A swimming pool without landscaping does not look as beautiful as it should. There is nothing more serene like a beautiful swimming pool next to a well-landscaped backyard. There are several main factors that you have to consider if you are contemplating taking on a landscaping project for your swimming pool.
Benefits of pool landscaping
Beautification
There is nothing more beautiful than a landscape that has been created to look stunning. When it comes to landscaping for your pool area you have a variety of choices. There are many colourful flowers that you can use to beautify and brighten your pool landscape. Flowers and other plants are an integral part when landscaping and they soften the hard surfaces of a swimming pool.
Privacy
It is important to create a sense of privacy when you have a spa or a swimming pool. You cannot easily relax if you keep feeling exposed when you are going swimming. Landscaping should offer you this element in your pool by using lattice structures, trees, and shrubs.
Shade
It is important to create a refuge that will protect you from the hot sun. Structures like gazebos, oversized umbrellas, and pergolas, trees, and shrubs can offer a good option for shading next to the pool. Apart from offering an escape from the heat, these shades more often than not create a focal point for your pool area.
Design and theme of your yard, home, and existing landscaping
The plants that you would like to incorporate into your backyard should complement the existing design and theme of your home. Your pool landscaping should flow seamlessly with your general architecture so that your swimming pool area does not look like a separate part of the home.
What you should consider before landscaping around a swimming pool
Before you choose the plants that will go next to your swimming pool you should take some time to do some research and factor in some considerations. Landscaping is not a matter of just choosing which flowers look good next to your swimming pool. Some plants especially long bushes or tall trees will shed inside your pool creating a big mess that you will have to clean. Also, there are some plants that have spines or thorns which can be dangerous to swimmers if they are next to the pool. So before you decide to go to your local nursery to shop for plants it’s important to understand how landscaping using plants can affect your swimming pool and your overall pool landscape.
Plants which shed
Those flower and fruit-bearing trees may look beautiful but they also create a big mess when their needles, flowers, leaves, catkins, fruits or nuts fall to the ground or inside your swimming pool. If you insist on getting these type of plants for your pool landscaping then get ready to spend more on maintaining the cleanliness of your swimming pool.
Plants with needles
You really don’t want sharp objects next to an area where you spend most of the time with your skin exposed. Beautiful roses, barberry, bougainvillaea, and blackberry bushes have stickers or thorns. These thorns tend to shed when the weather is very dry. If you must use these plans in your landscaping, let them be planted away from your swimming pool. They can be planted at the edges of your pool area to create the garden feel or oasis that you may need and not close enough to the pool where your skin can get pricked.
Low-maintenance landscaping
Landscaping that has been created near your pool should enhance how your surrounding looks and it should also create a mood and an ambience like an oasis or a private island. You do not want to spend the bulk of your time fertilizing and trimming your ‘poolscaping’ especially if those plants are hard to access. You want to spend your free time unwinding by relaxing nest or in your pool. Just keep your landscaping simple by selecting and using the right plants that are low maintenance so that you can enjoy your scenery instead of worrying about it.
Landscaping near pools
If you were to choose between an evergreen Italian cypress and a striking liquid amber tree that will change colours but still shed, which one would you go for? Evergreen plants, which are plants that do not shed, are the best landscaping plants for swimming pools. Consult your local arboretum nursery or gardener so that you can be familiar with specific plants that are evergreen and the once that deciduous, which are plants that shed.
Plants with invasive roots
There are some trees that over time develop invasive roots. These roots have the ability to destroy the structure of a swimming pool and the surrounding areas. The plumbing and filtration system in the pool will also be ruined by these roots. Some plants that have evasive roots include oak, elm and ficus trees.
Plants that are bee magnets
Even though the whole bee-hummingbird-ecosystem fact is an amazing environmental process in a garden, you do not want pollinators invading your swimming pool when you are entertaining guests. There are so many plants that attract bees and they include; Delphinium, Oregano. Columbine, Larkspur, sweet clovers, sweet clovers, Queen Anne’s lace, and Wisteria.
Plant size
When you are shopping for your landscaping project a great philosophy to live by is ‘small is better.’ Be careful when picking plants just because they are in a small container when they start growing. Consult with your gardener and let them help you with your overall pool landscaping ideas.
Native plants
When you visit local botanical gardens and your nearby gardens they often feature plants that are indigenous to your area. These plants work well and they can adapt to your climate. You might be tempted by the beautiful pictures online of exotic plants but they might not thrive due to the climate in your area.
Succulents near pools
Many people have started using succulent plants as part of their pool landscaping. Succulents are now incorporated with other plants and they can be found growing poolside. They can be foundation plants because they are hardy and most of them have a sculptural form.