How to use landscaping to save energy—and money

In our Energy Matters articles about energy savings, we’ve talked about some tips that the average homeowner can use to help reduce their energy usage or increase their energy efficiency inside their home.

But what about outside your home? Did you know that the way you landscape your yard can keep your energy costs down and make your yard more environmentally friendly?

Here’s how:

• Plant trees: According to Ontario’s Hydro One, if the average Ontario home adds three well placed trees, it can cut air conditioning needs by 40 percent and heating needs by up to 10 percent. Most homes benefit from deciduous trees (trees that lose their leaves), such as maples, planted on the south side of the home. These trees block the sun in the summer and allow sunlight in the winter. Shading is the most cost-effective way to reduce solar heat gain in your home and cut air conditioning costs.


• Stop the wind: Want to keep out that bone chilling wind? Homesteaders out on the prairie did it, and you can too. Think of adding a windbreak to your yard—a windbreak lowers heating costs by reducing the wind chill around the exterior of your home. A mix of evergreen shrubs and trees planted to the north and northwest of a home are the most common type of windbreak. Hydro One also suggests adding a low retaining wall to elevate your windbreak; instead of blocking the wind, this type of windbreak helps deflect the wind up and over your home.

Your local landscaping professional can provide you with individualized landscaping tips to help you increase your energy efficiency and reduce your energy costs. There’s plenty of great information, such as this Better Homes and Gardens article, also available online.

According to the U.S. Department of Energy, on average, a well-designed landscape saves enough energy to pay for itself in less than eight years.

So with Spring newly upon us, now may be the time to get planting!

In the world's conversation about energy, one point is beyond debate: Energy makes a vital contribution to people's quality of life, to society and to human progress. This is true today, and it will remain true in the future. That's why Energy Matters was created. We believe it's important to equip people with unbiased information so they may form opinions, join the conversation and feel confidence in the work and accomplishments of the energy sector. Energy Matters is an initiative that provides transparent information and perspective on energy. Here, we'll cover a range of topics: the scale of global energy; the ways energy is sourced and produced; current energy technology; forthcoming innovations; the world's future energy needs; and the sustainable sources of energy that will fill them. Because energy matters to everyone, we hope you'll rely on Energy Matters as an ongoing source of balanced information.