We often come across beautiful images of lush lawns that are manicured within an inch of perfection, sweeping gardens that feature gorgeously trimmed hedges, and stunning parks with stone sculptures and trees blooming with foliage - and we think that this is what we want in our own backyard.
However, our vision and its grand scale are usually too much for the limited space available in our backyard. So instead, we should always take inspiration from those impressive lawns and curate a garden that will stand out in its own right while matching your vision. If you’re wondering how that might happen, take a look at these tips that we’ve compiled for you:
1. Know your theme & choose your elements accordingly
The best way to create a backyard that matches your vision is to work with a single theme. Often, we curate mismatched images of various disparaging landscape items for the internet, and use them to pull something together. However, doing that only creates a sense of disharmony because these individual elements do not visually link together.
Instead, you should do a search on garden design inspirations from a thematic standpoint. Look at various styles that are trending at the time and choose one of them. This will help you create a cohesive landscape and hardscape that will look pulled-together when finally complete. Here’re some ideas to get you started.
- Cottage style gardens: There’s an organized chaos about cottage style gardens that many people find quaint and enchanting. They feature ornamental grasses, falling vines, and colorful blooms - all arranged in an unsymmetrical, yet controlled way.
- Formal gardens: These are the gardens that most people see on upscale lawn design sites. They’re symmetrical, organized, feature a fixed point, and usually have a geometrical floor plan.
- Mediterranean style gardens: Warm, inviting, and full of artful sophistication, a Mediterranean garden is all about capturing earthy tones, the lush foliage of olive and agave, along with the occasional dash of color in the form of mosaic wall features and gravel floors.
- Tropical style gardens: Imitating lush jungles with its use of tropical plants, this garden style features casual hammocks, hanging chairs, and even the occasional body of water to break up all the green.
- Wildlife attracting gardens: These are more on the functional side, as every plant and landscape element has to be selected to attract the surrounding fauna. From beetle attracting ponds, to plants for pollinators, you’ll have to do extensive research on every single item that you choose to incorporate in such gardens.
While there are many defining features of these garden styles, it can still be pretty challenging for an ameteaur to capture their essence. If you’re not confident in your green thumb, then there’s nothing wrong with contacting a landscaping professional.
2. An extension of the architecture
More often than not, the best way to get your backyard to match your vision is to make it an extension of your home’s architecture. If your elevation is fashioned by brick, then you need to figure out how to soften the brick-front through landscaping.
Similarly, you also need to decide which plants to use to complement a concrete facade, and which landscape element might go with fettering. Flagstone pathways are perfect for stone-masoned elevations, but those are getting few and far between with the advent of new materials. If you find it hard to choose a theme, an architectural addition to your home, such as a retractable awning, can become the centerpiece of your backyard, and you can design the whole space around it.
3. Never skimp on the lights
A common problem that many homeowners tend to face is that their gardens look totally on-point in broad daylight but fall flat at night. This is because they don’t invest in proper “nightscaping.”
Nightscaping is essentially designing your lawn in a way that will make it look attractive even at night. This requires knowledge of the different light types that can be affixed to the floor or the exterior wall of your house, to accentuate the plants and surrounding landscape. You can also go for DIY ventures like glow-in-the-dark-painted planters. Sculptural bollards that light at the top are another great choice, and you can also feature outdoor chandeliers or string lights to create the right atmosphere.
4. Being sure about your water features
Water features always make a striking addition to any lawn but ensuring that it matches your idea of perfection requires thorough research on both the visual as well as technical aspects.
The thing about ponds and waterfalls is that they require pumps and tubing. Ponds specifically need to be underlined with the proper liners in order to function properly. Fishponds require filters as well. Fountains also require submersible pumps and relevant hardware to store and reuse the water.
Moreover, you need to be very clear about your vision when explaining what you need to the installers. The pond that you have in mind might not be the right fit for your space. The fountain design that you like might not fit well within your landscape. Do your research on all aspects and consult professionals before making the final decision. That way, you’ll be clear about what you want, and your vision won’t backfire because of technical issues.
5. Keep the eyes engaged with accessories
Proper decor and accessorizing is always the key when matching your backyard to your vision. Once again, you’ll need to keep your theme in mind before picking out what you want. Mediterranean gardens look stunning with small, colorful accessories like mosaic wall tiles and Moroccan lanterns. Tropical gardens must have birdbaths and colorful bird houses, etc. The idea is to choose the decor according to your theme and arrange it in a way that keeps the eye moving from one spot to another.
So, these are a few tips that you can use to create a backyard that matches your vision. We hope you found it helpful and will use some of these tips before locking in on the final elements of your landscape!
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