Ready for a Backyard Glow-Up? Start Here!

Whether you tackle a big or small-scale project, there are numerous ways to landscape and enhance your outside space. Renovating your backyard can seem daunting at first, but we've broken it down into a few easy steps for you to get started.

Styles

Choose a style you like first, or combine other styles to create an eclectic look. These days, rustic and cottage-style garden designs are more and more in vogue, offering opportunities for upcycling salvaged materials and shopping at antique stores for supplies.

You can work on one area at a time by say, adding a garden border, or creating a cozy outdoor book nook. You may feel inspired to add a new walkway or water feature like a pond or fountain, or a new seating area. And you can always start small and work your way up. 

The choices are unlimited, depending on your terrain, your budget, your design inspiration, and your level of do-it-yourself landscaping expertise. From a sleek modern style to a lovely English garden, the options are endless.

You can always work with an architect or landscape designer to help your outside area reach its full potential. A knowledgeable expert can help you choose a design, consider how the area will be used, establish activity zones, select materials and plants, and make recommendations for builders and contractors for any task—from building outdoor structures to installing irrigation systems to building swimming pools.

Read on for some of our favorite backyard landscaping ideas to see how you can make your outside space your favorite place to be.

Start Simple

There's no need for intricate or fussy landscaping. With straightforward wooden posts positioned as boundaries, a concise design creates an eye-catching border for the grassy area. Easy plants like clumping grasses and evergreen shrubs provide interest all season long, while grey fencing, gravel, planters, and lighting fixtures all highlight the grey tones in the tree bark.

Add Water Features

A gentle flow of water is one of the easiest ways to create a more welcoming atmosphere in any space, indoor or outdoor. A water feature adds a lovely lease of life to any yard and the birds that come for a visit are its greatest feature.

A cascading water feature pouring downhill is a great landscape concept for a backyard with a slope or hill. Try self-contained, no-dig water features if you want to add one to your rear deck or patio.

Use Containers To Add Some Character

Utilize unused space in a tiny backyard by filling it with containers. If you inhabit an area with clay-based soils, rocky terrain, or a desert climate, container gardening can help you improve your space's plant life and overcome difficult soil conditions.

To soften hardscapes, add color to a gloomy corner, or create privacy in an open space, use container plants. Whatever method you can to turn lemons into lemonade, consider stringing baskets from a porch overhang or bordering a stairwell with potted trees.

Cozy Up To A Fire Pit

Fire has a way of bringing people together to share connections and tales. Especially a wood-burning fire pit may offer ambience and relive the experience of a campfire. Even though a pricey fire feature is an option, a straightforward ring of rocks works just as well. Certain regions require that a fire pit be positioned on a raised surface, but they don't have to be complicated.

In addition to keeping an eye on local burn alerts and weather-related situations, don't forget to verify your community's laws regulating outdoor fires. Then crackling fire in place, you're all set to gather, roast marshmallows, and create warm memories.

Create Comfy Corners

Make a secluded area for yourself in the backyard. It's your own private natural hideaway, after all. Take a drink of iced tea, find a shaded place for a lounge chair, or hang a hammock between two trees and take it all in.

Try A Rock Garden

Another method for overcoming difficult planting locations is to create a rock garden. It offers a means to produce a distinctive planting environment and stabilize a slope or hillside. Rock gardens improve drainage in areas with poor soil by lifting plants out of their natural soil. In arid regions, strategically placed boulders provide lightly cultivated slope appeal.

Little Oasis

If you live in a warmer climate, one way to make the most of your outdoor space year round is to make a shaded haven where you may enjoy the outdoors away from the heat. A palo verde tree can offer some much-needed shade throughout the day.

If you don't have many trees in your area or your plants are still young, you might want to think about creating an arbor or using hanging windsails for shade. Use built-ins to your advantage by positioning seating spaces against the north or east wall of your house, as well as against fences and walls, to create shade when possible.

Have Fun With It

Make time in your backyard for recreation; it doesn't have to be elaborate, so you may avoid the "all work and no play" mindset. For a traditional do-it-yourself project, consider tying a tire swing to a solid tree, getting a trampoline or jungle gym for the kids, or turning the gravel road along the side yard into a bocce ball court. Fun is the aim, and creativity is essential here.

