Your yard is a calling card, a welcome mat, a great big smile for your home. It's the first thing guests notice when they arrive and the last thing they see when they leave.   

It makes an impression, provides a place to play and helps your home increase in value. 

It's no wonder, so many people invest so much time, energy and money in landscaping. According to the market research firm IBISWorld, demand for landscaping services and do-it-yourself landscaping tools are on the rise. 

People are paying a lot of money to landscape their yards. Unfortunately many are making mistakes. Here's a look at five of the biggest landscaping mistakes--and how to avoid them:

1) Picking the wrong plants

Just because you like the way a plant looks doesn't mean you should plant it in your yard. Picking plants is one part art, six parts science. Sure, you want the plant to look good, but it also has to be a fit with your soil, shade (or lack of shade), moisture and temperature. Make sure the plant you've picked is a good fit for the Las Vegas environment. 

2) Not seeing the big picture

Plants grow. Sometimes they grow so big they block views, overwhelm all of the other aspects of your landscaping. Before you buy, make sure you know how big your plants will get so you don't get a big surprise next season. 

3) Overlooking light

Many people simply don't see the need for lighting. It's probably because they're only looking at their yards during the day. Evenings and overnight hours are great times to cook, party and play outside. So make sure you don't overlook the lighting to make the most of your landscaping.

4) Working without a plan

Launching a landscaping project requires several steps, the first of which should be having a plan. People who landscape without plans often wind up wasting a lot of time, energy and money. So before you begin, make sure you have a plan. Sketch out what you want your yard to look like. Make a detailed materials list that includes everything from tools, soil, plants, landscaping blocks and irrigation. Build a budget and commit to sticking to it. Planning your project makes it much more likely to succeed and in a timely manner. 

5) Forgetting the view from your window

Many people forget to consider the views from inside their homes, which are actually every bit as important as the exterior views. Trees, plants and shrubs get planted in front of windows. Soil and blocks are stacked without considering what they look like from the back side. Windows get rendered useless as far as views go. 

Instead, make sure you look at your landscaping from the outside and inside. Then make sure you have the ability to open your windows to a beautiful new world by installing motorized shades from Polar Shades. Contact Polar Shades today for a free in-home consultation to see just how easy it can be to enjoy your yard--inside and out. Call 702-260-6110 to get started.