Protect your property through greenery

The way we live has greatly been influenced by the declining security in the country. High boundary walls and electric fencing characterise our homes and neighbourhoods. Subscription to some kind of security service has become a standard item in our bills. Mbwa kali is the new ‘welcome’ while high-tech security solutions have become a near science.

When it comes to the landscape, something seems to have fallen between the tables. Many people are unaware of it but important subtle layers of security lie unutilised in our yards. The design and arrangement of home and landscape elements has a major influence on how secure or insecure your property will be. Your home need not look like a fort with metal bars and expensive electronic equipment. Instead, a few adjustments to your landscape together with the traditional methods can provide a more prolific degree of safety and security in and around your home.

Since they are integrated into a home landscape design, most of these security ideas are rarely detectable to the everyday onlooker, yet they reinforce your property’s safety from unwanted thieves and vandals.

Controlling the views into and out of your property can be very effective in deterring unwelcome visitors. The idea is to ensure that passers-by do not see much of your compound while you can easily see anyone coming in or leaving.

Private spaces

As a simple test, try and look into your compound from outside. If you can see almost everything, then you need to create more privacy by obscuring direct views using plants, walls and other garden elements.

Next, look at the street from your garden. Are you able to see someone coming in without him or her being aware of it? If you cannot then you need to create more "garden windows" by cutting through or moving some of the obstructing elements.

Shrubs with heavy foliages falling between knee height and eye level should be used very sparingly and cautiously. While such plants are very effective for creating private spaces in your garden, they also provide perfect hiding places for potential thieves. Avoid such plants altogether near your gate. If you have to create privacy, let it be at the back of the house so that someone has to go past the house into the private areas.

Shrubs with heavy foliage should be regularly pruned to keep them thin. Make sure the tree branches are not growing too near the windows and balconies. However, low thorny shrubs can be effectively used to discourage trespassers from attempting to climb in through the windows if you plant them along the foundation.

Landscape lighting

Besides adding immense aesthetics to your garden, landscape lighting brings your garden to life at night. Burglars prefer isolated and dark spaces. Landscape lighting unlocks the possibility of night-time activity while lighting up the spaces at the same time. I would recommend motion sensitive lights or low voltage security lights to help save on electricity. Heat sensors are even better because they do not light up bats or birds fly past.

Controlled access

Controlling access to your property has two aspects: the boundary and the entrance. The rule here is to make sure that you can easily monitor both. Gates and fences don’t have to look intimidating. Design the gate so that it fits into your architectural concept. Tone down the masonry wall with climbers and other flowers.

Well-maintained landscape

A well-kept garden gives the impression that your property is being watched. A neglected garden suggests abandonment and is thus very attractive to burglars.

—The writer is a landscape architect