Landscape Design ideas for Backyard

Low-maintenance gardens, drought-tolerant plants and less turfgrass have become the norm in landscape design. Homeowners now assume sustainable design will be a major part of the plan both for economic and environmental reasons. In this California design by Barbara Paul, plants were chosen not only for their gorgeous cottage-garden beauty but also for their tolerance of dry summers and wet winters.

Edibles, Front and Center

Blended gardens that incorporate edibles and ornamentals do double duty, giving gardeners a bountiful harvest of fruit, vegetables and herbs and an alternative to turfgrass. Edible gardens also create community as urban farmers share their bounty around the neighborhood.

Better Quality, Less Bling

Post-recession: Over-the-top, showy landscapes are out. Now, homeowners prefer to invest in quality and natural materials. Here, scale is key to a good design, says landscape architect Kerry Burt. The eight-foot cedar posts add heft to this arbor.

Like a Fish to Water

We love the sound of water in the garden: water features from inexpensive self-contained systems in an urn or portable fountain to a high-end water wall are popular across all budgets. Water feature designed by landscape architect Chad Robert

Indoors Ventures Outside

Thanks to new outdoor fabrics, which are made from acrylic fibers and are fade-resistant and waterproof, homeowners can create permanent living spaces outdoors with comfortable fabrics and furniture. Space designed by Scott Cohen

The Birds and the Bees

It's back-to-the-earth functionality in more and more backyards. Besides figuring out how to incorporate veggie gardens and fruit trees into the landscape, some homeowners are also adding chickens and bees.

Going Green

One of the ecofriendly elements of the HGTV Green Home 2012 is the barbecue courtyard. Born of architect Steve Kemp's vision for a truly green design, the outdoor space replaces the conventional backyard, which would have required major regrading of the site and the construction of retaining walls. "Now the 'yard' is open to almost every room in the house, rather than being open to one or two rooms, " he says.

Source: www.hgtv.com

Landscaping Tips

Though your home is your castle, there is no necessity to surround it with a moat. Here are 5 tips that will help you to make your landscaping feel more warm, welcoming and cozy.

1. Put some flowers nearby your entrance. Flowers make any area look more welcoming and attractive, so greeting your guests with Petunia, Snapdragon, Lily-of-the-Nile or some other garden flowers is always a great thing to do. What is more, to add some space between your house and the entrance, you can consider adding a little white fence. It will create an illusion that your front yard is bigger than it actually is. What is more, adding fence will create a great space for planting flowers to add some color and coziness.

2. Add rambling vines to make your yard look absolutely lovely. You can not deny that rambling vines always create romantic and even magical atmosphere. So why not to use this tip while decorating your yard?

3. To hide the unattractive driveway, consider adding some color, texture, and height. You can easily do it by adding various sorts of flowers. To start, create an island of green lawn right in the hub of a drive. Then add a couple of low boxwood hedges with flowers toward the back of your island.

4. If you want your yard to blossom and flourish bust still do not have enough time to maintain it, consider planting low-fuss lilies. Such flowers look absolutely gorgeous and come in the variety of rainbow hues, so you can pick the one you love most. What is more, low-fuss lilies do not care about the sort of soil, they love the sun and welcome hot, they do not afraid of drought. In other words, Crinums is an ideal flower for all those who are looking for low-maintenance solutions.

5. The last tip also touches the low-maintenance aspect. To make your life easier, group plantings into beds and islands. This will help you to avoid mowing and trimming around each individual plant, save a lot of time and even money.