Front Yard Landscaping Ideas
Weekend Projects and Front yard Landscaping Ideas
Do you have a boring, or non-descript front yard and entry walkway? Need front yard landscaping ideas to jazz it up? They say that people have just 25 seconds to make a first impression when meeting someone new. The same is true for your visitors coming up the front walk to your home and looking at your front yard landscaping. Updating your front yard and entry with good landscaping design can improve your property value up to 20% according to Bobvila.com
Projects that improve the curb appeal don’t have to be costly either. Update a tired front yard using a few of these simple ideas. It might be installing a front entry garden, adding a shade tree, or updating your foundation plants. Even adding a fresh layer of garden mulch can do wonders. This article shows you how to create a unique and welcoming inviting front yard and entry in a weekend or even a day.If you don't have the time or skill , here is some practical advice on
How to Hire a Landscaper
to get the job done .
Getting started
Take a good look at the front of your house, how is the “curb appeal”? Be honest. Is is lacking in
landscaping ideas?
Take photographs and look at your home gardens and front yard landscaping objectively – as if you didn’t live there. What would you say about your front yard landscaping if this was what your neighbors looked like? Write down the problem areas on a notepad. Are the plantings overgrown? Is the walkway wide enough, well lit and safe? Is there enough mulch? Are the flowers and hedges healthy or do they look bedraggled and worn out? Assess everything with a keen eye …..The lawn , trees and flowers beds, even the house condition. Be brutal here. Take the time to think about what you have now and the vision of what you really want to create. Sometimes we live with things and we don’t realize (or are in denial) about how shabby or outdated our homes can get. The view of the front yard should be exciting from the inside looking out. too. Go inside your house and look out the main windows. Take note from that point of view. What are the focal points? Is there an opportunity to block the view of the neighbor house for more privacy? Do you have year round interest? Take more notes. Decide what you’re keeping and what you want to replace or add. Think about the style of your house, and plan for the landscaping to be compatible to that. Look through garden and landscaping magazinesfor your creative vision. Decide on a
garden style,
and focus your efforts to keep to that style. It’s easy to get distracted. If you have a country home you may want a
cottage garden
look in the front. Or if it’s a nice sunny area, you can plant nectar producing flowers to
attract butterflies.
Start clipping out the front yard landscaping ideas that you want to use, and keep the notes in a
garden journal.
10 quick and easy front yard landscaping ideas
SharePlay up the focal point – your front door! Paint the door a contrasting color complimentary to the house color. This helps draw the eye to it. Make the sidewalk flow easily up to the front door. You don’t want someone to be confused about which door to use. The front walkway should be a direct walk from the driveway to the front door. A soft curvy line is good - but you don’t want your guests wandering around and wondering if they took the right path to the house.Lead visitors to the front door by placing progressively smaller plants near the door, you frame the house and focus attention on the entryway.Freshen up the foundation plantingsSometimes all that is needed is a good pruning and shaping to help revitalize your front landscape design. Soften the corners of the house with vertical plants and shrubs. If you need to replace some bushes and hedges-and want something different, then try tall ornamental grasses. There are so many new grass varieties that you’re bound to find something that you like in the right color tones. Grasses are a great way to add texture to your front gardens, without color competition, and when they blow in the wind it creates a feeling that’s very relaxing and soothing.Create a
container garden
at the front door with 2 flower pots flanking either side.Fill the planters with evergreens or low maintenance annuals like geraniums and petunias. Using large single plants in the containers is a trend that’s becoming popular. Transform these container gardens with different plants as the seasons change.
Use outdoor garden furniture. Place a small sturdy aluminum table and chair set near the front door. Who said that the seating areas had to always be in the back yard? Clear out some space near the entry area by removing old shrubs that are past their prime. Add mulch or decorative gravel underfoot, a few outdoor cushions for the chairs and this tells visitors that they’re welcome to stay awhile. Adding an umbrella in coordinate with the cushions looks very festive from the street.Choose one plant and flower color and repeat it .Plant flowers in the front of the house all in the same color family for an easy elegant front garden . Add mulch that is complimentary to the flowers without competing. Extend and bring the flower garden beds out towards the street using curving soft lines for a friendly look. Anchor the flowers with a single variety of shrub positioned in groups of 3. Transition from the drive and walkway -especially if it’s long and straight. Add curved lines with pocket gardens filled with flowers, shrubs and small trees like Japanese Maples. These curves give an illusion of space, have a friendly tone and creating these transitional spaces break up the monotony. Adding boulders to these areas can tie the house, hard-scapes and planting beds together too.
Build an island garden in one corner of the yard in a weekend. This can be a simple project by adding a large mound of black dirt over a layers of newspaper. The newspaper
keeps the weeds down,
, and adding the black dirt on top doesn’t require any digging on your part. Add a few shrubs and low maintenance perennials that are suited for the amount of sunshine the area will receive. Cover the dirt with mulch or landscaping rock .Use landscaping bricks or other edging around the perimeter for easy mowing, and there you are!Use garden structures like an arbor , trellis , or a tall sculpture to add a vertical dimension to the front yard. If the plants and flowers are all growing at the same level, adding some height will break up the line and offer a secondary focal point. A garden gate leading to the back yard on one side of the house could be used to balance round shaped shrubs on the other side. I like to use old wooden architectural pieces with vines growing up as a vertical garden accent.
Plant Trees,
Plant a variety of trees but don’t overdo it. The trees should frame the house and be used strategically to
provide shade
and privacy if you need it. Don’t buy trees that will overgrow and crowd out your landscaping in a season or two. Check with the nursery for height characteristics, pruning requirements and maintenance.Another front yard landscaping idea--- Pines and other evergreens are great for year round interest. They stay green even in the midst of snowy winters, provide shelter for birds, and with no falling leaves, fall clean up is a breeze. Add
outdoor lighting
for security and also to bring your house and garden to life after dark. You can use solar lights for a quick and easy transformation in your front yard landscaping.Ideas like shining the solar lights on the paths and walkways or using up-lights underneath trees for a cool effect. Solar lights are easy to install- no wires or electrical hookup. This is one of the front yard landscaping ideas that you can complete in an afternoon.
Use these front yard landscaping ideas and follow the good garden and landscape design principles below - you’ll have a front yard garden and entry that will be fresh, comfortable and welcoming. - Balance the design – use symmetry or asymmetry - Keep the focus on the front door and welcoming guests - Repeat color, shapes and textures - Keep design elements simple - When in doubt ,natural settings are classic – use boulders, native plants and bushes, small trees One last note. Before making any major changes…… or implementing these front yard landscaping ideas, it’s recommended that you check with your town or city zoning committee and building codes to make sure you’re not breaking any neighborhood rules or regulations.  
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