From David Beaulieu,
Your Guide to Landscaping.
FREE Newsletter. Sign Up Now!

On Page 3 we considered pest control measures, but the biggest pest you may have to keep under control is your own workaholism. Do you think you can slow down long enough to "stop to smell the roses?" Thus the need for the final resolution:

Resolution 10: I will fully enjoy my yard, rather than being a slave to its upkeep. I will "stop to smell the roses."

If you keep none of the other resolutions, at least keep this one! For, unless you're actively seeking to sell your home, the main concern behind your landscaping endeavors should be your own enjoyment. "Stop to smell the roses" is sound advice in general, but never more apropos than in the present discussion.

Too many people see landscaping as little more than a collection of chores that they must complete: mow the lawn, trim the hedges, rake the leaves.... As such, landscaping is reduced to being merely an extension of the work week. I suggest you stop to smell the roses and start enjoying some backyard fun!

In order to "stop to smell the roses," you must begin to take an interest in the background information about your plants. That will allow you to take more joy in your landscaping. Some plants have interesting stories behind them: how they’ve been used historically and the significance they’ve had in the cultures of the world. You can access a lot of this information in minutes by doing a quick Internet search. Once you have this background information on your plants, it will change your perception of them. As you walk by them in your yard every day, they’ll seem more like “friends” who have a story to tell and less like objects upon which chores must be performed.

Perhaps the most precious time to "stop and smell the roses" is spring, when Mother Nature shakes off the gloomy cobwebs of the winter season and runs barefoot through the re-discovered grass. Yes, enjoying the outdoors in spring means taking time away from other plans, so that you can enjoy a "silent spring." You may even have to renege on one of your other landscaping New Year's resolutions in order to remain true to this one, and you may experience some guilt over indulging yourself with such laziness. Dissolution and resolution don't usually coincide; but here, they do. And that's part of the beauty of this final resolution!