How to Use Landscaping For Home Security

If you're choosing a landscape design just based on appearance, you're missing out on the opportunity to increase your home's safety. Landscaping for security is not only aesthetically pleasing, but it can also help to discourage thieves from targeting your home. Check out these secure landscaping techniques.

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Secure landscaping makes it more difficult for intruders to get to your home. One major strategy is taking away places to hide as someone approaches your home. You can also make it difficult to reach entry points with strategic landscaping. The following secure landscaping ideas can help. 

1. Fences

Installing a fence around your property creates a physical barrier that makes it more difficult to approach your home. However, the type of fence you choose is important. A solid fence, such as wood boards placed closely together, or a tall, solid row of shrubs blocks the view into your property. If someone makes it over your fence, they have an easier time sneaking up to your home without passersby noticing. Those fence structures also block your view to the outside of your property, so you might not notice someone lurking.

Chain link and other open-style fences offer a more secure alternative. They still create a physical barrier, but they allow an easy view in and out of your yard. Fencing with vertical elements instead of horizontal is more difficult to climb. If you install a metal fence, consider decorative spear-style toppers. 

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2. Thorny Bushes

When choosing plants and bushes, look for varieties that hurt when you get too close. Anything with thorns or spikes on the branches can create a physical challenge. If you choose a hedge to line the perimeter of your property, pick shrubs with thorns. You can also use them under windows to make it more challenging to enter your home that way. Choose smaller shrubs that won't cover the window completely, or keep them trimmed. 

Some options that work well include:

• Bougainvillea
• Holly
• Hawthorn
• Roses
• Cacti
• Agave

Choose plants that grow well in your climate and soil type to help them thrive. 

3. Noisy Ground Cover

If prickly plants don't keep burglars away from your windows, noisy ground cover might help. Rocks and stones as ground cover around your windows can add to the difficulty of getting close to your home. Stepping on small stones, such as gravel, creates sound that makes it harder to sneak up on the house. Some rocks can also be slippery and difficult to navigate. Create a large area of noisy ground cover around your home. 

4. Less Hiding Spots

When landscaping for security, minimize the places where intruders can hide. They can get close to your home and break in through a door or window more easily if they have cover. Features to avoid include tall, dense clumps of decorative grasses, bushes that cover windows, shrubs near the garage door and anything that blocks the view of your doors. You might also need to trim trees on your property to allow for a better view. 

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5. Ample Lighting

Strategic outdoor lighting can deter unwanted visitors from approaching your home. A well-lit exterior gives burglars fewer dark areas to hide in as they near your home. Motion sensor lights can surprise would-be intruders as they come near your house. Install the light at a height where no one can reach it and disable it. Floodlights create large, bright areas around your home. Lighting the entry points to your house makes them more difficult to access. You might also illuminate large landscape features, such as boulders or statues, so they don't provide as much protection for thieves. 

6. No Trellises or Trees Close to the House

If you have a two-story home, eliminate features that could provide access to the second level. For instance, a tall trellis attached to the side of your home could serve as a makeshift ladder for entering an upper-story window. Trees that are near your house can serve the same purpose. If you already have a large tree near your home, trimming lower branches makes it more difficult to climb. 

7. Maintaining Secure Landscaping

Keeping up with your landscaping can also help make your home more secure. Mowing your lawn, trimming your plants and generally maintaining your home's exterior shows you're present and paying attention to what's going on. It also helps prevent plants from becoming overgrown and giving criminals hiding spots on your property. This makes the landscaping for security more effective.