What is the best way to learn how to maintain the back yard and front yard of a house?

Question

I would really appreciate any suggestions like which book is good, which website, or should I go somewhere to learn or hire somebody to teach me?

I have a house with a yard with lot of pine trees and some other trees like a magnolia (lots of dead leaves under it) and a weeping willow (lots of dead branches and stuff under that one too).
There are also magnolias and other bushes, and something that I think are rhododendrons and a lot of other stuff but I have no idea what to call them.
There is also grass here and there (I don’t know what kind of grass) and between the pine trees and the house.
I never had to maintain a yard before (used to live in an apartment) but now I need to take care of my yard, at least clean it up, and I have no idea where to start, and what tools to use.
Once I learn how to clean it up, I will move forward about learning how to plant stuff maybe.
Thank you for any imput.

Thank you to all so far (except the first answerer who must be high or something...get help buddy)

I have tons of pine needles everywhere. Can I use them to spread under the trees instead of bark or mulch?

Thanks to the power of the Internet, I now know that my grass is Tall Fescue, that's a start...

Thank you so much Jake, Sara, Angel, Riderpops, Jason, Nandina, Duckboy, Big Mac and Joe for all your help and ideas.
The more I learn about gardening, the more I realize there're a lot to learn.
As Joe says "trial and error"...I already messed up when I found an old hose under the azaleas and threw it away only to learn later it was supposed to be there for irrigation!!
I learn something every day...

Answer 1

I started learning about how to take care of my trees, plants & yard by going to the library & getting books on landscaping & plants in general.
It's fun & exciting to learn about all the possibilities. I also kept an eye on how my neighbors worked in their yards & gardens... and asked a lot of questions. LOL

If you have a large yard you need a riding lawnmower, if it's small you can use a walk-behind mower. A garden fork, small pruners, & a bigger heavy-duty bush pruner would be my first picks followed by a rake, shovel, hoe, & the biggest hose you can get or several medium size hoses which connect together to reach the space you have to water.You can use the heavy-duty garden fork to dig up the plants that you don't want. If you want to put in a plant, the fork can be used for digging without compacting the soil for better drainage & you can use it tilted sideways to break up clumps. Your plants may need trimming so the pruners help. If you have large bushes, you'll eventually need a hedge trimmer. If you have an electrical outlet nearby your bushes, an electric hedge trimmer would be handy & convenient. You'll need a heavy-duty extension cord that'll reach to your bushes. If you have really large bushes that you're taking out, a chain-saw would be easier & faster than trying to do it any other way. Small bushes can be cut down with a heavy-duty bush pruner & a pruning saw.

Here's some sites to get you started:
Gardening websites
http://www.gardenguides.com/
http://www.jerrybaker.com/
Landscape Design
http://www.plantoasis.com/
Meditation Garden
http://www.cacradicalgrace.org/resources/garden_plan.html
Country Gardens
http://www.cg-designs.net/design-process.htm
Stone Patio & Path
http://www.dataexe.com.au/eds/townhouse.htm
Classic Landscape
http://www.classiclandscapes.co.uk/portfolio/planning_graphics/plan2_large.jpg
http://www.arcadiagardendesign.biz/img33.htm
Garden design winners
http://landliving.com/articles/0000000139.aspx
Small Landscaping Plans
http://www.addis-gardendesign.co.uk/plan2.htm
Lawncare
http://www.yardcare.com/
Good luck on your gardening adventure!! Hope this is helpful.
P.S. Yes, you can use your pine needles for mulch...it's especially good for acid-loving plants. My roses love the pine needles around their base & it's included in my protective barrier around the roses during the freezing winter. It protects...but doesn't smother them.

Answer 2

Start by cleaning up the branches and magnolia leaves. Pine straw is an excellent substitute for mulch, plus azaleas love it( they only bloom in the spring but are an evergreen). The only draw back to the pine straw is that ticks also love it but you can treat them with seven dust. I use bermuda grass and don't know a lot about fescue, so if you can't get it in sod form, you can sow seeds in the bare places. The magnolia will lose its leaves all year long, you can rake them or just do what I do and mulch them with the mower. You can also trim the lower Branch's up high enough to make it easier to mow around or rake around. Most things you will learn from trial and error or talking to neighbors. I learn new things every year. Good luck.

Answer 3

Get ye to the local home supply center and grab some tools. You'll probably need a couple of rakes- soft and hard tined, a good shovel, and some pruning shears to start. Just raking up the debris makes an immediate difference. They make saws for cutting off the dead branches, too. Look at your neighbors yards to see how they landscaped their yards. Grass will have trouble growing in the shade of the trees. Spreading some grass food and water will pick it up where is it growing. You may want to get some bark or mulch in bags to spread under the trees. This helps retain water and spruces up the look. Look for web sites that provide general landscaping ideas. There are literally a ton of books at any book store or home improvement center. Good luck and enjoy the process.
http://landscaping.about.com/od/landscapingproblems1/Easy_Solutions_to_Landscaping_Problems_Free_Landscaping_Ideas.htm
http://www.greatlandscapingideas.com/

Answer 4

The most basic means of caring for a yard are fairly simple, mow, rake, and water.

Start by raking the leaves up and getting rid of the dead stuff.

Then mow the grass. How often you will need to do this depends on the type of grass and the weather, but it will be fairly obvious to you, no need to do too much research on that.

Watering is a little more complex. You will need to figure out what kind of plants you have and how much they need. As far as watering the grass, you also need to find out if your area has any restrictions on duration, times, or frequency of watering. For example, in my town, it is no more than twice a week, and it has to be between 8pm and 5am.

Your local home-improvement store is a good source of information for you, sometimes they even hold workshops.

Answer 5

It would help to know how many pine trees you have. If the yard is full of pine trees your going to have a hard time getting much grass to grow. I'd have a contractor look at it. It costs nother to get an estimate.

Answer 6

Sounds like you may want to start liming your yard. Lime is about $5 for 2 bags. Get a broadcast spreader ($30). The pine needles are acidic, the lime will disolve them and help grass grow....

Also fertilize it.

Answer 7

A good idea would be to go to your local nursery (one that specializes in plants, not necessarily the "garden section" at Home Depot or WalMart) and ask them for their recommendations. Because they are local to you, they may have information specific to your area - types of soil, watering recommendations, plant ideas, etc. They may also be able to refer you to landscaping companies if you want to go that route.

Answer 8

Howard, If any houses that you pass by are similar to your yard, and it looks great! Stop in and talk to the owner and tell them you think they're place looks great. I'm sure they'll be glad to share some tips with you.

Good Luck,

Big Mac

Answer 9

a lawn mower usaly takes care of all that me im to lazy to rake any thing i use my lawn mower untill late fall after the grass is dorment to get rid of the leaves and neadles it works just fine un less you have a bagless mower you need a bag to colect the leaves

Answer 10

Go to www.scotts.com. That is the scotts co. website that is loaded with stuff, and you can ask them questions....all for free!