10 Great Landscaping Ideas for Mobile Homes

Great landscaping ideas for mobile homes can help improve the curb appeal of your property, create a more welcoming outdoor space, and increase the value of the home. Even simple updates like neat edging, low-maintenance plants, and a tidy entry area can make a big difference in how the home looks and feels. With the right design choices, you can enhance both appearance and functionality without taking on a major renovation.

Having a luscious green lawn has been a sign of wealth for centuries. Back when we grew all our own food, the people that didn’t have to use 100% of their land for crops in order to survive were considered well off. Having a small patch of yard with no crops meant you were rich enough to either have a lot of land or you could buy your food from others. Today, it simply means that someone enjoys getting their hands dirty and having a beautiful yard. I’ve found some examples that will surely get your thumbs green with envy. Here are some beautiful landscaping ideas for mobile homes.

10 Great Landscaping Ideas for Mobile Homes

Sunny Landscaping Ideas

It’s sometimes difficult landscaping for mobile home communities as there are rules you need to abide by, and you don’t want to spend a lot of money on plants and trees for land you don’t own. It’s possible to stay within a small budget and still have a beautifully landscaped exterior, and this homeowner proves it! This newer model double wide found on HGTV Rate My Space is a perfect example of affordable landscaping at its finest.

The owners found plants in vacant lots and through distressed plant sales. You can always ask friends and neighbors for cuttings from a tree they have, just research the best way to do it for the species in mind. There’s also free seeds just about everywhere,  make sure you have permission to pocket them though.

One of the best landscaping ideas for mobile homes is to landscape the parameter of the entire property to make it look more cohesive. It’s a great way to add color and dimension to the area as well.

Varying heights add interest. The rocks add texture and the lanterns add light. All those elements should be used in landscaping.

Just in case you’re wondering, here’s the home before the landscaping. It is a gorgeous home, no less, but the landscaping and pops of color really set the home apart.

One of my favorite blogs, My Mobile Home Makeover, is a perfect example of beautiful landscaping for manufactured homes. The owner writes about their homes complete transformation, it’s both informative and entertaining. Here’s a look at their beautiful landscaping:

If you have a single wide in a sunny spot, this is a great example for you. This home is in The Green Acres Mobile Home Park in Mercer, WI. The owners utilize the space very well and have used pebble and mulch to their advantage. Once the small saplings mature they will have more shade and privacy.

Here’s another great example of landscaping for sunny spots. The owners utilize pathways and decking well.

Shady Landscaping Ideas for Mobile Homes

If you live on a shady piece of property, this next home is a perfect example of what you can do. This home was also on HGTV’s Rate My Space. It’s a single wide that was built onto and we featured it recently. The interior is gorgeous! You can see this extreme single wide remodel here. The owner states it practically doubled the square footage. With the addition, they added some dimension to the home with framed out windows and an entryway. It’s a beautiful home!

Evergreen shrubs and grasses are perfect ways to add texture to shady areas. Mature trees are always a plus as long as they are healthy and pest free. A deck is a great place for potted plants, too.

The owner wrote that she has a couple large dogs so they replaced the grass with pebble. It keeps the dead spots of grass from happening and we all know if you have dogs, you have dead spots in the yard. It’s a great idea for small areas that are prone to droughts as well.

Water Feature Ideas for Mobile Homes

Installing a water feature is a great way to add interest, tranquility, and sound to your yard. Beware, there’s a lot more to it than just digging a hole and adding some black plastic down. Proper circulation, chemicals, and filtering are needed, too. If you really want it to look like it belongs in your yard, you will need to add rocks and plants around it to frame it and make it look as if it had always been there.

If you are considering a pond installation you should keep in mind that the larger the pond is, the more stable it will be. It will need less maintenance, too. This is the exact opposite of what I thought! Smaller ponds don’t allow circulation (even with the help of pumps)and they don’t allow enough room for a natural ecosystem to create itself.

Once the right combination of plants and animals makes the pond their home (with your help, of course), the need for chemicals will be minimized drastically. It may be a lot more work during installation but in the long run, it will be much easier.  The pond also needs to be deep enough to allow the fish to winterize properly, especially if you live in the north. If you’re in the south the fish need to stay cool and shallow.

