...es and build retainingwalls. Just establish the outline of the planting beds, cut anedge into the soil with a spade, and fill the planting beds withapproximately ten inches of good rich topsoil. You'd be amazedat how much you can raise a planting bed without any type ofretention.Here are two more things you don't need:Plastic edging. It's expensive, a lot of work to install, and itnever stays in place. You can cut an edge with a spade and yourlandscape will actually look better. Then you can make the bed alittle larger any time you need to.The other thing you definitely do not need is weed controlfabric. The stuff just doesn't work. The weeds grow right on topof the fabric, then root through the fabric making it evenharder to keep your beds weed free. You'll find a really goodarticle on weed control on my website.When landscaping for curb appeal, plant placement and selectionis very important. In a corner bed you need a centerpiece. Ilike Canadian Hemlock because they are evergreen and provide anexcellent background for more colorful plants. In front of theHemlock you can use a bright colored evergreen like Gold ThreadCypress, but don't use too many. Usually three is all you want.Around the backside of the same bed you can use a darkerevergreen like Taxus or even a flowering shrub that you keeptrimmed down low like Weigela. Lots of colors are fine, butdon't stagger the colored plants in your landscape, use them ingroupings, and be careful not to use too many in any onegrouping. When you use more than three of any colored plant theylose their effectiveness. You are adding them for contrast, andwhen used sparingly they look much better.There are lots of landscaping photos on my website that willgive you ...

...a lot of good ideas.In front of a house I like to use an arc of medium height plantslike Blue Girl Holly, then put a couple of taller plants behindthe arc. When landscaping for curb appeal you want the landscapeto stair step toward the house. In other words, the lawn is thebottom step, the raised bed is step two, low growing plants stepthree and so on.If you are re-landscaping an older home you probably shouldstart with a sledge hammer before you do anything else and bustout the sidewalk to the front door. Builders put in the ugliestsidewalks in the world, and they usually are hard to maneuver asyou walk toward the front door. Once you have the old sidewalkremoved, let your imagination run wild. Remember, you arelandscaping for curb appeal, and there is no better way toestablish ultimate curb appeal than with a beautiful curved walkthat gently winds its way to the front door. Once again, thereare photos of such sidewalks on my website, and you'll see whatwonderful landscaping opportunities they present.The last step in landscaping for curb appeal is to create aninteresting shaped raised bed in the front yard. Fill this bedwith spring flowering bulbs, and annual flowers for the summer.If your house is going to be on the market in the fall, add somechrysanthemums for a burst of fall color.So what's the best benefit of landscaping for curb appeal?You'll gain great experience so you can make sure your new homeis landscaped just the way you want it!Mike McGroarty, the author of this article, would like to giveyou this Ebook: "The Gardener's Secret Handbook". Stop by hishttp://www.freeplants.com website and get your copy right now.It's his way of saying hello! Article provided byhttp://gardening-articles.com