Add Elegant Touches
An otherwise modest house can be given a look of elegance by paying attention to the details. A classic gray, white, and black color scheme sets the tone, as do neatly clipped hedges and topiaries and a traditional black lamppost. Brick paving and lion sculptures add to the semiformal look, which is made less rigid by splashes of annual flowers.
Let the House Set the Style
The choice of plants and materials can marry a landscape with a house style. Here, the heavy wooden gate and stone wall play up the home's English cottage look. Limestone stepping-stones edged with ground covers keep the timeless look of the landscape intact. A rose-covered arbor calls out the location of the entrance and adds a dash of color, as do the pink roses and the white birch bark that contrasts with the dark structure.
Set the Mood with Accents
This home's decorative metal fence complements the home's black trim and echoes the sprawling annuals and rambling vines of the informal flower garden. The matching gate encourages visitors to slow down a bit and enjoy the garden. Although the house and the garden are of modest proportions, together they add up to create a memorable first impression.
Connect House and Garden
Use vines to physically connect a house to its yard. Here vines cover the entire structure other than the white gable trim, which frames the greenery and highlights the shape of the house. A tiered flowerbed adds height to the landscape, which would otherwise be flat and a bit dull.
Stay True to Yourself
The decidedly country look of this home called for an equally country-look landscape. Exuberant stems of sweet peas ramble over an old board fence, while country-style decorations, such as a horse statue and old cart, underscore the rural sentiments.
Let Nature Be Your Guide
Answer the call of the wild in your own yard simply by following nature's lead. Blessed with mature shade trees, the homeowners here opted for a natural shade garden that features low-maintenance, shade-loving ground covers and shrubs. A narrow gravel path fits in nicely with the rustic look of the stone chimney and natural wood shingles.
Play Up the Drama
With architecture like this, drama is already on hand. So why not heighten it with a landscape that complements the style? A wide, herringbone-pattern brick walk and ivy-decorated steps set the tone for a grand entrance. A rose-covered arbor and tall junipers pruned into spiral shapes mimic the home's pillars. Deciduous trees with a more open shape help balance the landscape and keep it from looking too vertical.
Match Your Materials
Echoing the house's colors or materials helps provide smooth transitions from house to landscape. Here, the front path is edged in brick that matches the tile roof of the home, while the neutral-color concrete matches the home's beige exterior. Lavender- and violet-colored flowers highlight an understated plantscape that complements rather than overpowers the structure.
Blend Nature and Art
An arched entryway attains a mystical, almost churchlike presence thanks to an Asian-theme design that successfully blend natural and artificial elements. Individually placed boulders edge the aggregate steps. Pachysandra ground covers and small azalea, Rhododendron, and Pieris japonica shrubs soften the look of the boulders. Finally, delicately branching Japanese maples (Acer palmatum) and vine maples (Acer circinatum) complement the vertical pillars.
Control the View
When landscaping a front yard, consider the view -- both toward the house and from within the house. A garden crammed full of plants can look busy and overcrowded if you're not careful. That is not the case here. The front porch remains in full view, dispelling any question about where the entrance is. Careful selection of plants resulted in a tiered garden bed in which the tallest plants are on the outskirts and smaller plants nearer the sidewalk and front paths.
Use Space Smartly
Small city properties aren't limited to foundation shrubs and postage-stamp-size lawns. This layered look features a variety of sizes and shapes for an eye-catching landscape that won't be missed. Notice how all the elements work together to create the effect of a quilt. Rocks throughout the yard bring a sense of continuity to the design and keep the landscape from looking helter-skelter.
Plant a Tapestry
Elements of a structure sometimes provide clues about where to take the landscaping. In this case, the home's intricate brick-and-stone detailing calls for a similarly decorative landscape. The lines of the low boxwood hedge echo the architecture of the porch and lend an air of formality. Coleus and honeysuckle fuchsia complete the rich design.
Emphasize the Entry
Lacking height or grand proportions, smaller ranch-style homes can sometimes get lost in the shuffle. Good landscaping can get them noticed. Here, an ornamental arbor and fence quietly call attention to the house and also serve to mark the entrance. The cheerful yellow-and-white color scheme is made even more animated by the bright flowers in front of the fence.
Keep It Casual
The laid-back look of the landscape goes well with the friendly Norman Rockwell aura of this home. A winding gravel path and colorful clumps of flowers underscore the casual feeling. Larger shrubs soften the edges of the house without hindering the view from the porch. White posts and trellises repeat the color of the house.
Work with a Slope
Don't let a front yard slope interfere with a practical landscape. Here, stone-bordered terraces create level planting areas filled with old-fashioned flowers like delphiniums, catmint, and bellflowers. By locating the most heavily planted areas near the house, maintenance chores are made a bit easier. The fringes of the yard are left in easy-care natural grasses. The spruce tree on the far right will eventually gain size and make the house seem less imposing.
(this text was sent to me from a reader - I do not know the origin)