Mow and water and forget about it. Trying to hard in the landscape is about like a haircut the day before getting your picture taken.

I agree...just keep it tidy.....watered, mowed, deadheaded. After all, she admired just the way it is, right?

Good luck, hope you get it.

gld

Mow and trim,pick up the hose,any papers or trash.Clean the pots to be planted off your front porch(I still have some on my back porch!!!)The best of luck in getting it-we have yard of the month but I hadn't heard of the magnolia award.Posy Pet

The Magnolia Award is the same thing as the yard of the month.
And Beerhog, your probally right. I'll just let them be the judges of what I already have. I was just thinking maybe some new hanging baskets in the front porch. Those are hard to come by this time of year.

I've seen some articles on "curb appeal" sometimes from the point of view of a realtor. I put curb appeal and flowers in the google search below. They'll be selling mums before long. That would be a good way to add some color around your entrance.
Will they walk around your yard and look at everything or is it just the front yard that they look at?

Here is a link that might be useful: curb appeal

I love the images feature on google. I put in curb appeal and got lots of thumbnails to look at. Also got lots when I put in front landscaping as search words.
It's dangerous to look through all those photos. It starts giving a person IDEAS. Do you have time to add a water feature with terraced rock around it and a waterfall and bridge and lighting? lol

Here is a link that might be useful: front landscaping

Your right Christie, looking at all those web pages does give a person way too many ideas. If only my check book was as big as my ideas I'd be getting yard of the month every month.
I went out and just sat in the yard yesterday and looked. Although the yard looks good, I'm not sure it's yard of the month material yet. And being that I told people about it before I actually was even nominated, I've probally jinxed myself from getting the award anyway. I guess we'll just wait and see now!!!

Thanks for all the ideas though folks!! I really appreciate it.

Well the 'Magnolia Award has been awarded and alas it was not for my yard. :( Oh well!!! I'm not TOO disappointed but the yard that got it has me in shock. The yard had NO grass!!!!! They had some landscape timbers nailed together and some of that bright red colored mulch with Elephant ears in it. THAT'S IT!!!! Now the red mulch is not my personal choice but to each his own. It did look O.K. That's not my gripe. It's the yard that's got my goat. I mean it had a few weeds and ALOT of dirt and gravel. Hardly any grass at all. Oh well! It probally made their month and there's always next month, right!?!?!?

I live in a teeny tiny town and our garden club does yard of the month.Some months the only yards that look really good are the ones that have already had it many times and they will pick one that the people who live there have obviously been trying really hard.Mowing and trimming and no trash seem to be a big part of it here.The people who got it here last had mowed recently when they got it but went out and scalped their lawn right after they got it.Keep trying and you will surely get it one of these days.Knowing when they judge would help too-some judge right around the 1st of the month.Good luck!Posy Pet