If you’re reading this post, you probably own an old homestead with substantial acreage that you’re trying to rejuvenate yourself – when you have the time. Congratulations, and welcome to the club! Are you wondering when your paradise will actually resemble what you’re envisioning?  I know the feeling.  You have a multi-year plan like I do just to reclaim your grounds, and sometimes you’re overwhelmed by the enormity of the undertaking. After hours and hours of backbreaking work and trial and (more than a little) error on my 25 acres, I’d like to share eight ways to conquer tough DIY landscaping projects.

Maintaining the right mindset, being mindful of why you’re working so hard is key.

Basic Landscaping Headaches

But first, if any of the following sounds familiar, you’re in the right place:

• Sections of your lawns are compacted deserts where nothing but a few struggling weeds grow. Other sections have tall grass lying on its side and thigh-high weeds.
• Invasive vines have latched onto everything they can – trees, bushes, buildings, stone walls.
• Desirable sightlines and landscaping features (natural and manmade) are hidden by overgrowth.
• Unwanted vegetation (including saplings and trees) have overtaken flower gardens and pastures and narrowed the perimeters of hayfields.
• A graveyard of huge, downed branches and entire trees is hidden in the thickest overgrowth.
• To top it all off, you’re pretty sure that there are areas teeming with ticks, snakes, and mice.

This is just some of what I’ve been tackling, but I had no idea about the snakes and the mice.

Whether your home is on five acres, five hundred, or somewhere in between, if you have exterior no-go zones that you want to beautify on your own, here are some topline tips that I hope are helpful:

1. Take Before-and-After Photos and/or Videos at Key Stages

Otherwise, you won’t remember how rough your property looked (and your friends and family won’t believe you either). Cataloging works-in-progress is very satisfying, and you’ll need every bit of encouragement as you labor over several days, weeks, or months. This photographic evidence is a great incentive to stay the course. When you’re done it’ll also be a wonderful reminder of your fortitude and maybe even encourage you to take on tougher tasks.

I began gathering my own photographic evidence in 2014. I’m always amazed when I look at photos of the thicket of ten-foot high rhododendrons that used to block the entire north side of the little house. Unfortunately, I used an ancient phone to take them and haven’t figured out how to post them. I probably spent just a weekend or two cutting down and stacking the rhododendrons. With a rented chipper, it took my sister, brother, and me a few hours to dispose of them. 

Unintended benefit: The money that I saved by cutting and chipping myself allowed me to splurge on mahogany for the new porch boards instead of settling for a less durable wood.

2. Be Patient

Time and weather will be constant challenges that will often defeat you – at least temporarily.

The power of their one-two punch will be compounded if you’ve bought a house whose grounds you don’t know well, or where you don’t live full-time or even close by.

Tackle the smaller projects first and divide the biggest projects into a series of discrete jobs, otherwise you’ll feel overwhelmed. Devise a plan for each. Always play the long game, with conservation in mind.

Where to Begin?

Let’s say you have a big, overgrown lawn, tangled areas of mystery plants, and an obstructed hillside view.

Handle the Smallest, Discrete Projects First

In my example, that’s reclaiming the lawn. You want an immediate, visible reward for your efforts, and the results will improve with each mowing. I was thrilled to see how beautiful my main lawn appeared after mowing an area that had reverted to meadow, and that has kept me going as I’ve dealt with other, more physically demanding projects.

Be Prepared to Keep Detailed Records

For the scary section, unless you know every plant and its life cycle, simply document what is growing and blooming there for at least one year.  Yes, one full year. There’s no other way to know if you have hidden treasure or trash.  Be optimistic! I discovered lovely Kousa dogwood bordering my main lawn this way.  I might have cut them down to have a better view of the stone wall running behind them if I’d rushed. You may be host to beautiful apple or cherry trees, or fabulous perennials such as irises, hyacinths, or peonies. Maybe you’ll be lucky and discover productive blueberry bushes or masses of wild strawberries.

If you still think you’ll forget where your valuable plants are, take photos of them while active/in-bloom and while dormant, mark them with stakes, rope off the area, or attach color-coded ribbons or waterproof labels to them.

Put Away the Chainsaw

For your hillside view, do not clear-cut anything or aggressively limb trees until you are sure what its impact will be – on the environment, you, and others. Trees provide critical wildlife habitat as well as privacy, and sound and wind breaks (lower heating bills!) for you and your neighbors. Has a developer bought the land on the other side of what you want to clear? Do you really want to see the effect of that? What if an abutter decided to aggressively clear their land, leaving you exposed if you act similarly?  Be very conservative when clearing land; rash decisions cannot be corrected quickly, if at all.

A Tale of Impatience

A few years ago, I hired someone to clear a weedy jungle bordering a vernal stream so that I could see the hayfields on either side of it. Per my instructions, he chopped down just about everything. I didn’t even know three clumps of pussy willow trees were there because they’d been swamped by vines. The felled trees, around fifteen feet tall, burst with catkins months later!  That was when I’d realized what had been lost. I can’t fault my contractor. I was tired of the jungle and hadn’t done the proper research to know what was growing. Also, if I had cleared that area myself, I would have done so by hand, painstakingly removing the unwanted growth from the trees then seen the catkins.

