If you’re thinking about improving your landscape next spring, it may feel early to start planning now. In reality, fall is one of the best times to begin planning a spring landscape project.
Whether you’re considering new planting beds, replacing an outdated landscape, adding a patio or retaining wall, improving drainage, or completely reworking part of your property, the decisions made this fall can make the actual project much easier when spring arrives.
For homeowners in southern Wisconsin, starting the planning process now also gives you time to develop a thoughtful design instead of rushing into decisions once the weather warms up.
Start With What You Want to Change
A good landscape project usually begins with a problem, not a plant list.
Maybe:
- An existing landscape has become overgrown or outdated.
- You want more privacy around a patio or property line.
- A slope is difficult to maintain.
- Your front entrance needs more curb appeal.
- You want less lawn and more usable planting space.
- An old patio or retaining wall needs to be replaced.
- You want a better outdoor space for entertaining.
- Trees or shrubs have outgrown their locations.
- You simply want the property to feel more finished and intentional.
Fall is a great time to walk the property and decide what is working, what isn’t, and what you would like to change.
At Tim Andrews Horticulturist LLC, our landscape design and installation services can include custom plantings, hardscape elements, landscape renovations and complete landscape makeovers. Learn more about our Landscaping Services
Fall Lets You See the Landscape Before It Disappears Under Snow
Planning while the landscape is still active has another advantage: you can actually see how the property functions.
You can look at which areas received too much sun or shade, which plants struggled, where water collected after storms, which beds became overcrowded, and which parts of the yard you simply didn’t use the way you expected.
Those observations can be extremely helpful when developing a plan.
Instead of starting next spring with a blank slate and trying to remember what bothered you last summer, take pictures and make notes now.
Ask yourself:
What would I like this space to do better next year?
That question is often more useful than simply asking what plants you want to add.
Hardscape Projects Need Planning Too
If next year’s project includes a patio, walkway, retaining wall, sitting area or other hardscape feature, starting early becomes even more important.
Hardscaping should work with the rest of the landscape—not look like something that was added afterward. Patio size, traffic flow, slopes, drainage, planting beds and the surrounding trees and shrubs all need to work together.
Our hardscaping work includes patios, sitting areas, stone and timber walls, walkways and paths designed as part of the larger landscape. Explore our Hardscaping Services
If you’re still deciding whether hardscaping belongs in your project, we also have a guide explaining how patios, walls, paths and other structural elements can improve both the function and appearance of a landscape. Read: What Is Hardscaping and Why It Matters for Your Landscape
Decide What Should Stay Before Deciding What to Add
A new landscape doesn’t always mean removing everything and starting over.
Mature trees, established shrubs and healthy perennials can often become important parts of a new design. Other plants may have become too large, declined with age, or simply be growing in the wrong place.
Fall gives you an opportunity to evaluate the existing landscape before making those decisions.
This is also a good time to avoid the temptation to cut everything to the ground. Some perennials and ornamental grasses are better left standing through winter, while diseased or problematic material may be better removed.
If you’re working through your beds this fall, our recent guide can help: What to Cut Back This Fall—and What You Should Leave Until Spring
For larger properties or landscapes that need more complete seasonal attention, a professional fall cleanup can also help reveal areas that may need renovation or improvement next year. Read: Fall Cleanups—More Than Leaves
Planning Now Gives You Time to Make Better Decisions
One of the biggest advantages of starting a spring landscaping project in the fall is simply having time.
A landscape may be something you live with for decades. It shouldn’t need to be designed in a weekend.
Starting early gives you time to work through:
- Overall goals for the property
- Project priorities
- Plant selection
- Patio or walkway locations
- Retaining walls
- Drainage concerns
- Bed shapes and sizes
- Existing plants worth keeping
- Maintenance expectations
- Project budget
- Whether the project should happen at once or in phases
Sometimes the best plan is a large transformation completed in one project. Other times, developing an overall plan and completing it over several seasons makes more sense.
Either way, having the plan first helps each piece fit into the larger picture.
Don’t Wait for the First Warm Weekend
Every spring, homeowners begin thinking about their yards at roughly the same time—the first stretch of warm weather.
Suddenly everyone wants landscape estimates, patios, retaining walls, planting projects and garden renovations.
If you already know that spring 2027 is the year you want to improve your property, there is no reason to wait until then to start the conversation.
Fall and winter can be used to evaluate the property, discuss ideas, develop the scope of the project and make the decisions needed to be ready when the next growing season begins.
Thinking About a Landscape Project Next Spring?
You don’t need to have every detail figured out before contacting us.
Start with the problems you want to solve and the things you would like to change. We can help you determine what makes sense for the property and develop a plan that combines appearance, function and long-term plant health.
Tim Andrews Horticulturist LLC provides professional landscaping, hardscaping and landscape renovation services throughout Dane County, Iowa County, Columbia County, Sauk County and surrounding areas of southern Wisconsin.
If a new landscape is on your list for spring 2027, this fall is the time to start planning.
Let us care for your green world.