Larkin Landscape and Design

If you have lived in Central Iowa for more than a year, you know that our weather is... let's call it "bipolar." We have summers that feel like a tropical rainforest with 90% humidity, and winters that can freeze the water in your pipes if you look at them wrong. For a homeowner, this is annoying. For your landscaping, it is a war zone. I’ve been involved in the green industry in the Midwest for a long time, and the number one thing I see is "landscape heartbreak." It usually happens like this: A homeowner spends a beautiful Saturday in May planting delicate hydrangeas they bought at a big-box store because they looked pretty in the pot. Or maybe they spent a weekend laying down a DIY paver path using just a little bit of sand. Fast forward to the following March. The hydrangeas are dead sticks because they couldn't handle the -20°F wind chill. The paver path looks like a roller coaster because the ground heaved three inches during the winter. Landscaping he...

  Owning a home in Central Iowa is a unique experience. We have some of the most affordable and spacious housing in the country, but we also have a climate that tests every inch of that property. From the booming suburbs of Waukee and Ankeny to the historic neighborhoods of Des Moines and Ames, the real estate market here is competitive. Buyers are savvy. They aren't just looking for granite countertops and finished basements anymore. They are looking outside. "Curb appeal" is a buzzword, but it translates to real dollars. Studies consistently show that well-designed landscaping can increase a home’s resale value by 10% to 12%. On a $350,000 home, that is a $35,000 difference. But not all landscaping is created equal. Planting a few marigolds by the mailbox isn't going to move the needle. Real value comes from creating functional, durable outdoor living spaces that can withstand our brutal freeze-thaw cycles and hot, humid summers. In this guide, we are going to break...

If you own a home in Central Iowa, you know that we don't really have four gentle seasons. We have two violent seasons (Winter and Summer) and two brief, muddy transitions where we frantically try to fix everything before the weather turns again. Managing a landscape here is a rhythm. You can’t fight the calendar. If you try to seed grass in July, you will fail. If you prune your Oaks in May, you might kill them with Wilt. If you leave your glazed pots out in December, they will crack. I have spent years managing properties across this region, from the rolling lots of West Des Moines to the older, tree-lined streets of Ames. I’ve seen what happens when you ignore the rhythm. The landscape gets away from you. The weeds take over. The expensive patio sinks. This guide is your almanac. It is a breakdown of what you need to do, and when you need to do it, to keep your curb appeal high and your plants alive in the Hawkeye State. SPRING: The Awakening (and the Mud) Spring in Iowa is a t...

If you are reading this, there is a good chance you are looking out your back window right now and sighing. Maybe you just bought a new build, and your "yard" is nothing but construction debris and straw. Maybe you bought a fixer-upper with overgrown bushes that look like they haven’t been trimmed since the 90s. Or maybe you’ve just lived in your home for ten years, and you are finally tired of having a patio that creates a puddle every time it rains. We have all been there. The dream is always the same: a lush green lawn, a beautiful stone patio where you can grill burgers, maybe a fire pit for the kids. It looks so easy on TV. They knock it out in a thirty-minute episode. But here is the reality check that nobody gives you on HGTV: landscaping in Iowa is a different beast entirely. We aren’t in California where you can plant a cactus and walk away. We aren’t in Florida where everything grows overnight. We are in the Midwest. We deal with heavy clay soil, humidity that feels...

I want to tell you a story about hubris. Hubris is a Greek word that basically means "overconfidence that leads to disaster." And three years ago, I was the king of hubris. I had just bought my first house. It was a fixer-upper with a backyard that sloped aggressively toward a creek. I had a vision. I wanted a tiered garden. I wanted a flat terrace where I could put a fire pit. I wanted to look like a hero to my wife. I got a quote from a professional landscaper. It was... more than I wanted to spend. "I can do this," I said. "I have YouTube. I have a gym membership. How hard can it be to stack some rocks?" So, I rented a truck. I bought pallets of block from a big box store. I bought a shovel. And I went to work. The "YouTube" Phase The first weekend was actually fun. I felt manly. I was digging dirt, sweating, drinking Gatorade. I dug a trench. I threw some gravel in it. I started stacking the blocks. It looked good. Straight. Level. I posted a...