9 Low Maintenance Texas Landscape Ideas
Our low-effort Texas landscaping tips are divided into 3 categories — smaller budgets, mid-sized projects, and big budget showcases. All of them result in an eye-catching landscape design that doesn’t require much upkeep.
Texas Landscaping Tips for Small Budgets (<$999)
1. Choose Texas native plants that grow naturally in your yard.
The easiest way to reduce yard work is to choose native plants for your landscape design. Texas has a wide variety of attractive native plant species that don’t need much care.
Native plants are used to your location, and require less water and fertilizer to thrive. They’re also naturally more resistant to local pests and diseases.
Here are 8 Texas native plants that reduce your landscaping maintenance:
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Planting on a budget? Separate your lawn, garden &flower beds into irrigation zones to save money on water bills. A Dallas sprinkler system costs between $500 and $700 per irrigation zone. Get current pricing info in our upcoming home sprinkler system cost guide — check back soon for the link!
2. Plant perennials.
Perennials are great options for your landscaping and garden areas for 2 reasons. First, they bloom every year — no more annual trips to the garden center for expensive new flowers.
Second, you won’t be planting new flowers and shrubs every year. Perennials don’t cost much more than annual plants, and the time you’ll save over the years is well worth the slight bump in price.
3. Choose plants that are low-growing and don’t need pruning.
Climbing plants look great, but they’re a pain to care for. Choose plants that grow lower to the ground, and you’ll spend less time trimming them back.
Shrubs that grow slowly are good options for a low maintenance Texas landscape. A calico bush or coral bean shrub needs to be pruned once a year, and offers beautiful flowers for very little effort.
4. Use mulch in your landscape design.
Mulch is a great way to eat up yard space on a small budget. If you lay down mulch around your trees, gardens and other landscaping features, that’s less yard you have to mow!
Mulch also helps suppress weeds and retain moisture in your soil.
Cedar mulch is an excellent choice if you want attractive landscaping that smells great. A bag of mulch costs $4 - $10 in Texas, and a cubic yard costs $60 - $85. Expect to pay a few dollars more per cubic yard of cedar mulch, but it’s worth it for the beauty and fragrance.
A smart landscape design budget starts with a free quote on the work — get it from us in one message!
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Texas Landscaping Tips for Mid-Sized Budgets ($1,000 - $4,999)
5. Use hardscaping to cut down your lawn space. (pavers, stone, etc.)
Weekly lawn mowing for an average corner lot in Dallas costs about $75. If you cut your lawn space by a quarter, you’ll save $450 over 6 months.
Reducing the total square footage of your lawn you have lowers your expenses for mowing the lawn, fertilizing and irrigation. If you do that all by yourself, think about how many hours you’ll save!
If this all sounds appealing to you, hardscaping just became your new best friend.
Use pavers and stone walkways in your landscape design to reduce your lawn space without breaking the bank. They provide clean pathways for your family to move around the yard.
Small raised garden beds are attractive ways to incorporate hardscaping into your landscape design but still keep a green space. For the cost of some border lumber, soil and native plants, you’ll cut a nice chunk of square footage out of your weekly lawn mowing duties.
6. Use large native plants to create focal points in design that reduce yard space.
Native plants aren’t limited to small plants, flowers and shrubs. Texas has several fantastic native tree species that do well in home landscape design.
These native Texas trees are easy to plant, adapt well to the soil in your yard, and require less upkeep to remain healthy.
Here are 3 Texas native trees to consider in your low maintenance yard design:
- Dwarf Palmetto: Houston residents know and love the dwarf palmetto. It’s an incredibly low-maintenance palm tree, and its small size fits well in a variety of landscape designs.
- Bald Cypress: The bald cypress grows fast but doesn’t need much pruning or maintenance. It’s a great shade tree for Texas landscapes and backyard areas.
- Southern Sugar Maple: If you want beautiful fall leaves on your trees, Southern sugar maples do very well in Texas.
7. Automate your lawn’s sprinkler system with a smart controller.
Brands like Rainbird and Rachio offer smart irrigation controllers that manage your sprinkler system via WiFi. They monitor the moisture levels of your soil and lawn surface and suggest the best schedule to run your sprinklers.
Once you set your schedule, there’s nothing more to do — your smart controller handles the work for you. If you want to adjust your schedule, you can do so from an app on your phone.
Smart controllers don’t just save you time — they save you a ton of money. Kingston College reports that homeowners save up to 50% on their water bills when they switch to a smart irrigation controller.
Be sure to schedule annual maintenance on your automatic sprinkler system to check for any leaks in your underground water lines. Underground leaks are the leading cause of increased water bills associated with lawn care.
Smart Controller = Smart Budget: A $250 for a smart sprinkler controller saves you up to 50% on future water bills. Get more current pricing info in our upcoming home sprinkler system cost guide — check back soon for the link!
Get a free irrigation inspection through HOMR and save money on water bills with a smart irrigation controller!
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Texas Landscaping Tips for Larger Budgets (>$5,000+)
8. Create an outdoor living space or outdoor kitchen.
Would you rather mow your lawn every week, or stain a deck or patio once a year? A deck provides your family a central outdoor living space and cuts down your time spent doing yard work.
If you want to make your deck or patio truly special, add an outdoor kitchen or dedicated gathering space — a fire pit or grilling station is guaranteed to be a hit with guests.
Adding a deck to your Texas home is great for overall property and resale value. In 2023, the average new deck construction in Texas recouped 38-50% in property value for homeowners (according to Monda’s 2023 Cost vs Value survey).
Love the Dallas outdoor living space pictured above?Get a free quote from the designer through HOMR!
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9. Hire a professional who understands specific Texas landscaping needs.
The best way to create a low maintenance Texas landscape design is to hire a professional — there’s nothing more stress-free than not doing it yourself!
If you do hire a Texas landscaper or lawn service, make sure they understand your area’s specific needs and concerns. The right landscape contractor knows the soil, climate and average precipitation in your region, and what your best options are given those conditions.
HOMR prefers working with lawn care providers who live where they work. For example, the best Houston landscapers live in Houston — they offer the same services they’d use in their own yard.