I found a wonderful water feature on the Rate My Space blog. The owners bought a single wide mobile home in TX and they added a complete pond and stream with a waterfall to their backyard. The lady of the house writes that she dug the entire pond, 12′ by 20′ and 42 inches deep, all by herself!

Here she is digging the pond. Notice the stepped ledges within the pond. Professional pond designers always advise that ponds use this design regardless of the size. There are a few reasons for this, it gives the rocks and plants along the edge a place to rest makes it easier to stack rocks and increases safety during maintenance (getting in and out). The majority of all aquatic plants need 12″ or less of water so they won’t survive without a shallow ledge to rest on.

Here’s the finished pond. It is a great feature!

Landscaping for Mobile Home Parks

It doesn’t matter if you live in a park, you can still landscape around your home and make it stand out in the crowd! Check the park rules and see if any species are prohibited first. Usually, fast-growing species or plants with really large root systems are prohibited because they can destroy plumbing pipes or foundations. Invasive plants should be avoided, bamboo is a great way to screen your property but some species of bamboo can quickly become invasive.

Slow growing trees and shrubs are ideal. Perennials that are native to the area are always great ideas, too.

The ‘boxiness’ of our homes can be softened and dimension can be added easily with the right plants. You can also use containers to plant everything in. This keeps you in full control of the roots and the growth. Here are some beautiful examples:

Handy Landscaping Tips

• It’s very useful to know what type of soil you have, acidic, alkaline or neutral. Some plants thrive in acidic soil, some don’t. You can get a soil testing kit for less than $10 or you can use regular household products (vinegar and baking soda) to do a little experiment to find out what type of soil you have.

1. • To see if your soil is alkaline, mix a little with some distilled water and add a touch of vinegar to it. If it fizzes, you’ve got neutral soil.
   • To see if it’s acidic, mix with a little distilled water and sprinkle some baking soda on top. If it bubbles, it’s acidic.
   • If nothing happens with both tests, you have neutral soil.

• Most professional landscapers advise to use perennials as the majority of your home’s landscaping but to add annuals throughout the beds for dramatic effect and to change things up each year. Some annuals are just too beautiful to not have and some can re-seed and come back next year.  If you’re wanting to add a splash of color to an area, annuals are a great way to do that. They are affordable, too!
• Marigolds really do help keep the mosquitoes away. It’s even been proven with scientific studies. Trim your deck with them or add several containers around your doors and lounging areas.
• The 4 elements that every professional landscaper uses in their designs are: height, color, light, and texture. By incorporating those elements, your yard will be gorgeous.
• Consider using a rain barrel with drip irrigation. It’s a great way to save money on watering your plants and you can add timers to water your beds at the most opportune time.
• Herb gardens are perfect for small areas around your home. Not only are herbs beautiful plants but they can be used in cooking, beauty, and natural medicines.

Composting is the best landscaping tip I could ever give you. It doesn’t take fancy barrels or contraptions either (although some of them seem really effective). All I did was designate a small place beside the building. Our natural scraps go there (usually the opossums get them before they compost though) along with our leaves and grass and anything else natural like bark and dirt. When I first started it I laid a black tarp over it to kill any fungus or bacteria (I had read to do that but I’m not for sure it was really needed). I take a pitchfork and move it all around a few times a year and I have added earthworms (but only leftovers from fishing trips, I’ve never bought any just for the compost). The soil on the bottom is pure magic and anything will grow in it. I just wish I had more of it!

Start with a plan, either drawn out on paper or using a computer. This will allow you to figure out where you want to put things and then research for native plants to your area. This is especially handy if your thumb isn’t that green. Add the taller plants in the back or middle and the shorter ones in the front. Use an arbor or a tree to add height to the area or to use as a feature. Or, add solar lights along your pathways for safety and beauty. Use some kind of mulch, whether shredded newspapers or gravel. It keeps the moisture in the ground and helps the plants thrive. That should get you started! I hope you find the perfect plants and the perfect spot for each of them!

Related: More Landscaping Inspiration for Your Mobile Home.

If you have a mobile home that has been landscaped or has a water feature we’d love to add it to the site, we’re always looking for new inspiration to share.

As always, thank you for reading Mobile Home Living!