When you landscape carefully, you can save money by increasing the energy
efficiency of your home. This means that you can save money on heating and
cooling costs by carefully planting trees, shrubs and even some grasses
and vines. Landscaping can not only help decrease the amount of energy you
use in both winter and summer, but can also provide an eye-pleasing surrounding
for your home. This means that you can have an attractive home environment
and save money on energy costs. And that is of interest to just about everyone.
When you carefully position your trees, you can save money in both summer
and winter. Large deciduous trees are great additions to any home for
this purpose. These trees have large leaves and create shade during the
summer. They block the sun, and this reduces how much money is needed
to cool the home. Vines growing on the house and shrubs near the home
(protecting basement windows) only help further. Now, here is the great
thing about deciduous trees: they lose their leaves in the fall. This
means that as the leaves fall of during autumn, they let more sunlight
in. This means that natural light and even some warmth from the sun will
filter into your house during the winter, lowering heating costs. And
the best part about these trees is that an eight foot tall deciduous
tree costs about the same amount as a window awning for one large window.
You can have the beauty of nature protect you and save you money in a
way that an awning very could.
Another reason that landscape design with special attention to tree
placement is a wise choice is the fact that they act as windbreaks. Without
the wind whipping around the house, there is less energy used for heating.
There is not even a need to place trees all around the house to achieve
energy savings in windy areas. Simply plant trees on the windward side
of the house. This will act as a barrier and can result in you spending
a quarter less for your energy bill if you live in an area with high
winds. In some areas, the savings increased to one third. Fences can
also act as windbreaks, as do some other landscape elements.
The United States Department of Energy estimates that energy savings
due to the proper placement of just three trees can be between $100 and
$250 for the average household. This means that with a properly designed
landscape your initial investment can be returned in less than eight
years. If you are buying a home, it is a good idea to choose one with
energy efficient landscaping. Then you can experience that savings, and
still add other features to make the landscape your own.
Proper landscaping also results in other benefits that many people associate
with types of conservation. You can reduce air and noise pollution around
your home with landscape. Greenscape elements actually absorb sound,
and so if you have plants around your house you can actually help block
the sound of a nearby road. Additionally, plants are natural air cleaners.
While they will not completely rid the air of harmful pollutants, they
can create a little pocket of cleaner air around your home, and that
can reduce costs due to respiratory illness.
Energy use related to caring for a landscape can also be reduced with
a carefully planned out landscape. When you have features that reduce
lawn space, you do not have to use as much water to keep it healthy.
Additionally, if you set up an automatic sprinkler system, you can save
money in electricity to run it and water used by sensibly setting the
times for two or three times a week for fifteen minutes at each station.
Choosing native plants that are appropriate for your climate can help
you save money in caring for the plants and help you save money in energy
costs. Find out what plants are best in your area for landscaping for
energy conservation. Most cities and states have some sort of office
or department that can be contacted for information on how to design
a landscape that saves you money on your energy bills.
