you can consider.

Shade Installations

From a patio cover, to a gazebo or a pergola, a permanent structure like this will give you an all-year round refuge. Surround it with low shrubs and other plant varieties that love a full sun and you’ll get a cool enough yard where you can enjoy the sun.

For privacy and further sun protection, you can have privacy hedges or curtains around your shade structure. You can also have screens made which can be moved around to follow the sun’s rays.

Retractable Shade Roof

If you prefer a temporary shade, retractable shade sails or fabric can be used to cover a portion of your sunny yard. This gives you flexibility and mobility and allows you to choose which part of the yard to use for leisure time. However, a proper consultation with your contractor should be made to ensure that your shade sail is installed properly. This prevents the shade sail from coming unhinged and become a potential reason for damage to a person or your property.

For more ideas on how to design for a sunny yard, call us today for a free, no-obligation consultation.

Concrete overlay is a low-cost and effective patio surface known for its malleability, durability, flexibility and versatility. In this article, see how versatile concrete overlay is and how easily it can mimic any of the other patio surface materials like flagstone, paver or brick.

Faux Flagstone

From afar it may look like a flagstone but it’s stamped concrete. Designed with deep edges and uneven surface to promote friction, this patio surface fits right beside a pool. With this faux flagstone, you can achieve the look without the cost.

Upon closer look, you can see the uneven surface in detail in this stamped concrete. This patio surface is best for an outdoor area where it receives a lot of foot traffic from the kids or the elderly. These grooves create enough friction to prevent slips or falls.

Faux Paver: Stamped Concrete Overlay

This Ashlar Slate design mimics the more expensive crafted stone. This stamped concrete also sports an uneven surface for a better walkability, and stained with different hues to produce a muted earth look to their outdoor space.

This stamped concrete may not be as costly as the material it mimics but to produce one as beautiful as this, the level of craftsmanship is high. Each shape is stained individually and the concrete is meticulously prepared and stamped to achieve a full mimicry of the design.

Faux Brick Design

If you have a brick exterior and want your outdoor area to blend with it, you can have your concrete patio stained like this driveway. To break the monochrome palette, light and dark hues are interspersed with black stains applied to make the space more appealing to the eye.

With these concrete examples, you can see how truly flexible concrete is in terms of design. Whether you want a stamped or stained concrete overlay, call us today to schedule a free, no-obligation consultation.

Not all Houston patios need to look alike. In this article, we will give you 5 customized patio features on where and how you can create and apply it to make your patio look like no other!

Create a focal interest by adding levels to your flat terrain patio. Whether it’s adding potted plants, creating borders to highlight your garden strip or planting plants of different heights, all these add a mixture of levels. Another thing to note is the curved corners of the patio, making the space look more dynamic and flowing.

Simplify your landscape design to a raised garden strip and highlight it with borders. Customizing your patio landscape this way will give you less space to maintain while still adding beauty to your property. The borders also help keeping the plants from overgrowing or invading the rest of your lawn.

Another customized patio we have worked on made use of pergolas to draw the eye upwards. Borders also neatly direct foot traffic and segment the large outdoor area into different sections. There’s an area where the ground cover thrives without having to compete with other plants. The choice ornament plants grow on a raised bed enclosed by the border, while the pergolas work as a patio cover and as a transition marker from one area to another.

You can also customize your garden paths to display some curves. It gives a whimsical touch to your overall garden look and adds a sense of exploration for the rest of your outdoor area. Doing so, it gives an otherwise small path like the above an interesting aspect to it.

Even if you don’t need garden paths, you can still design curves on your patio surface. This paver patio sports a circular design which is enough to draw attention even with the lack of other design for the patio.

There are outdoor spaces that make you feel welcome. Here are 5 simple yet impressive outdoor projects you can do to elevate the value of your home.

Pergolas

Pergolas provide enough cover without blocking all the sunlight. A lighter patio cover and stylish at that, a pergola lends an elegant look to your outdoors.

Landscaping

Landscaping is more than just picking pretty flowering plants to decorate your front lawn. Landscaping helps you pick the plants you like and group it with other plants which it has a beneficial relationship with, maximizing its visual effect and your space. Landscaping also considers the level of effort you’re willing to put into maintaining these plants. In the end, doing a landscape project not only enhances your curb appeal but reserves your time, effort, and resources in the long run.

Borders

Without borders your landscaped area and plants can easily propagate and encroach on your lawn. Borders not only help frame your outdoor spaces prettily, it also helps keep plants grow within your allowed space for them. Borders also help in keeping your plants from robbing your lawn or other plants of space and soil nutrients. Borders are also highly recommended if you have a plant type that can easily propagate or is invasive.

Outdoor Kitchen

Making your outdoor space not only better in terms of aesthetic value but also in its functional one, outdoor kitchens still remain to be one of the top features homeowners and even buyers consider and wish for. Since an outdoor kitchen can also be easily customized to only include what you need, it usually does not need a lot of space and can fit even in a short strip of patio like this layout.

