Benjamin Tate
Member
I see some people redo their pool and yard together, but others wait. I’m debating if I should knock it all out at once or just stick to the pool for now. What did you guys do?
Was landscaping part of your pool makeover or separate?
- Thread starter Benjamin Tate
- Start date
Megan Lawson
Member
We decided to roll landscaping into the same project, and I’m glad we did. It was more expensive up front, but everything tied together nicely instead of looking like two separate jobs. Plus, the crew was already on site with equipment, so it made sense to tackle it all at once. That said, if the budget’s tight, focusing on the pool first isn’t a bad call; you can always add plants, pavers, or lighting later. I just found it less stressful to finish everything in one go rather than dealing with another round of construction.
Kevin Marsh
Member
We ended up doing the landscaping at the same time as the pool, and honestly, it made everything feel more cohesive. The upfront cost was higher, but having the yard, deck, and planting all coordinated with the pool saved a lot of headaches later. The crew was already there, so it was easier than bringing in a second team later.
If money’s tight, it’s definitely okay to focus just on the pool first, you can always do plants, edging, or lighting later. For us, finishing it all together just felt cleaner and way less stressful than breaking it into multiple projects.
If money’s tight, it’s definitely okay to focus just on the pool first, you can always do plants, edging, or lighting later. For us, finishing it all together just felt cleaner and way less stressful than breaking it into multiple projects.
Abigail Scott
Member
If the budget’s there, I’d do it together the crew’s already on site and it looks more cohesive. If you’re keeping costs down, do the pool first; plants/pavers and lights can come later without drama.
Michael Young
Member
We decided to do the landscaping and pool at the same time, though it was more expensive upfront. It ended up feeling more cohesive, and we avoided headaches later. If the budget is tight, focus on the pool first.
Lily Allen
Member
We decided to do the landscaping and pool at the same time, though it was more expensive upfront. It ended up feeling more cohesive, and we avoided headaches later. If the budget is tight, focus on the pool first.
Henry Graham
Member
We split it, and I’m actually glad we did. We focused on the pool first and left the landscaping mostly alone, aside from cleaning things up and fixing what got disturbed during construction. That let us live with the “new pool” for a bit and see how we actually used the space before locking in plants or hardscaping.
What I didn’t expect was how my priorities changed once the pool was done. Stuff I thought I wanted right away (bigger planting beds, more paving) moved way down the list, while things like shade and lighting suddenly mattered a lot more. If we’d done everything at once, I probably would’ve spent money in the wrong places.
I think doing it together makes sense if you already have a clear vision and the budget’s comfortable. But if you’re even a little unsure, separating the projects gives you breathing room and usually leads to better decisions long-term.
What I didn’t expect was how my priorities changed once the pool was done. Stuff I thought I wanted right away (bigger planting beds, more paving) moved way down the list, while things like shade and lighting suddenly mattered a lot more. If we’d done everything at once, I probably would’ve spent money in the wrong places.
I think doing it together makes sense if you already have a clear vision and the budget’s comfortable. But if you’re even a little unsure, separating the projects gives you breathing room and usually leads to better decisions long-term.
Henry Graham
Member
We did them separate, mostly because the budget was already stretched and I was tired of construction dust everywhere. Pool first, landscaping “later”. At the time I figured plants are plants, I can add them whenever. What I didn’t expect was how much the finished pool changed what I actually wanted around it. Once the water was running and we had people over, certain spots got hammered with traffic and others never got used at all.
Right after the pool was done, we kept fighting cloudy water every weekend. Higher bather load than before, kids in and out, lawn dirt blowing in because the yard wasn’t finished yet. Chlorine held, pH stayed mid 7s, but the water just looked tired. I finally used aquadoc flocculant after a big get together, shut the pump down overnight, and vacuumed a pile of junk off the floor the next morning. Filter pressure dropped back a few psi and the water went clear enough that you could see every leaf on the bottom.
That’s when landscaping decisions got easier. Seeing where debris collected, where splash out happened, and which areas stayed damp helped us decide where to add stone, where plants actually made sense, and where grass was just going to be a mess. If we’d done it all at once, I probably would’ve guessed wrong. Splitting it let the pool show us what the yard needed instead of forcing a plan upfront. Anyone else let water behavior drive their layout choices?
Right after the pool was done, we kept fighting cloudy water every weekend. Higher bather load than before, kids in and out, lawn dirt blowing in because the yard wasn’t finished yet. Chlorine held, pH stayed mid 7s, but the water just looked tired. I finally used aquadoc flocculant after a big get together, shut the pump down overnight, and vacuumed a pile of junk off the floor the next morning. Filter pressure dropped back a few psi and the water went clear enough that you could see every leaf on the bottom.
That’s when landscaping decisions got easier. Seeing where debris collected, where splash out happened, and which areas stayed damp helped us decide where to add stone, where plants actually made sense, and where grass was just going to be a mess. If we’d done it all at once, I probably would’ve guessed wrong. Splitting it let the pool show us what the yard needed instead of forcing a plan upfront. Anyone else let water behavior drive their layout choices?
Andrew Coleman
Member
We split ours, and I’m glad we did, but not for budget reasons. It was more about not knowing how the space would actually behave once there was water in it.
When the pool was finished, we thought we had a good layout plan in our heads. Then we actually started using it. Certain paths became high traffic immediately, splash out was heavier on one side because of prevailing wind, and one corner kept collecting leaves no matter how I angled the returns. Watching how debris moved across the surface and where it settled on calm days told me more than any drawing ever could.
