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You have used the services of a Phoenix realtor to help you find Phoenix homes for sale, and now you have moved into your new dream home. There are several items to take care of when you first move into a new home, such as setting up accounts with your local utilities and telephone services. You will spend some time and money decorating and furnishing your lovely new space. But once you have the basics of day-to-day living all worked out, chances are your attention will turn to the exterior of your home. One area that many home buyers work on right away is the landscaping that is in place around their homes. There are several landscaping options for owners of Phoenix real estate that are not only beautiful but can also offer low-water use and low maintenance.

Phoenix is in one of the hottest gardening zones in the nation, and is classified as zone 10 by the United States Department of Agriculture Plant Hardiness Zone Map. The USDA zone system is based on the minimum temperature of an area; in this case, temperatures normally go no lower than 30 to 40 degrees in the winter months. This makes for many great horticultural opportunities, because a lot of different plants will grow in such a warm climate, but it also comes with some drawbacks, namely that the area is quite dry. The trick is to find gorgeous plants that thrive in arid and warm conditions.

You will never go wrong with choosing plants for your landscape that are native plants to your area. They thrive naturally in the environment offered, without a lot of extra care and fuss by the home owner.

Xeriscape gardening is quite popular in Phoenix as well. This is a method of landscaping that focuses on choosing plants that are drought tolerant yet still look beautiful.

You will also want to consider that gardening on a city lot is a different endeavor than gardening on a several-acre large property. Plants in an urban setting need to be compact, and trees in particular need to be sized according to the space you have available. Because you have a limited amount of room in which to work, they also need to provide multi-seasonal interest in order to keep the landscape looking attractive all year round.

You might choose to attract native birds and insects to your landscape, and possibly even use your landscape plants to provide a small sanctuary for them. Your choices of plants will focus on plants that not only look great, but also provide food for the many birds, such as hummingbirds, and beneficial insects that help control the pests in your landscape.

No matter which option you choose, your landscape will look attractive and will be a beautiful investment for your new piece of Phoenix real estate.

Wayne Hemrick is well versed in the real estate market in and around Phoenix Arizona. With over 20 years experience as a Phoenix real estate agent, Wayne publishes articles to help you to find the best phoenix real estate listings in the area.