On the Surface - Landscaping
As a word of caution, it is generally not wise to place plantings very close to foundations of houses with crawl spaces or basements since some settlement of the backfilled earth around the foundation is expected. Choose shrubs and trees according to their size when mature. Time flies, and one of the most common mistakes new homeowners make is placing plantings too close together and too close to the house itself.
Whenever you manipulate the land and plantings you must first consider what effect it will have on drainage. Water runs downhill and you must avoid it collecting near the foundation or in puddles. Imagine that the ground is covered with a plastic sheet that you can lift or wrinkle to achieve runoff. The surface of the ground is much like a sheet of plastic in that you can build it up and slope it and build in wrinkles or “swales” to channel water away from areas.
Don’t install fencing without really understanding where the property lines are. Make the placement of the fence part of the fencing contractor’s responsibility. Most property owners choose to put the fence slightly on their property rather than chance placing it directly on the property line where a mistake could be readily made. The rougher side of the fence usually has to be placed on your side. Many areas have height limitations, and architectural review boards may also have prohibitions.
Television antennas must be installed with caution. If you install an aluminum one, be especially careful to keep it away from the power lines. Place it so that the wind can’t knock it over onto the lines.
Architectural review committees may restrict antennas to those, which are installed within attic spaces. There may be prohibitions on satellite discs. Decks and pools are best addedonly after overall planning is done. The materials, workmanship, and time investment may be very much the same whether the project is a grade “A” project or a grade “C” project. The final product can be enormously different, and it all comes down to planning.