Divide The Space

The idea of "hide and reveal" in the landscape is one that designers love using. Essentially, the aim is to divide up views such that you are unable to see the full area from one location. It's similar to an open-concept floor plan reversed, only outside, where garden guests encounter various components as they stroll around.

This concept can be put into practice by employing hardscape materials, tall grasses, and huge plants to block up the view as you follow a curved path. This tactic also suggests building separate 'rooms' in your yard, such as one for playing, one for grilling or eating, and even another for lounging by the fire.

Light It Up

Adding outdoor lights to your backyard increases its usability at night and adds a significant cozy aspect. The ideal time to unwind outside during the summer heat is frequently in the evening.

There are many different options for outdoor lighting that can be installed as temporary or permanent fixtures, such as hanging lanterns, footpath lights, and soft-white Christmas-style strings. For the quickest and easiest fixes, search for solar-powered lighting. Additionally, don't forget to use spotlights to highlight the nicest aspects of your garden so you may continue to enjoy them after dark.

Privacy Matters

It's difficult to unwind in the company of nosy neighbors, curious passersby, and strollers. You might think that fencing off your backyard is the only way to create a quiet area for relaxation, but start small.

Choose a quiet spot in your backyard to serve as your sanctuary, and then enclose it with plants, screens, curtains, or even a fence. Imagine a vertical garden that provides privacy, color, and vertical interest, filled with aromatic herbs, readily available salad greens, or lovely flowers.

Add A Rug Or Two

Rugs enhance any outdoor area's coziness, define a place, and add color—just like they do indoors. Outdoor rugs are really easy to clean and perfect for exposed or high-traffic locations because they are made specifically to withstand weather and use.

An outdoor rug can be used to highlight a neglected area or garden feature, breathe new life into an old and cracked cement floor, or provide some color next to an overly green hedge.

Sloped Yard? Not A Problem

An intractable slope can be tamed with terracing, transforming it from scary to lovely and soothing. Adding height and depth to your landscape design adds interest and makes it easier to distinguish between different "rooms" in your backyard.

When natural materials like stone, boulders, or wood are used to construct terraced walls, the terracing appears to be naturally occurring. Accept the slope by adding a useful feature that adds vertical interest, such as a stone stairway, slide board, or waterfall.

Establish a No-Mow Zone

Do you have a slope or corner that's challenging to reach with a lawnmower? Plant a low-growing ground clover to turn it into a no-mow zone. Clover and creeping thyme are two low-maintenance grass substitutes that cut themselves.

For a smaller area, you can plant seeds for a wider one, or you can transplant seedlings from the garden center, just like you would for a new lawn. Just be sure that the sort of ground cover you select is suitable for the amount of sunlight, soil type, and drainage in the region.

Make A Rain Garden

Is there a low spot in your property that gets saturated by rainwater during a downpour? Convert that space into a rain garden to make it work for you. In addition to transforming an occasional muddy bog on your property into a work of beauty, certain native flowering perennials and grasses flourish in such environments. A rain garden also has additional advantages.

By collecting rainfall and allowing it to gradually seep into the soil where you want it to, a rain garden helps minimize runoff from your property. In addition to giving butterflies, songbirds, and other species food and shelter, it aids in the filtration of pollutants from runoff.

Turn Your Backyard Dreams into Reality

Transforming your backyard landscaping can seem like a big project, but with the right approach, it can be both fun and rewarding. By choosing a style that suits you, whether it's rustic, modern, or a blend of both, and starting small with elements like garden borders and container gardens, you can gradually create your dream outdoor space. Adding features like walkways, water elements, and cozy seating areas can further enhance the beauty and functionality of your yard.

From upcycling materials for a cottage garden to incorporating sleek designs for a modern look, the possibilities are endless. Every choice, guided by your terrain, budget, and DIY skills, can make a significant impact. To truly maximize your backyard's potential, consider enlisting the expertise of ShrubHub's landscape experts. They can help you design a cohesive plan, choose the best materials and plants, and recommend reliable builders and contractors.

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