I also noticed practical stuff, like where we naturally set towels, where shade was desperately needed in late afternoon, and where the skimmer and filter pressure tended to react after big bather load weekends. The yard wasn’t pretty for a few months, but it gave us time to see how the pool functioned before locking in hardscape and planting beds.
If you already have a crystal clear vision and solid budget, doing it together can look cohesive and save mobilization costs. But if you’re unsure about layout, sun angles, or how you’ll actually use the space, living with the pool first gives you real data instead of guesses. The water kind of teaches you what the yard should become.
When the pool was finished, we thought we had a good layout plan in our heads. Then we actually started using it. Certain paths became high traffic immediately, splash out was heavier on one side because of prevailing wind, and one corner kept collecting leaves no matter how I angled the returns. Watching how debris moved across the surface and where it settled on calm days told me more than any drawing ever could.
I also noticed practical stuff, like where we naturally set towels, where shade was desperately needed in late afternoon, and where the skimmer and filter pressure tended to react after big bather load weekends. The yard wasn’t pretty for a few months, but it gave us time to see how the pool functioned before locking in hardscape and planting beds.
If you already have a crystal clear vision and solid budget, doing it together can look cohesive and save mobilization costs. But if you’re unsure about layout, sun angles, or how you’ll actually use the space, living with the pool first gives you real data instead of guesses. The water kind of teaches you what the yard should become.
Jacob Foster
Member
We did a hybrid approach and honestly I’d probably do it the same way again.
We handled hardscape and grading at the same time as the pool, things that would’ve been a nightmare to redo later. That meant drainage, main patio layout, and conduit runs for future lighting were all done while equipment and crews were already there. It cost more up front, but it avoided tearing things up twice.
Actual landscaping, plants, beds, decorative stuff, we waited on. And I’m glad we did. Once the pool was running, I started noticing real world behavior you just can’t predict on paper. Where wind pushes debris. Which side gets hammered with late afternoon sun. Where splash out consistently lands after a high bather load weekend. Even how circulation patterns carry fine debris toward certain corners before the skimmer grabs it.
Filter pressure trends also told me something. After busy weekends, one side of the pool always seemed to need more brushing. That influenced where we avoided putting light colored gravel or delicate plants that would’ve shown every splash mark.
If you’ve got the budget and a very clear vision, doing it all together can look seamless. But if you’re even slightly unsure about flow, traffic patterns, sun angles, or debris behavior, letting the pool “teach” you for a season before locking in landscaping is incredibly helpful. The water doesn’t lie.
We handled hardscape and grading at the same time as the pool, things that would’ve been a nightmare to redo later. That meant drainage, main patio layout, and conduit runs for future lighting were all done while equipment and crews were already there. It cost more up front, but it avoided tearing things up twice.
Actual landscaping, plants, beds, decorative stuff, we waited on. And I’m glad we did. Once the pool was running, I started noticing real world behavior you just can’t predict on paper. Where wind pushes debris. Which side gets hammered with late afternoon sun. Where splash out consistently lands after a high bather load weekend. Even how circulation patterns carry fine debris toward certain corners before the skimmer grabs it.
Filter pressure trends also told me something. After busy weekends, one side of the pool always seemed to need more brushing. That influenced where we avoided putting light colored gravel or delicate plants that would’ve shown every splash mark.
If you’ve got the budget and a very clear vision, doing it all together can look seamless. But if you’re even slightly unsure about flow, traffic patterns, sun angles, or debris behavior, letting the pool “teach” you for a season before locking in landscaping is incredibly helpful. The water doesn’t lie.
Amber Chase
Member
We ended up doing it in two phases and it turned out to be the right call for us. Pool remodel first, landscaping later. At the time it was mostly about budget and wanting the construction chaos to end, but it actually helped with planning.
Once the pool was running and we started using it regularly, we noticed things we wouldn’t have predicted on paper. For example, the late afternoon sun hits one side of the deck way harder than expected, so that’s where shade became the priority. We also saw where people naturally dropped towels and chairs, which changed where we eventually added planting beds and lighting.
Another interesting thing was how wind and circulation affected debris. Leaves tended to collect along one long wall before drifting toward the skimmer, so we avoided putting delicate plants right there. After a couple busy weekends with higher bather load, I also noticed the filter pressure creeping up a few psi faster on those days, which made me pay more attention to keeping that area brushed and clear.
If you already have a clear design vision and the budget, doing everything at once can definitely look more cohesive. But if you're unsure about layout, sun patterns, or traffic flow, finishing the pool first gives you a season to observe how the space actually behaves. That real-world use makes the landscaping decisions a lot easier.
Once the pool was running and we started using it regularly, we noticed things we wouldn’t have predicted on paper. For example, the late afternoon sun hits one side of the deck way harder than expected, so that’s where shade became the priority. We also saw where people naturally dropped towels and chairs, which changed where we eventually added planting beds and lighting.
Another interesting thing was how wind and circulation affected debris. Leaves tended to collect along one long wall before drifting toward the skimmer, so we avoided putting delicate plants right there. After a couple busy weekends with higher bather load, I also noticed the filter pressure creeping up a few psi faster on those days, which made me pay more attention to keeping that area brushed and clear.
If you already have a clear design vision and the budget, doing everything at once can definitely look more cohesive. But if you're unsure about layout, sun patterns, or traffic flow, finishing the pool first gives you a season to observe how the space actually behaves. That real-world use makes the landscaping decisions a lot easier.