Summer is quickly approaching and that usually means that yard work is too. During the winter time, we sometimes neglect the yard and let most of our plants go for a season. When summer comes we often renovate, remove plants, and start over just a little bit.

This summer when you’re changing things up a little, consider the steps you could take to embrace an eco-friendly yard and lifestyle.

1. Manage Your Pool Wisely

If you are someone that owns a pool in their yard, it’s important to make it eco-friendly. You may be thinking there’s no way to do this, but there are plenty of simple steps that could lead to helping the environment and creating a more sustainable pool. First off, you may consider using fewer chemicals in your pool. This goes a long way. Along with that, you may use a pool cover or a solar pool heater for more efficient, sustainable heating options. If you don’t have a pool you can look into pool loans available to get started if that’s something you would enjoy.

When you’ve chosen your company you want to work with, discuss your concerns about keeping your pool eco-friendly. The right company will be able to help. There’s so many options to choose from like natural pools, salt water pools, or ones with more efficient heating. 

2. Native Plants Go a Long Way

As stated earlier, many of our plants die out during the winter and some don’t come back when summer hits. So when you’re picking out some new plants, consider flora that is native to where you live. This applies to plants, trees, bushes and even flowers. This will highly benefit the environment because it helps the ecosystem in your area. Those animals that are native can thrive off of the native plants that they need to survive. The food chain will be benefited and you’ll have beautiful wildlife in your yard. 

Along with that, these plants will require less upkeep. Since they are used to the climate and weather they are in already, they will require less maintenance. You won’t have to stress about overwatering and wasting water in your yard. They will rely on the natural rainfall, preserving water for you and the environment. 

3. Compost is Helpful 

Another great way to help the environment and go more green is to start a compost pile in your backyard. Simply throw away scraps of food that you aren’t going to eat and it will turn into a natural fertilizer for your yard and all the plants in it. It will tremendously lower the amount of garbage you make. If you’re wanting a cleaner look, you can buy a compost bin to put these scraps in. This will also help the smell that may arise. This method is easy, in-expensive, natural, and helps the environment in many ways.

4. Harvest The Rainwater

Something else you may be interested in, is learning how to harvest rainwater. There are many different ways you can do this. Consider researching some of your options like cisterns, rain chains, or rain barrels. Once you make a decision you can find out the right way to harvest rainwater. This suggestion can help you preserve water and be more efficient with it. It can be used throughout your whole yard once harvested. 

5. Landscape Carefully

Whether you have a brand new yard and you must start from scratch with landscaping, or if you’re just adding in a few new things, make sure to use reusable resources in your yard. They are in-expensive and super eco-friendly. There are countless ways to incorporate reusable materials into your yard because there are so many options today on the market. An important step to take would be to do a little bit of research on where to find these materials and what they are. Reusable materials are helpful in a yard because they are extremely durable and don’t need replacing often. Again this will make it so your bank account doesn’t need to suffer, along with the environment. You will reduce the amount of resources you go through on a regular basis.

Your choices don’t need to hurt the environment. There are so many choices today to try in your yard that will be eco-friendly. Make a change today.