QUESTION: We are going to be moving into a house in a new neighborhood in February. Like many new neighborhoods, this one has been clear-cut and leveled. I wish to landscape and will start with a blank canvas. While I have a general idea of what I want to accomplish, I would like some help developing a specific design. I want the general plan to encompass not only plant varieties and placement, but things like shed placement, fence design and irrigation layout. Of course, as we are buying a new house and have all the typical expenses that go with such a move, we do not have a ton of disposable cash. Where do you think I should start?ANSWER: Sad, isn't it, that your property was clear-cut and you were left with no trees that could have been the starting point for your landscape. But it is good that you are thinking long-term about your property and its use. Getting a professional landscape plan made will help tremendously.It will help you avoid costly mistakes, such as planting shrubs that mature too large for their position, and let you develop your landscape over a period of years, as the budget allows. Most people start with the foundation plantings and major trees. If you're planning an irrigation system, it can be designed in tandem with the planting plan and installed ahead of the plants.Your talk with a landscape designer should include your goals about the property.Young families will want lots of grass and space for children to play.People with special gardening interests, such as flowering shrubs or perennials, will want to include beds for these kinds of plants. Some people will want to emphasize low-maintenance gardening with choices from a palette of shrubs that don't attract pests or require a lot of pruning.You may envision an area for entertaining and want more privacy with an evergreen screen.Since you are making just a plan, your conversation should include a timetable for installation.Five years is reasonable, especially if you get the trees and lawn growing first. Do not look at the plan as something you must accomplish this year. If you expect to do it yourself, you will be overwhelmed. But if you take one part at a time — a sunny flower bed, for example — the task will be it easier.You will also find that your gardening skills will grow and things will get much easier over time.Implementing a well-done landscape plan can be a pleasure. The cost — a few hundred dollars for a simple, small plan, more for a larger, more complicated one — won't seem so much when you see it as your map to a good landscape.

Contact Nancy Brachey at The Charlotte Observer, 600 S. Tryon St., P.O. Box 30308, Charlotte, NC 28230