Chances are if you purchased a home with a large screen space, you probably had plans to enjoy using it and being outside at some point. Unfortunately, with the growing sizes of homes and the smaller lots they are being put on in neighborhoods, enjoying your yard can be a spectator sport for your neighbors! To help add some privacy to your yard, Whispering Springs Nursery of Jasper, Ga. has a few tips for you.

Privacy Solutions:

• Hedges – instead of opting for fence try planning on your property lines with tall, fast-growing evergreens like Italian Cypress. These shrubs can be planted 12 inches apart, and quickly create a green privacy fence that blocks out views and some noise to your yard.

• Container Gardens – Container plants are a great way to showcase your favorite plants or flowers, but they can also be another easy way to give your deck a little privacy!

• Pergolas, Arbors & Lattice – Build the feeling of privacy within an enclosure like a wooden pergola or with a lattice screen filled with flowers and vines. While these structures may not keep out the noise of neighbors, they will at least make your yard feel more private.

• Water Features – Traffic and other noise can be a problem if your home backs up to busy areas. Install a water fixture to alleviate some of this noise with the soothing sounds of flowing water instead.

• Layered Planting – Plan and plant a mix of deciduous or evergreen trees, shrubs, and perennials in a staggered design; perennials in front, shrubs in the middle, and trees/hedges behind them. This will make for a stunning landscaping move and reduce visibility and noise pollution from entering into your yard. Plus, you can make some beautiful arrangements with the plant selections you choose!

Of course, traditional privacy options like a tall fence are always a good choice too! It just depends on how you want your yard to look and feel. Whispering Springs Nursery can help you create a wonderful privacy landscape design and installation it with our nursery’s fabulous selection of plants. Contact us today to learn more at 770-893-1254.

There’s nothing like going out on a nice day and playing in your garden; but the last thing you want is help from your dog or cat! Whispering Springs Nursery, located in Jasper, Ga.,  understands that you don’t want your hard gardening work trampled on, eaten, or dug up by your sweet pets. So we would like to share these tips from HGTV on how to keep your pets from becoming pests in your green space.

Basically when dealing with pets one must look at the situation through their eyes (like with a small child). Many of these steps are like baby proofing a home! Once you understand their motivation to mess up your garden, it’s easy to prevent your small furry children from running amuk in your gorgeous green space. 

Staked- If you have a dog who likes to use your flower bed as a well… a bed, simply driving a few short stakes in the ground throughout the bed should help. You can also put in decorative lawn or garden signs or ornaments. The thought here is that your garden will still look beautiful (the stakes usually are under the plant/flower height), but won’t allow for a comfortable napping place.

Wiring- Although chicken-wire is not the most pleasant thing to look at, it definitely will keep your pets out of your garden space. A good tip for using this material, is to use stakes with it, so it can easily be unrolled around gardens perimeter when your pets are out for long periods of time. Then simply roll it back up and hide it behind your garden, to prevent it from being an eyesore.

Cat-tastrophe- Certain pungent herbs and plants naturally keep cats away. You can plan these in or around your garden beds to discourage from coming around them. Herbs such as Rosemary and Sage are great the plant, and Coleus Canina is an annual plant that can also be used for the same purpose. If you prefer not to plant anything to discourage cats from coming into your garden, you can always use coffee grounds around the garden bed to keep them away.

For more great gardening tips, speak with our experts at Whispering Spring Nursery. We will help you decide what plants you should take home to your garden and we can even help you design your garden space! Contact us at 770-893-1254 or visit us in person. We look forward to speaking with you!

Whispering Springs Nursery knows all too well how difficult an overgrown landscape can be to work with. However, we are also experts at turning out-of-control plant situations into beautiful masterpieces, much like ‘plant emergency room doctors’ transform the ill. Whether you feel like your property needs some minor ‘surgery’ or a complete landscaping overhaul, we are always here to offer you our services. 

Generally, when dealing with an abundance of plants on an unmanaged or overgrown property, landscape architects use an inventory system to decide which plans should be removed, protected or transplanted. While these inventories are usually done by professionals, check out the details below of how you can get prepared:

1. Boundaries: Get out your property plans, because it is important to know exactly where your property line is. Altering vegetation outside of your line could cause some stressful legal woes, especially if it turns out to be something on public property!

2. Hire a Professional: Unless you are a professional landscaper, horticulturalist or arborists, chances are you’ll need the help of a qualified professional to take care of your inventory. Every plant, grass, vine, etc. will need to be documented and identified for this process. Then it will be used to decide which plant stay, go or simply get moved.

3. Treehuggers: Trees that are healthy and noninvasive are super important to keep! These lovely things take decades to grow, add property value and provide important environmental benefits. Think twice before you decide to ditch your backyard giant.

4. Bye, Bye: Say goodbye to invasive, exotic plants. These nasty plants will try to ruin your new landscaping if they aren’t removed completely by herbicide treatment or mechanical removal.

5. For Keeps: Many native shrubs and small trees are great to keep, but may not fit in with your landscaping plans. These are usually (depending on the species) great candidates for removal to be transplanted somewhere else in your yard.

Overhauling a yard can be tough, but it can be done! Try to hold back the urge to bulldoze and remove everything; starting fresh may actually damage soil quality, plus you probably have plenty of native plants to work with, without needing to purchase too much more!

If you are interested in turning your messy yard into a sprawling paradise, please contact Whispering Springs Nursery. Also, follow us on Facebook!

If you are a homeowner, chances are you’ve heard about or had to deal with the increases and decreases of property value for your home. Generally the norm is a slight decrease in value as the years go by, but did you know that landscaping can actually make your property value rise? Whispering Springs Nursery of Jasper, Ga. knows exactly what it takes to make your landscaping go from okay to stunning, so here are a few tips to increase your property’s value.

• Structures: Have permanent structures like retaining walls and terracing can really give your home some curb appeal, which boosts your overall value. These structures can also help with unused slopes of ground, add texture and help to control erosion in your yard. Other great structures you can add are walkways, stairs, arbors, pergolas, ponds, fencing and more!

• Trees: Did you know that the red maple is the most popular tree in the United States? Trees like the red maple are used to calculate the annual benefit they give to your city by using the National Tree Benefit Calculator. These trees can increase your property value as well as your neighbor’s!

• Native Plants: If you are interested in gardening, you may already know that using native plants that thrive in your particular region are best used for your landscaping needs. These plants are preferred because they adjust more readily and can save you time and money with upkeep (plus save money on a lawn service). They can also make you more money if you try to sell your home.

• Lighting: It may seem strange, but outdoor lighting is a huge concern for many home buyers. The NAHB actually lists outdoor lighting as essential for 41% of buyers! Consider adding some nice solar torches to your walkway and other outside lighting to your home if you haven’t already. When you light up your home, you may also prevent intruders from targeting your home!

We at Whispering Springs Nursery are skilled to help you add value to your home with our excellent landscaping services and structure building experience. Please give us a call at 770-893-1254 today to make your specialized landscaping plan and add some value to your property by spring!