Lifescape Associates

Get ready for Spring Color in the Landscape

2012-02-13T20:23:01Z

Have you started thinking about what colors you want to see in your landscape this spring season? Now is a great time to start thinking about what seeds to get in preparation for the planting season. Why spring color? There is nothing that perks up your yard more that a healthy dose of vibrant color. From the back garden to flower pots on the front porch, colorful annuals and perennials make all the difference in enhancing our outdoor environments.

Here are a few spring blooms that will inspire you to think about what colors you want to see in your landscape this spring.

Photo Credit: gardenfaerie.blogspot.com

Photo via viwepictures1.info

Photo via plants.schaefergreenhouses.com

Lifescape Associates can design and plant your beautiful spring garden, just give us a call at 303-831-8310.

5 Gardening Tips to get ready for Spring

2012-02-13T19:27:34Z

Is the gardener in you just dying to get outside and go to work? Lifescape Associates understands. Take a look at five things the ALCC says you can start to do now in order to get your garden ready for the spring season.

1. Compost. Even if the ground is snow covered, throw some fresh compost over the garden to let it settle into the soil so come planting time, you can work the soil right.

2. Planting Seeds. Start planting your cool season crops once the ground can be tilled in March and April.

3. Choose your crops. “Carrots, spinach, lettuce, beets, green onions, radishes, pak choi and peas are veggies to plant soon.”

4. Plan what will grow where. A good practice to do every year is rotate your vegetable placement. This is to avoid insects and diseases that can overwinter in the soil and attack specific vegetables.

5. Before you start to plant, rototill or hand till the ground to work in the compost.

What are you looking forward to planting in your garden this year?

Photo via mercurios-jewels.blogspot.com

Luxe in the Landscape

2012-02-08T16:10:09Z

Are you looking to upgrade your Denver or Boulder home landscape to add the look of luxury. A luxurious landscape is not only visually appealing, it also enhances your outdoor living experience. From water features (waterfalls, fountains and spouts) to fire ( fireplace and fire pit), to outdoor art (sculptures, statues and etc.), the look of luxe can incorporate a variety of different landscaping concepts.

Take a look at a landscaping project Lifescape Associates completed that has the look of luxe.

Are you ready for your Denver/Boulder area home landscape to enhance your outdoor lifestyle? Lifescape Associates can provide your landscape with luxurious features and concepts that will create the perfect back or front yard retreat for you and your family. Contact a designer at Lifescape for more information. 303-831-8310

The New Plant Hardiness Zone Map

2012-02-07T15:10:34Z

Just 2 weeks ago the the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) announced the release of the new version of its Plant Hardiness Zone Map (PHZM). If you have not heard of the map, it is basically a tool that gardeners and researchers have used over the years to figure out the best plants for growing in their region. The map itself is not a brand new map, it has simply been updated to show more accuracy and detail. The last time that the map was updated was back in 1990.

“The new version of the map includes 13 zones, with the addition for the first time of zones 12 (50-60 degrees F) and 13 (60-70 degrees F). Each zone is a 10-degree Fahrenheit band, further divided into A and B 5-degree Fahrenheit zones.” - usda.gov

This is a great new update that is great for those of you who garden in the Denver area. The new plant hardiness zone map helps you to know what plants are safe to plant for your particular region. You can’t just plant whatever, it has to be both cold and heat tolerant.

If you need help figuring out what plants work best in your landscape and can handle the extreme Colorado temperatures, contact Lifescape Associates by calling 303-831-8310.

Photo via planthardiness.ars.usda.gov

5 Exciting Ideas for your Landscape

2012-02-07T14:47:19Z

Do you need a few new and exciting ideas for your Denver or Boulder area landscape? Well, Lifescape Associates wanted to quickly point out a few ideas for you to get your creative juices flowing on how you’d like to see your landscape transformed in 2012.

1. Blurring the lines between inside and out

The concept that your garden is an extension of your home’s interior and vice versa. For example, use the same flooring patterns or materials inside the home as outside the home. Incorporate large glass facades in the house to see clearly outside. Nana Wall is a technology that has been used to transition an interior room to an exterior room.

2. The Outdoor Room

Rooms are created with a floor, wall and ceiling planes. For example, in an outdoor room, use a paver type material for the ground plane that has visual interest, doesn’t crack and can easily be maintained. For the side planes use seat walls, outdoor kitchens, plants, or a side of the house. For the roof or ceiling plane - horizontal branching trees, arbors, pergolas and umbrellas can be used to enclose and make a space comfortable and enticing.

3. Green and Sustainable landscapes

The concept of saving energy through more efficient technology, materials and styles of living. For example, using LED outdoor lighting with sensors and timers. LED is 80% more efficient, green and will save you money. The lamps last 40,000 hours which is around 20 years. Also, Smart Irrigation Controllers can save 30-70% water savings to traditional controllers and come with a rain gauge to release the most efficient amount of water to your plants.

4. Plant material

The various plants that can be used in the landscape. In Colorado, plants must be tolerant of heat but moreover tolerant of cold and freezing conditions as well. Low-maintenance and low-water plants are welcomed in most landscapes.

