Creating Curb Appeal Outside Your Home

March 19, 2009

Gardening
Whether you’re selling your home or not, one way to make it more valuable in both monetary and emotional ways is to improve the curb appeal. And improving the curb appeal can easily be done in a variety of ways.

One way of course is to have a beautiful lawn, colorful flower garden beds, and meticulously manicured bushes. No yard starts out this way though, so let’s look at some of the basic first steps, and small things that can make a big difference.

1. Clean up the outside of your home. This may seem obvious, but not everyone immediately realizes when they have too much clutter or debris around their yard. So get rid of junk, put away the tools out of site, clean the gutters, and sweep off your walkways.

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Garden Tip...

There is no sight more attractive in a window-garden than a fine Ivy vine trained up the casement, over the wall and ceiling; its dark, rich, glossy leaves, and thrifty look, make it an object to be admired. If grown in pots in the house, the soil will soon become exhausted, if the plant is growing rapidly, and it should be changed or enriched with decayed manure at least once each year, care being taken not to disturb the roots to a great extent. It is a mistake to allow Ivies too much pot-room, they will do better if the roots are considerably confined. Soap-suds or liquid manure if applied once a mouth when the plants are growing, will promote a luxuriant growth. When dust accumulates on the leaves, as it will, if grown in-doors, wash it off with a damp cloth or sponge; if this is long neglected, you need not be surprised if you soon discover the leaves to be covered with red-spider or scale-lice. Cold water is the best wash, when washing be sure and treat the underside of the leaves as well as the upper surface. I would recommend the "English Ivy" as being the best sort for general cultivation.
~ James Sheehan
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2. Repair problem areas. If your home has a broken window or loose window screens, fix these as soon as possible. If the outside light is just a bare bulb then put a nice new cover or light fixture over it. This doesn’t have to be anything expensive or fancy, it just needs to have a well kept appearance. Look closely at any porch railings, rain gutters, or shutters if you have them too. If anything is loose or broken, fix it.

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Garden Tip...

It is so easy to mow the lawn with the light-running modern lawn-mower, that many fine lawns are injured by too frequent mowings. We should not follow any set time for mowing, but be governed by the growth of the grass and the weather. When hot weather approaches, the grass should be cut less often, for too close cutting will expose the roots, and if the weather be dry and hot for a considerable period, the grass as a consequence will wither prematurely.
~ James Sheehan
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3. Tidy up the yard. Take a good look all around your yard. Are there any weeds growing? If so, trim them down or pull them out. If you have unruly bushes, trim them neatly. Use a weedeater and trim the edge of your grass along any walkways or roads so that all looks neat and tidy. If you have dead or dying plants, remove those too.

4. Take a good look at the house itself. A quick touch up of paint on the trim can make a world of difference and it doesn’t take too long. Alternatively you may find that you can simply wash or rinse down the outside of your home and it will look as good as new.

5. Take stock of your outdoor accessories. If you have lawn furniture, is it in good shape? Maybe it needs a fresh coat of paint or maybe you can simply put new cushions on instead. How about the mailbox? Is it a bit old and worn? Can you revitalize it with some decorating flair or should you replace it instead?

If you have a bird bath, garden gnomes, or little yard statues sitting around, look closely at those too. Chances are they could use a good scrubbing to look brand new again. While you’re at it, wash or replace your front doormat and hang some fresh flowers or a new wreath on the front door too.

6. If you have the budget, add something new. You can put some outdoor pathway lights along the walkway to your front door for instance, or sit some new flower pots on the front steps. You might also want to add new flowers to your flowerbeds, create a brand new flower bed, or simply plant some colorful annuals along the edge of your lawn.