Components of a Beautiful Yard

What are some of the components that make a landscape "really attractive"? We are going to explore some ideas over the next few weeks. I will begin with some broad brush strokes, and then focus in on some specific areas of your yard.

Whenever you are designing anything, there are some basic designing elements that underlie all design. These basic elements serve as the foundation in the design process. And so it is with landscape design. We must know and learn how to use these basic designing elements if we are going to be effective in our landscape design.

The basic elements of design are:
- Form: Shape i.e. circular, oval, columnar, are examples of form.
- Scale: Is simply the size of one component relative to adjacent components.
- Line: Refers to the how the viewer's eyes move as they look at something.
- Color
- Texture: Is seen as surface quality of an object as coarse, medium or fine.

These same fundamental elements also serve as building blocks for implementing principles for designing a picture perfect yard.

Some of the specific areas of our yards we want to look at over the next while are:
- The front yard, yes I know it isn’t our back yard but it is a very important part of making our over all landscape design one that is really attractive.
- Entryway Landscaping
- Foundation Plantings
- Hedges, Living Walls and Flowering Shrubs
- Fencing to Frame your yard
- Trees, which ones do I use
- What part does water play
- Flowering Shrubs

Some people think they can’t design while others take their designing skills for granted. We all have tastes, likes and dislikes and together we are going to discover what works and what doesn’t in our yards.

While hiring a professional landscaper serves many purposes, especially for large or difficult yards, they can cost a lot of money. So before you go ahead and hire someone, knowing a little bit can help you not only understand what they are saying but help you determine if they really are the right ones to work on your yard. On the other hand, if you only have a small space in your yard, you do not really have to spend so much money on complicated and extensive landscaping designs and with a little understanding and help you can often do it yourself.

Landscaping is a fun way to express yourself and make your home your own. If you aren’t a designer and you can’t afford a professional gardener, there is still a lot you can do, on your own, to make your yard come to life. Next time you can discover how to say, "Welcome to my Home" the way you want by redesigning your front yard.

Looking at Basic Design Elements “by the yard”