The benefits of landscaping go beyond beautifying a space. In fact, your landscaping can have a positive effect on your health, the environment and the value of your home!

Health Benefits

• Working in your garden and lawn is a great workout. Half an hour of raking leaves can burn 150 calories, an hour of weeding burns 300 calories and thirty minutes of mowing your lawn with a push mower can burn over 220 calories. Comparatively, the average person burns roughly 80-140 calories per mile, or 300 calories for every thirty minutes of running. Which workout would you prefer?
• Plants have long been touted for their therapeutic qualities. Whether you’re digging in the garden or just spending time among them, it’s a proven fact that plants reduce stress.

Environmental Benefits

• Plants filter pollutants out of rainwater and prevent runoff, keeping nitrates, phosphorous and other particles out of water sources.
• They can also improve air quality. Plants can filter dust, smoke and other pollutants from the air. A U.S. Forrest Service and Davey Institute study in 2013 found that one acre of trees removed an average of 13 tons of pollutants from the air in just one year.
• Plants are also excellent at removing carbon dioxide from the air. On average, one tree can remove 26 pounds of CO2 from the air per year. That’s equal to roughly 11,000 miles of car emissions.
• Landscaping can lower air temperatures during the summer by shading things that commonly absorb heat (like buildings, concrete and asphalt). A tree shading your attic can lower the temperature by up to 40°F.

Economic Benefits

• Investing just 5% of your home’s value into the landscape can increase its overall value up to 15% and reduce time spent on the market by 5 to 6 weeks.
• Landscape investments are fully recovered, and even doubled, by the increased value of your home.
• Properly placed plants can lower the costs of heating and cooling your home as much as 20% by shading your home in the summer and protecting it from freezing winds in the winter.
• Quality landscaping increases the appeal of communities as well as the homes located within, raising property values.

Other Benefits

• Properly place trees and shrubs can act as a buffer, filtering out noise and light pollution as well as blocking undesirable views.
• Landscaping can create private space for relaxing or entertaining, almost like an outdoor room

Sources

Niemiera, Alex X. “The Effect of Landscape Plants on Perceived Home Value.” VCE Publications | Virginia Tech, Virginia Tech, 5 Nov. 2018

Bonislawski, Adam. “Selling Your Home? It’s What’s on the Outside That Counts.” The Wall Street Journal, Dow Jones & Company, 23 Jan. 2020

. Nowak, David J, et al. “Modeled PM2.5 Removal by Trees in Ten Us Cities and Associated Health Effects. Environmental Pollution 178: 395-402. 2013

Relf, Diane. “The Value of Landscaping.” VCE Publications | Virginia Tech, Virginia Tech

Perry, Leonard. “The Economic Value of Landscaping.” The Economic Value of Landscaping, University of Vermont Extension

August, Sally, et al. “Gardening Is a Great Way to Lose Weight and Keep Fit.” David Domoney, 25 Aug. 2020