5. Hardscape and Softscape

Hardscape refers to patios, driveways or even outdoor kitchens where pavers, concrete, and masonry items are used. It is the opposite of Softscape, which is anything to do with plants, irrigation, sod, lighting, soil amendments, mulch and drainage. Both hard and softscape are equally important in a landscape composition.

Two Lifescape Staff studying to be licensed Landscape Architects

2012-01-30T14:03:59Z

Two members of the Lifescape Associates team, designers Dan DeGrush and Tonya Glassmeyer, are both full steam ahead at studying for the Landscape Architecture Registry Exam (L.A.R.E.). The idea of this exam is that it tests on all facets of Landscape Architecture. Just as lawyers and doctors need to be licensed in their respective states for practice, so does a Landscape Architect. In fact, Colorado has a practice and title act. This means you can’t technically call yourself a ‘Landscape Architect’ without being licensed.

To be licensed, you must have graduated from an accredited Landscape Architecture program in college and pass the LARE exam. This exam consists of four sections: the first two cover Project and Construction Administration; Inventory, Analysis and Program Development. The second two sections cover site design, Construction Documentation and Grading; Drainage and Stormwater Management. Sections one and two are administered in March of 2012 and sections three and four are administer in December of 2012. Tonya and Dan are in full study mode to pass the first two sections in March. Lifescape, while already having a Landscape Architect on staff in Randy Randolph, is looking to continue its excellence in adding two new Landscape Architects to the design staff in Dan and Tonya.

Lifescape looks forward assisting its clients as industry leaders in the Colorado and Front Range landscape design and construction industry.

Still Time Left for the Winter Construction Discount!

2012-01-25T20:34:59Z

There is still time left to take advantage of Lifescape’s winter construction discount! If you plan on getting a hardscape project constructed between now and February, and you live within our servicing area, this is the deal for you!

Clients can come to our design studio and select from over 30 different kinds of pavers! The cooler season is the perfect time to have construction done for new hardscapes since you will not be out in the yard as much. It’s best to get all the construction out of the way in the winter months so by the time spring arrives, you can have a brand new patio, retaining wall, driveway or whatever other hardscape you need at a discounted rate!

For more information on this wonderful Winter Construction Discount, call Lifescape Associates at 303-831-8310. To see all of the Colorado cities and communities we service, visitwww.lifescapeassociates.com.

Flower Pots on Patios

2012-01-25T20:32:24Z

Looking for a way to brighten up your outdoor patio or entrance way? Adding flower pots can charm any outdoor space with wonderful flowers and can be purchased at local stores. Choosing the right size and color can help tie your landscaping into the house or bring in new accent colors.

There are different kinds of plant containers, from clay flower pots, plastic, ceramic, fiber glass, hanging pots, sandstone urns, and many more. The right kind of plant container is up to you and what fits your space. With perfect placement and match with surroundings, it will enhance the splendor of your home as well as your garden.

If you live in the Denver or Boulder area and want to enhance your outdoor space, contact a designer at Lifescape for more information. 303-831-8310

The Dangers of Low Snowpack in the Garden

2012-01-10T14:44:21Z

It is known in Colorado that gardeners depend on the annual snowpack to water their gardens and yards during the growing season. However, since the snowpack has not been all that great this season, there is a fear that the water will not be as plentiful for summer gardening.

“The Denver Post recently cited that the first manual check of Colorado’s snowpack showed only 73 percent of normal – and not one year during the last 30 that started this far below average, was there a return to normal snowpack by the start of spring.” – Alcc.com

There are others who are saying that now is too early to make the call, and there have been positive readings for some of the river basins. For example, the Arkansas River Basin is 89 percent of normal. However, we all know from the severe drought of 2002, snowpack conditions may look like one thing and end up as something else.

Are you worrying about your summer gardens? The best thing Coloradoans can do is to start conserving water, beginning with your own landscape.

Photo via cartridgesforkids.wordpress.com

3 Great Hardscape Ideas for the Backyard

2012-01-04T13:21:34Z

Our backyards are our sanctuaries. Many of us love to go out to our backyard and enjoy tending to the garden, laying out by the pool or our outdoor fireplace and just taking the time to relax and unwind from our hectic and stressful schedules. The hardscapes in our backyards play an important role in how we enjoy our backyard environment. If you are considering a backyard renovation for your Denver or Boulder area home, here are 3 hardscape options you may want to consider.

Backyard Patio

The patio is more than just a place to lay muddy shoes, it should have a floor layout that flows and furniture that is fashionable and functional.

Pathways/Walkways

If you have a large landscape that you enjoy taking a stroll through, make it easier on the eyes and on the knees with sturdy pathways and walkways to guide you along.

Retaining Walls

Whether you are using them to separate a space, enclose the garden or create different levels within the landscape, retaining walls are a great option for enhancing aesthetics while performing a much needed function.

If you need help deciding on the best hardscape option to enhance your backyard, contact a designer at Lifescape for more information on hardscapes and our winter construction discount. 303-831-8310