Choosing the Right Plants for Your Backyard

Choosing plants for the backyard requires careful consideration to a number of factors, like soil pH, heat tolerance, hardiness and heat tolerance zones, sun and shade patterns, wind pattern, water requirements, pruning, pest and weeds. I hope these guidelines can help you to shortlist the plants when you plan your backyard.

Hardiness and Heat Zones
All plants can’t survive in all kinds of climatic conditions. A few can survive in long winter, whereas few others can tolerate the hot summers. You can make the use of USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map, which is based on average annual low temperatures to determine which plants thrive and which plants may die in the heat of summer or cold of winter. Simply find in which Hardiness zone you are located in and select plants according to that.
Another map, the AHS Heat Zone Map, developed by the American Horticulture Society, takes into consideration the average number of days that region experiences temperature above 86F. The heat zone information will help you know whether a particular plant will thrive in heat over long periods. If you buy plants that fit in your Hardiness and heat zone, you will avoid predictable hassles such as regular watering or the extra care in winter.

Soil Conditions
You can modify your soil according to the need, but that becomes difficult to maintain over a long time. Get your soil tested by taking the sample to your state Cooperative Extension Service or local farm co-op. You can also mail the sample of the soil using soil test kit and receive the results. Another idea is to use the country maps which show the location and characteristics of the soil in general. You can find these maps on the Internet or in book shops.

Sun and Shade Patterns
Take a general note of how sunlight and shade move about your yard throughout the year and how it changes during the year. You can eliminate the plants that won’t be able to survive in that amount of shade or sunlight. But sun patterns doesn’t remain constant during the whole year. It keeps changing with the sun. Pay special attention to the overhangs from the buildings that can create ‘rain shadow’. These spots can either bake in the sun or never see daylight, depending upon the the direction they face.

Wind Patterns
If the place you live in is windy most of the time, then you may have to eliminate plants that require shelter and can’t withstand wind. If your plant area is sheltered, just be sure to recognize any space limitations of the area.

Water Needs
While you are considering watering as the factor to decide which plant to buy, keep in mind that you might have to water a few plants for one or two summers to get them established. After one or two years, plants overall require less water. To conserve resources, consider plants that don’t require more moisture than your ground water or rainfall provides.

Pruning
Choose the plants that won’t grow larger than the space you have planned for to avoid unnecessary pruning or removing the outgrown parts in lack of much space. Don’t use plants which might outgrow their space and obstruct the view or the passage. If you have limited space, use compact, dwarf and slow-growing plants. Avoid plants which require constant shearing and shaping. When it comes to choosing trees, think about the future maintenance, sidewalks, windows and the doors. Avoid trees that have weak wood or unstable structural characteristics.

Pests and Diseases
You can further consider plants those attract pests and are more susceptible to diseases. Find out the plants those have demonstrated resistance to insects and diseases in your region.

In next few articles I shall be discussing some plants you can chose from that suit your backyard’s growing conditions.
Source:http://www.greendivamom.com/2010/04/18/choosing-the-right-plants-for-your-backyard/