Have you ever thought about adding a water feature to your yard? If so, what held you back? Concerned they were too costly? Didn’t fit into the aesthetics of your home? Just found the whole process overwhelming, in general? If any of these questions match your reasoning, we want you to know that there’s no need to fret!
Water features can be elaborate, ornate, costly, and complicated, that’s true. But they can also be sleek, economical, and relatively simple in their functionality. Pointing being is, you have options. Lots of them!
At Greenhaven Landscapes, we love water features because they bring an element to a home unlike any other, and it makes us feel like we’re doing right by our clients when we can deliver a design that is the perfect balance of form and function. We want you to love your yard as much as you love your family room. And with the right mix of imagination, materials, and advice from experienced professionals, the more possible making your dream a reality can be!
Create a “blue space” for your yard — and your mind and body
Have you ever heard of the term “blue space” before? Essentially, the name is in reference to spaces where bodies of water are, and how those bodies of water have a positive effect on the lives of those who live near and experience them.
Research is increasingly indicating that blue spaces can reduce stress, increase your happiness, and improve your overall psychological well-being. The good news is that you don’t need to live next to an ocean, river, or lake in order to experience the benefits of blue spaces. Even smaller water features can foster these mental and emotional benefits, so why not incorporate them into your yard?
Fountains, reflection pools, ponds, and waterfalls can all contribute to improving your mood, and they can also produce what are called negative ions. Negative ions, in this case, are produced through what is called “the waterfall effect,” which is essentially a description of what occurs when water splashes against itself. When these negative ions are released into the air and breathed in, they can help relieve feelings of stress and depression, improve sleep patterns, boost your immune system, and even increase your alertness.
Why not a waterfall? Or a fountain! Or bubbler!
If the idea of a waterfall sounds like too much for you and your yard, you’d be surprised at the breadth of choices you have. Yes, you certainly have the option to create large-scale waterfalls that wash into ponds or pools, ones that mimic the look of waterfalls found in nature, or ones that take on a more modern art-type of feel.
However, you also have the option to include much smaller waterfall-style features into your landscape, many of which are self-contained. They run on pump systems that circulate water from the waterfall to a basin and back around again. The same sort of configuration can be used for smaller fountains and other water features that don’t take up a ton of space or require too large of an investment.
You can fight pollution — of different types!
Another great reason to incorporate a waterfall, bubbler, or fountain? They’re a great way of reducing noise pollution while producing a calming and relaxing effect for yourself, your loved ones, and your visitors.
Much in the same way that noise cancelling headphones and white noise machines produce tones and other musical or natural sounds to counterbalance the more distracting or stress-inducing ones, water features naturally produce them. Just imagine spending time in your backyard — especially if you live in a busy area rife with noise pollution — and instead of focusing on the racket, getting to experience the soft, repetitious lull of water. Sounds nice, does it?
Not only do water features have the power to counterbalance noise pollution, they also can improve air quality, meaning they can have a positive effect on environmental pollution, too! According to reports published by the US National Library of Medicine National Institutes of Health, negative ions (there they are again!) could help people in relieving symptoms of allergies to dust, mold spores, and other allergens due to their presumed ability to assist in the filtration and cleaning of pollutants from the air.
You’re inviting nature into your space
Water features, whether they be ponds or pools or birdbaths, are essentially an invitation for animals to also enjoy your space — and for you to enjoy them, too. Birds of just about all types, including bluebirds, wrens, owls, hawks, hummingbirds, and more, love a good, clean source of water to take a dip in. And, for that matter, so do squirrels, chipmunks, and the like.
Incorporating a pond in your backyard will no doubt naturally attract all sorts of amphibians and insects, and if you’re looking for a more curated style, you can add fish to your pond to give yourself a truly aquatic experience. These types of ponds would require more maintenance and the types of fish chosen should be carefully considered, as factors like air and water temperature, water depth, and the number of fish you’re taking care of all play a crucial role in the success of your pond.
You’ll love it
If you’re someone who loves to visit our coasts, lakes, rivers, and creeks, then why wouldn’t you want to bring some of this natural beauty into your yard? It’s a part of your personality, right? These features have a positive effect not only on your overall mental and emotional health, but, when well-executed and maintained, they can also have a positive effect on the value of your property, too!
These types of features are desirable to buyers. They not only promote personal and environmental well-being, but they also say, “This is a property that has been invested in. It’s cared for. It is loved.” And who wouldn’t want to call something like that their own?