When You Should (and Shouldn’t) Do Your Own Landscaping

Putting pride in your lawn is a shared feeling by homeowners everywhere. After all, your lawn care and landscaping are some of the first things that people notice. Improving your home’s curb appeal by beginning a new landscaping project is a great summer idea. Whether you are preparing to sell your home and want to raise its value, or if you want to beautify your yard, lawn care and landscaping can make all the difference. 

The question is, should you hire professional landscaping services to complete your project, or can you try your hand at DIY landscaping? Depending on your landscaping project, you can take it on yourself, but a professional landscaper can be an ideal choice for bigger projects or for DIY-ers who are less confident. Here’s how to know what you should do.

When You Should Do DIY Landscaping

When Your Project Timeline is Important

Professional landscaping services are a great way to ensure your landscaping project is done well and done right. It can get tricky for some homeowners if they find themselves facing a quick turnaround for their landscaping project. 

Even with large teams, landscapers can book multiple weeks to months out, meaning if you want to get your work done next week, you may be left waiting. This is where DIY landscaping may come in handy. Setting your timeline can mitigate any hard deadlines you’re up against — for example if you are hosting a graduation party this summer, you might want to get your hands dirty and take over yourself. 

Project timelines are certainly a factor for lawn care and landscaping projects, but unless you have a very quick turnaround time, it is worth the wait to schedule professional landscaping services near you to ensure your yard and garden look as good as they can. 

When You Want to Put Your Elbow Grease into Your Project

Who doesn’t love to sit back and look at their DIY project and feel a strong sense of accomplishment? This feeling of success and accomplishment is abundant during a DIY landscaping project. 

Taking on DIY projects of any kind, from lawn care and landscaping to making homemade gifts and meals, can improve your mental and physical health. When you can get your hands dirty (literally), you create something from scratch and can be that much more proud of the finished product. Plus, spending time outdoors can do wonders for your mental and physical health as well. 

Of course, you can still be proud of your lawn and garden when a professional takes on the job, too. It will look great and you can come home every day to a beautiful-looking landscape job no matter what. 

When You Should Seek Professional Landscaping Services

When You Want to Ensure It’s Done Right

They’re professionals for a reason. When a team of landscapers visits your home, they will sit down with you to provide a custom estimate and landscape design based on your individual home and project ideas. They will walk your yard and garden space and can deliver ideas, designs and projects that work with your yard size, the makeup of your soil and grass as well as your shade patterns and existing landscaping. 

From start to finish, a local professional landscaper will bring proven expertise and experience to your project. They know what plants look great together, and what conditions are needed to let them grow. Landscape teams can design projects to match your existing landscaping and follow through with diligence, care and a professional, quality finish.

DIY landscaping opens the door to unexpected events, mistakes and more. This can be more costly down the road, as you’ll be left having to do it all over again. With a trusted, proven professional, you can rest assured that your landscaping project will be done correctly and will look great. 

When You Have a Particularly Large Yard or Project

Some tasks, like planting flowers or spreading mulch, are fairly straightforward to do. These are great weekend projects for the casual DIY landscaper or gardener. Other projects, like expanding a garden, uprooting tree trunks and building a patio take the dedicated experience to do correctly. 

Save the big projects for a professional landscaping service. They can quickly become challenging and expensive to do over. Hiring a professional will mitigate risks, mistakes and unnecessary costs during the project. Before you begin DIY landscaping projects, ask yourself if you know the entire scope of the project and if you can do everything yourself, or if you should hire professional landscaping services near you. 

Invest in Your Yard

The time and money it takes to do your landscaping can add up. But if you want to quickly complete your project, or if you want something to do on the weekend with little risk, DIY landscaping may be right for you. 

Prepare your project ahead of time and consider everything that will be required of you. Mistakes or poor execution can lead to extra costs and extended project time down the road. Plus, life happens and things can get in the way quickly. We’ve all started projects that end up taking longer than expected simply because things come up. 

If you are considering beginning a landscaping project in Plymouth, Delano, Media, Orono or Minnetonka this summer, consider a trusted, professional landscaper. Scott’s Lawn Care understands how much pride you take in your yard and garden, and we work hard to maintain the quality of your space while providing expert landscaping services. 

Contact Scott’s Lawn Care and begin your next landscaping project today.