3. Research

Research which plants to keep or (re-) introduce onto your property and which ones to eradicate, taking into account three main factors:

Biodiversity

I favor native plants since that seems the easiest way to maintain balance and biodiversity.  I also like plants that thrive in my local culture without any special effort on my part.  There is no single, correct approach.  Just make sure you don’t retain or plant any invasive species. Sometimes the maturation of beneficial species takes longer, and unfortunately, this often leads people to landscape with faster growing trees like the Bradford pear. I understand their appeal, in part because they’re awash with pretty white blossoms in the spring.

Bradford pear trees are also invasive, and it is now illegal in several states to sell them. In the last couple of years, I’ve noticed how groves of these trees dominate the woodlands along the sides of highways in the Northeast.

Check your state’s guidelines about which plants have been declared invasive. If you discover any on your property, eradicate them in an environmentally responsible manner. Consider your hardiness zone, sun/shade availability, soil condition, and the ease of maintenance when choosing substitutes. I discuss how I’ve dealt with certain invasive plants here.

Animal and Human Welfare

Plants (and brush piles) provide food and shelter for animals.  They encourage balanced and diverse populations of prey and predator which leads to healthy ecosystems.

Always have plants that attract pollinators such as bees and butterflies. Pollination is necessary for plants to reproduce, and most of the crops that we consume and that provide most of our nutrition are pollinated by animals, most commonly insects. UMass Amherst’s The Center for Agriculture, Food and the Environment and Penn State’s College of Agricultural Sciences are wonderful sources of information on this topic and related issues; there are many others.

I have a somewhat messy triangle in a small corner of my main lawn, and it’s likely going to stay that way for one reason: it’s the home of a few dozen milkweed plants, which butterflies love. No “suburban perfection” here! I envision creating a mini-retreat in the 17’ W x 40’ L space next to it:  removing the weeds and all the bamboo, installing a couple of pollinator-friendly flower beds, then adding a dining table, chairs, and umbrella should do it. The photo below shows what the area looks like today.

Aesthetics

We all want our properties to be lush and beautiful. Sometimes, what seems to be an easy decision to achieve that goal really isn’t. Isn’t all grass the same basic green? No, it isn’t. I found this out the hard way when I planted Kentucky 31 (also, KY 31 or K 31), a tall fescue, one fall.  I wanted to finish clearing and then re-seed Maple Tree Row so the area wouldn’t look so barren the following spring. All I wanted was a grass that grows in sun and shade. The seeds soon germinated and sprouted a light, bright green. The surrounding area has darker, more attractive grass. So, I think I’m going to thin the KY 31 with other grasses (including perennial rye) and hope for the best. A slight aggravation in the grand scheme of things, but one that could have been avoided if I’d researched grass color more.

Finally, as always, research the tools that you’ll need to accomplish your landscaping goals most efficiently.  I post product reviews on this site.

4. Embrace Nature and Your Property’s History

Conservationists are stewards of the land, respecting history while being forward thinking. If your homestead has recent manmade features, particularly those of unremarkable material, character or workmanship (a crumbling patio, a too-small swimming pool, a pergola of questionable stability), think about whether each feature is worthy of the time and money it will take to repair, re-build, or maintain it. Does it reflect the property’s unique history or the region’s in some way? Does it fit your (life)style, or the style of the house and grounds?  Does it add imperceptible value to your property in terms of your sheer enjoyment of it? Does it actually detract from the true beauty of your property and the surrounding area?

The answers are all subjective, but you’re likely driven by a love of open spaces and healthy, natural environments and an appreciation for historical relevance.  Let that be your guide. The prior owners of your property may have made some unfortunate decisions. Don’t be afraid to undo them.  Conversely, the prior owners hopefully made thoughtful, long-term decisions to maximize the value and pastoral beauty of your grounds and neighboring land. Continue their legacy, in big ways and small.

The Corn Crib

I own an old corn crib, dating perhaps from the 1800s.  I’d never heard the term before I bought the land it sits on, and I’ll probably never use it. It had such a severe lean that if you looked at it the wrong way, it could have collapsed.  But it’s a part of this property’s history as a working farm, and corn cribs aren’t so common anymore. My contractor told me that mine appeared to have its original hardware, which made it that much more unusual. I had him repair the building a few years ago and splurged on cedar shakes for the roof.  It now sits proudly behind a big barn and should withstand many years of tough New England weather.  

Elegant Inspiration

By embracing nature, you can keep things simple and save money. Home-improvement shows often highlight elaborate outdoor kitchens that are equal to or better equipped than most people’s sole, indoor kitchen.  Why try to replicate your interior outside and spend a small fortune doing so?  Nature is its own wondrous escape, full of sights, sounds, and scents that a lot of hardscape diminishes.  Would you rather dine under a grand oak tree surrounded by lush greenery or on a slab of concrete surrounded by stainless steel appliances? 

Take a look at Southwood Estate in Upstate New York for timeless inspiration. This stunning 86-acre estate runs along the Hudson River and is nestled in the Catskill Mountains. It lies serenely within its surroundings without interrupting the spectacular scenery.  All of us should strive toward such responsible land ownership and management.

Thank you for reading, and stay tuned for the last four tips in my next post.