As Bullitt County continues to urbanize there is a need for homeowner education in landscape design.  To meet this need the Bullitt County Extension Horticulture Program created a four part Landscape Design Series.   The four part program covered topics such as design principles, installation, plant materials and maintenance.  Outdoor living areas and landscaping improves quality of life in cities with several physical and psychological benefits. For example, just looking at plants is shown to reduce blood pressure. Walking through a natural environment, even in the middle of a city, improves attention and memory. People living in neighborhoods with community green spaces report lower stress levels and lower healthcare costs.  Smaller grass lawns combined with more diverse ground coverings, trees and shrubs can also reduce fuel consumption and pollution generated by landscaping equipment, such as lawn mowers and trimmers.  With the storm season in full swing, lush landscapes can actually help. They act as storm water runoff buffers, reducing the flow of sediments and pollutants to nearby bodies of water. In effect, plants help filter out pollution from the water on its way to a city’s source of drinking water. Woody plants along shorelines also reduce erosion and flooding downstream. In addition, an energy efficient landscape design can decrease energy consumption in a home (by strategic shading, wind breaks and insulating plantings) by up to 16% (an average of about $375 annually).                                                                                                                                      Participants in the program reported gaining skills in landscape design and six months after the class 63% of the participants had executed or begun landscape design projects on their properties.  According to the American Society of Landscape Architects landscape appeal can increase a home’s value by up to 10%, on a $250,000 home that value can increase by $25,000.