Grading, by definition, is altering the slope of the Houston landscape between one point and the property and another. This is a vital, albeit little publicized element to residential landscape design. Water runoff is one of the primary functions of landscape grading. Drainage is always a challenge anywhere we work on the Houston landscape because almost the entire city is completely flat. Virtually anywhere we build something, we must...more
By definition, softening the view of the Houston landscape involves obscuring or partly obscuring the view of other structures, buildings, homes, use plant material, bamboo, shrubs, and other kinds of plants that can be hedged. Along the edges of property, this art is known as "pleaching", and it involves training trees such as evergreens to form organic walls or grow together like giant bushes. These forms help to lend organic sense to...more
Autumn is here and winter is hard on its heels. It is a good time to start planning your landscape improvements to solve any drainage problems that might have happened last year and to clean up and prevent any property damage.When you have water damage in your yard from poor drainage, the problem most often can be tackled by a landscape professional to determine the best solution. This usually includes grading of the property to divert water away from the house, underground and surface drains, and sometimes removal of obstructions such as a poorly sloped patio.As long as you are tearing your yard up anyway, consider hiring a professional landscape designer. With proper planning, you can incorporate attractive features to improve your yard far beyond simply installing a few drains.A dry cobble creek accented with boulders will not only handle the drainage, but will also give you an interesting focal point in your yard that requires no maintenance.Sometimes terracing helps control a slope's drainage, also giving you planting beds that are nicer looking and easier to maintain than a hillside.A badly poured concrete patio can be replaced with properly installed attractively designed,...more
Truly professional quality Houston area landscaping includes the full range of all landscape-related services. These services range from consultation, design, installation, outdoor building construction, and lawn and garden maintenance. Many Houston area landscaping business specialize in one or two or these subdisciplines, but Exterior Worlds...more
It is more about craftsmanship than mowing. The lawn is worked into a unifying fabric of shapes and design that connect the many elements of residential landscape design. Both organic and inorganic forms must be included in this fabric. The point of lawn landscape design is not to magnify the greenery at the expense of human architecture, but...more
In one very real sense, the entire purpose of residential landscape design is to create outdoor living space. After all, what do you intend to actually do with your landscape after it is complete. The whole point of the endeavor is to live outdoors as much as possible. The structure, beauty, and form of a Houston landscape should been turned into truly refined and comfortable outdoor living space. We should certainly hope so. Without a very necessary sense of livability, a landscape is nothing more than an ornamented yard. People may admire it from the street as they drive by, or perhaps take a quick peek at through the living room window. Such a narrow view of the world defeats the entire purpose of contracting a professional landscaping company whose intention is to always extend the definition of home beyond the four walls of the house itself into the open spaces beyond.Outdoor rooms are a very important to this ultimate purpose. An outdoor room is not necessarily four walls and a ceiling. An outdoor room is often something simple, like a courtyard surrounded by small architectural walls, or a patio that is ringed by clipped hedges. The important element here is not...more
Season 5 episode 12 of the CBS crime drama Criminal Minds kicked off last night and once again proved faithful in tracking and capturing psychos. The episode had the Behavioral Analysis Unit trying to track down a killer who was leaving...more
CHECK IT OUT The Penny Stock Prophet Being in the financial services business for the last 20 + years, I have made it a rule never to buy penny stocks. I was taught that buying a penny stock was financial suicide. So why am I telling...more
Roary the Racing Car is a popular children's animated television show where the storyline depicts the exploits of Roary and his other race car friends; plus the people in charge of the race cars and the race tracks.A big hit with toddlers and older...more
Hand problems are incredibly common. Whether it's pain from a small fracture or an actual debilitating condition, you may be a candidate for newer surgical techniques that involve endoscopy or small incisions instead of just casting your arm up....more
Lose weight the healthy way with Goji berry supplements!It is truly hard to live a'heavy' instead of an active life. When you thought that being overweight is a good sign of health when actually it's not, it can be depressing. It is...more
Resistance bands are known by many names including exercise bands, fitness bands, workout bands, and many more. What ever name you use to call them the benefits are the same. The major reason many people have turned to resistance bands...more