Next spring, you step out onto the porch and see a Japanese maple at your entry with clipped beds around it. Layered foundation plantings line the front of the house, and mulched beds follow the curve of a flagstone walk. Every tree and shrub in that view went into the ground the fall before. Our crew planted every one, and you never had to pick up a shovel.
Fall landscaping gives you that view, and it starts with a design made for your lot. At Village Precision Pros, we design new beds and plant the trees and shrubs that fill them. Our craftsmanship shows in clipped beds that give a natural landscape its order. Every project with us starts with a free on-site visit at your home.
Why fall suits new trees and shrubs in Arkansas
The University of Arkansas Cooperative Extension Service says fall is a great time for planting trees and shrubs, along with fall bedding plants. The extension service says a tree planted in November while it is dormant has time to put down roots before it must supply water and nutrients to its leaves. A tree planted in summer heat must grow roots and feed its leaves at the same time. That is why we plant new trees and shrubs in the fall.
Fall bedding plants bring color to a new bed while the trees and shrubs settle in. From Hot Springs to Hot Springs Village and out to the lakes, yards here are in USDA hardiness zone 8a. Each lot still has its own sun and shade, and we plan for yours. We plant fall landscapes across Garland County and around Central Arkansas.
A fall landscape design starts at your home
We spend the first half of the on-site visit listening to how you use the yard. You tell us where you like to sit outside and what you want to see from there. You might want color outside the kitchen window, or a planting that looks good from the deck.
Maybe a bare corner by the drive needs a bed, or the beds along the house need a fresh start. Tell us about all of it, because the design starts from what you want.
Then we look at the sun on your lot through the day, along with the slopes, the mature trees worth keeping and the views worth framing. Each of those shapes your design. A mature tree you keep can shade a new bed, and a good view can get a planting that frames it.
The extension service says the mature size of a plant must fit the site where it goes. The extension service also says hostas, ferns, bigleaf hydrangea and most azaleas suit shady spots and struggle in full sun. We place each plant in the design by its mature size and by the light in its spot.
The design lays out the beds and the plant list for your yard. It also shows where a new lawn goes, if you want one. The plan is the place to change your mind, for example by asking for less lawn. Moving a bed on the plan is easy, and we make each change with you before we plant a single shrub.
Our low-maintenance landscaping ideas can help you decide how much lawn to keep. To see how we plan a whole yard, read our page on landscape design in Hot Springs Village. In the Village, we handle POA approval and permits as part of the job, and you leave the paperwork to us.
Fall landscaping ideas for your yard
We build island beds and layered foundation plantings for homes around Hot Springs. Browse our planted beds and islands to see finished work like this:
- Japanese maples and clipped beds at an entry.
- An entry planting of a Japanese maple and annuals.
- Pine-straw beds with junipers along a gravel walk.
- A boulder island bed.
- Mulched beds along a curved flagstone walk.
- Lakeside beds finished in mulch.
Start with the spots you see most, such as the entry and the view from the deck. An entry planting is the first bed your guests see when they come to the door.
A fall design for your yard can draw on several of these at once. You might pair an entry planting at the front door with a boulder island bed out in the lawn. Layered foundation plantings can soften the front of the house, and pine-straw beds with junipers can line a gravel walk.
We plant evergreens in a fall landscape because they carry a yard from November through March. Around the Village, deer pressure decides many plant lists, and we write each list with deer in mind. Let us know if deer cross your lot, and your plant list will reflect it. For more choices that suit this part of the state, read our post on native plants for Arkansas.
On a lake lot, lakeside beds frame your view of the water. We serve homes on Lake Hamilton and Lake Catherine, and we finish those beds in mulch. They belong to the same design as the beds by the house, and one plan covers the whole lot.
New sod for the lawn in your design
When your design calls for a new lawn, we lay it in sod as part of the same job. We map the sun patterns before we lay a single roll of sod, and we mark the line where full sun gives way to partial shade. On the design, that line shows where the lawn ends and a shade bed begins.
Under dense shade trees, we design solid planting beds and plant shade-tolerant ground covers there. We stagger the seams of the sod rolls like brickwork on a house. That keeps the seams in one row from lining up with the seams in the next. Read our post on zoysia or bermuda sod before you pick a grass for the new lawn.
What new trees and shrubs need in the ground
For well-drained soil, the extension service says a planting hole should be one and a half to two times the width of the root ball and only as deep. In poorly drained or compacted soil, the extension service says the hole should be three to four times the width of the root ball and a little shallower. On a sloped lot, our design sets where the water drains, and the mulch stays put through a spring storm.
On a steep slope, the extension service says the top of the root ball on the uphill side should sit about even with the soil. The extension service says an organic mulch such as pine needles should sit no deeper than 3 inches after it settles and should never pile against the trunk. Our crew sets each new tree and shrub, and we finish the beds in pine straw or mulch.
Once you approve the plan, we build it. We show up on the days we schedule, and we talk through any change with you before it happens. We clean the site at the end of each day, and you come home to a tidy yard even in the middle of the job.
A crew of ten in Hot Springs Village
We are a crew of ten at 5643 N Highway 7 in Hot Springs Village. One crew stays with your project from the on-site visit to the last shrub. We are licensed and insured, and we have completed more than 2,000 projects across Central Arkansas. Readers of the Hot Springs Village Voice voted us first place for Landscaping in the Readers’ Choice Awards in 2025 and 2026.
If you want to start small, we can plan a single bed on your first on-site visit. Tell us which bed matters most to you, and we start there. A new bed by the front door can be the first part of a full fall landscape, and we can add to it in later seasons.
Questions about fall landscaping
What landscaping should you do in the fall?
We do four kinds of fall work around Hot Springs. We build new beds and plant new trees and shrubs in them. We also set fall bedding plants along the front edge of a bed, and we lay sod for a new lawn. Your design shows which of the four your yard needs.
When is the best time to plant trees and shrubs in Arkansas?
The extension service says November is the best time in Arkansas to plant trees and shrubs. You get a schedule from us before any work starts, and you know which days we will be at your home. If a date matters to you, mention it when you call.
Do new shrubs need water over the winter?
The extension service says newly planted trees and shrubs need added moisture when regular rain does not come. At the end of the job, we go over what each new plant needs in its first season, from the trees to the bedding plants. If a question comes up about a new planting after that, give us a call at the office.
Can you design a new landscape in the fall and plant it the same season?
Yes. Design usually takes two to four weeks from the on-site visit to an approved plan. Our crew then plants it in the fall planting season, and your new trees and shrubs go into winter with their roots in the ground.
Plan your fall landscape with us
Village Precision Pros is a family-owned crew, and we plan everything from one new bed to a whole yard. We would be glad to see your lot and hear what you want from it.
Call (501) 340-0711 to book your free on-site visit and your free estimate. Our office is open Monday to Friday from 7:30 to 4:30. You can also ask for both on our contact page.