Concrete Patio Surface

Accessibility and sturdiness come hand in hand when it comes to paving your patio. For this patio space that’s been turned into a parking space, a concrete overlay does its job well. Being malleable enough to fit even irregular patio spaces and flexible to mimic any of the other expensive patio surfaces, concrete overlay also lasts a long time, giving you a truly inexpensive patio surface material both in terms of installing it and maintaining it.

Wondering which outdoor trends for 2019 you should follow? We’ve sifted through all the trends design experts say are going to be big and chose the top 3 we think you should and can easily apply to your own yard, big or small. Read on and see which ones you already have and which ones you can start installing today!

Curb Appeal

Welcome the new year with the best curb you’ve got. Curb appeal doesn’t seem to be a trend but a design style that’s classic and always in fashion. Whether you want your curb to have a plant container as a nature-friendly fence and border, too or a strip of garden plot, the key is to make sure your plants get the appropriate sunlight, water, and soil nutrient to grow and thrive.

Fountains

Design experts are saying the quest for a tranquil space in your outdoor space. With that, fountains will definitely be a much sought-after outdoor feature this year. Whether it’s the large-scale grand fountain or a minimalist take, its calming sound will surely be a treat for the ears. Strategically place it near a path and window so you can appreciate its presence whether you’re indoor or outdoor.

Party Space

Whether it’s a deck, terrace or a covered patio space, a dedicated party space easily solves your entertainment woes. It can simply be a deck with a comfortable seating area where you can gather people without making it too crowded. You can either have patio furniture or even have a built-in poured concrete seating. Keep it ready to host regardless of the weather with the right patio cover. Another way to level it up is also have a fully functional kitchen nearby where you can dish out the best snacks and refreshments!

Now that we’ve listed the 3 outdoor trends this 2019, have you done any of these? Which trend are you planning to implement this 2019?

Set the mood for the holiday season by cozying up near a gently roaring fire pit. While most find it hard to stay outdoors and enjoy their outdoor space, a fire pit installed easily beats the chill and transforms your outdoor into a warm gathering space, inviting family and friends to gather round.

For those who have an indoor-outdoor setup for their patio, a small fireplace built into the wall is a space-saving idea. While most fire pits take up a lot of space in order to efficiently provide warmth for a large outdoor area, this thin fireplace can easily heat up your outdoor space and the walls surrounding it block the chilly wind brought by the season.

Do you find nobody wants to go outside when the holiday breeze envelops everything? A fire pit, gas- or propane-fueled, can make your family and friends appreciate the feeling of being outdoors again. Just like this patio setup, it might not be covered but the warmth of the firepit is just too hard to ignore.

While this fire pit’s seating area is not that flexible, its semi-circle design gives ample space for those who prefer to find the right spot where they can feel the right amount of warmth. The fire pit brightly lit and the underside lighting of the benches also give a laid-back atmosphere, inviting everyone to gather round and bond.

Is your patio surrounded by walls? All the better to prevent the chilly wind hitting your outdoor space from all sides. We can easily build a custom fireplace fit for your needs. This coming holiday season, we’re sure this outdoor space won’t be so empty and desolate anymore. All thanks to this newly-built fireplace.

If you want to make your outdoor gatherings cozy and warm, install an outdoor fireplace now. Call us today and let’s make your holiday season a bit warmer!

Flagstone has become a popular choice as a natural stone patio surface material. With its durability, flexibility, and innate elegance, flagstone adds beauty to your outdoor space without being too expensive. If you’ve chosen flagstone as your patio surface, here are 5 tips for you.

Make flagstone permeable by leaving space in between pieces.

The spaces in between are designed to let plants, moss or grass to grow in between. This makes your patio surface permeable, allowing excess water from rains and other sources, pass through to the ground and avoid run-off and possible pooling or flood. Letting greenery grow in between also creates a more welcoming space and a softer trod for everyone, even pets!

Due to its natural color, no two outdoor spaces will look exactly alike!

Since a flagstone’s colors are dictated by nature, you can be assured of color assortment of each piece. This makes for a naturally interesting patio surface without any human interference at all!

Aside from its color, its irregular shape also contributes unique patterns. And when it comes to design, there’s no other better designer than mother nature.

Flagstone needs little to no maintenance.

While you might spend more installing it, you’re sure to save costs later when it comes to maintenance as flagstone needs zero to little upkeep. It’s also easy to fix.

Flagstone can be installed on top of a concrete base or on its own.

Having a base or not depends largely on which kind of outdoor space the flagstone will be installed. If its for foot paths or walkways, one might be better off simply installing pieces. Having a base or not will also affect the cost of installation.

Flagstone prices can vary from $3-$25 per square foot.

Depending on its origin, flagstone can be as cheap as $3 per square foot. If you’re unsure on where to source your flagstone, call us today for a free consultation!