As I said before, the key to a successful landscaping project is planning. My previous two articles talked about base plan development, location, and design of a perennial bed. The final steps in planning are plant selection and cost estimation.
As plant selection begins, keep the following three things in mind. First, select perennials that are hardy for our area. Perennials should be hardy to USDA Plant Hardiness Zones 3 or 4. Second, choose perennials that will perform well given the amount of light reaching the planting bed. Third, select plants based on seasonal interest with the goal of having season long color. This can be achieved by selecting ones that bloom at different times, have interesting foliage, or bloom repeatedly during the growing season.
After selecting your perennials, the final step is to draw them to scale on your base plan. It is a good idea to label each perennial directly on the plan. You now have a completed landscape plan.
From this plan, a list of materials needed to install the perennial bed can be developed. Start by listing all the different perennials along with the quantity needed. Add other materials such as edging and mulch. Edging can be calculated by measuring the perimeter of the perennial bed from the landscape plan. If the perennial bed has curves just lay a piece of string over the perimeter and take the portion of string that was placed over the perimeter and measure using a ruler. For example, if the perimeter measurement is six inches and the scale used was one inch equals eight feet, a total of 48 feet of edging would be needed. Mulch is usual sold by the cubic yard, although smaller quantities can be purchased. One yard of mulch spread three inches thick will cover approximately 100 square feet.
After all materials and quantities are listed, the project cost can be estimated by taking the cost of each item and multiplying it by the quantity needed. Add up each item’s total to calculate the final cost of the project.
If you have landscaping or plant questions please call me at the University of Minnesota Extension office, Clay County at 218-299-5020, 1-800-299-5020 or email me at nels1657@umn.edu. Check out our website at www.extension.umn.edu/county/clay/