If you are planning to turn your front lawn into your very own succulent garden, you first need to prepare the yard for what’s about to come. Though succulents are very easy to maintain, they nonetheless require certain concessions such as well-draining soil and enough space to grow in height and width. Prepping up the site of the garden is an important step in ensuring that your succulent plants will grow healthily and that the garden will be aesthetically pleasing to the eyes.

1. Mow and Uproot Existing Plants and Vegetation

If you have existing plants or vegetation on the area where you plan to have your succulent garden, you should think about mowing the grass down and uprooting the plants that can be salvaged or transferred. There are two things you can do to the existing plants: you can transfer them to a pot that you can place in the backyard or in another part of the property or you can give them away to a neighbor who wants it. You can always throw them away, of course, but that would be a waste as these plants can still grow even if they are not under your care.

2. Install and Adjust the Irrigation System

How are you planning to water the garden? Succulents are known for their minimal need for water so this should not cause you big trouble. Certainly, since you don’t need to water the plants every day, you can just make sure that there is a nearby faucet where you can plug your hose and sprinkler. You also need to ensure that pipes running under the yard are leak-proof because leaky pipes could cause water to damage the succulents.

3. Plan for a Temporary Roof

If you are living in an area where it could get cold, frosty, and wet, you need to put contingencies in the plan. What are you going to do with the succulents when the bad weather comes? You can plan ahead and buy a makeshift tent that would cover and protect the plants from rain and snow. Sure, this would have to be a big makeshift cover but you’ll only need to take them out when the weather gets really cold and bad. If you’re living in an area where the climate is usually cold, you may want to only invest in cold-weather succulents so you don’t have to go through the whole process of installing a tent or cover over the garden.

4. Evaluate the Runoff

You need to edge the lawn to avoid a run-off and keep your plants from spilling onto the pavement. You can use a shovel to cut the lawn eight to 12 inches from the edge of the pavement or concrete. You can also place a nice garden boulder to keep the plants within your lawn. A nice pruning of the succulents regularly would also keep them from getting too big and reaching out to the pavement.

5. Upgrade the Hardscape

Your succulent garden would look much better if the hardscape—the walkways and paths—could complement the overall design of the garden. You can use pebbles, bricks, woodchips, and flagstones for your hardscape.