Front yard landscaping ideas define the exterior of your home. After all, your front yard is the most seen part of the house. It greets your visitors before you've even reached the door and will set the tone for the home beyond. Your front yard landscaping ideas must be perfect for such an important function.
There are many ways to create impact with clever front yard ideas, from eye-cfront-yard-landscaping-ideas-10-ways-to-add-curb-appealatching materials to creating an intelligent structure with pathways or planting. You can also take inspiration from your backyard ideas to tie both outdoor spaces together.
'Curb appeal is so important for the front of your home because it's your first impression. The landscaping in front should be more formal and structured than your backyard and you should make sure there is beauty and color for every season,' recommends Dawn James, project manager at Crimson Valley Landscaping
Front Yard Landscaping Ideas
These front yard landscaping ideas are the perfect starting place for inspiring your front yard redesign.
If you are planning to redesign your front yard, then it is important to thoroughly research front yard landscaping ideas and curate the perfect selection for your property. 'Always consider the architecture of your home when creating the design and ensure your plant material works in harmony. When you follow these simple guidelines, the front of your home will always be welcoming,' says Dawn James.
From small additions, such as adding some of the best shrubs for the front of the house or introducing outdoor lighting ideas, to larger front yard ideas, such as planting some of the best trees for front yards or building new driveways and walkways, there are countless ways to give your home's exterior a new lease of life.
1. Build A Rose Arbor For A Floral And Fragrant Approach To Your Home
A rose arbor brings height, color, texture, and fragrance to your front yard, a transformative addition to your front yard landscaping ideas. Place your arbor or arch at the boundary of your property to provide a floral entrance to your front garden, or install it nearer to your home to bring a touch of floral wonder to your front porch ideas.
When selecting climbing roses for your arbor, pick a fast-growing variety that will quickly make for an impressive display.
2. Curate The Walkway To Your Home
Whether you opt for a classic brick design or oversized stepping stones, front yard walkway ideas are one of the most significant design elements of your front yard landscaping ideas.
'To maximize usefulness and impact, the size of your entry walk matters. If you go too small, it's more of a path while too wide means it may compete with your driveway,' says Cassi Hallam, an expert at System Pavers.
'Ideally, you'll want an entry walk that's between six and eight feet wide so two people can walk side-by-side comfortably. Vertical elements such as pilasters, trees or walls can enhance the entry walk look while better connecting it to your home's architectural style. These can also be graceful tools to accommodate grade changes in your yard's terrain.'
3. Add Flower Beds To Bring Charm To Your Entrance
Flowers are a must for front garden landscaping ideas, bringing life and color to a space that can sometimes feel cold and functional. Adding front yard flower bed ideas to your plot will transform your space.
'Using groups of a few different types of plants help to keep the landscape from getting too busy. Pick plants that complement each other in color and texture. Don't forget to use evergreens, grasses, trees, and shrubs with structure for winter interest,' recommends Dawn James.
Adding flowers is one of the easiest wildlife garden ideas to incorporate into your front yard landscaping ideas. Adding some of the best flowering shrubs or flowers that attract bees will also improve the environmental credentials of your plot.
4. Don't Restrict Your Greenery To Just The Garden
Incorporating trees and shrubs into your front yard landscaping ideas will provide the backbone to your front garden planting scheme. However, this greenery should not just be reserved for your garden – incorporate it into your front porch ideas.
'Unite your home with your front yard by bringing nature right to your doorstep! Weave your porch balcony in garlands, frame your door with flowers and turn your steps into podiums for your plants. This will create an effortless transition from lawn to lounge and add an inviting presence when guests visit your home,' recommends Volodymyr Barabakh, co-founder of Structural Beam.
4. Include A Lifestyle Element By Incorporating A Patio
If your home lacks a backyard or your front yard is a sun trap, you might consider building a patio in your front yard. Perhaps unusual in front yard landscaping ideas, a front patio has all the benefits of backyard patio ideas and can be a great addition, especially if your home is set back from the path or road.
Once you know how to design a patio, it will quickly become a transformative addition to the space, especially once you add patio furniture ideas and patio lighting ideas. Pair with French, sliding, or bi-fold doors to help you flow between the inside and outside.
5. Don't Overlook Lighting In Your Front Yard Landscaping Ideas
While backyard lighting ideas are a key part of your backyard design, front-yard lighting ideas can often be overlooked. However, since you are much more likely to cross your front yard after dark (especially in winter), the right outdoor lighting is paramount.
Start by highlighting areas that would benefit from practical lighting, such as pathways or any steps. Consider using solar garden lighting ideas for an easy way to illuminate your front yard. They will come on when the sun sets and offer plenty of practical illumination without the hassle of needing to lay wiring. You can also add pretty solar lights to highlight aspects of your planting scheme.
6. In Warmer Climates, Swap Your Lawn For A Mediterranean Garden
Gardening is challenging in hot and dry climates, especially when it comes to lawns. 'Lawns are not sustainable in the long run. The intensive lawn care process through the summer involves regular watering, mowing, and weeding as well as fertilizing and aerating. The alternative is to reduce the size of your lawn and increase the size of your garden beds, adding larger, more structural plants or other elements like a patio or a fire pit,' recommends David Angelov, founder of PlantParenthood.
Making our gardens more drought-resistant is a great way to achieve a characterful and verdant space without the hassle and environmental challenges of regular watering. Mediterranean garden ideas are especially well suited to front garden landscaping due to their low-maintenance nature. Try plants like agave, cypress, and bougainvillea to give your plot structure and interest. If you're considering creating your Mediterranean oasis in your front yard, be sure you know how to make a Mediterranean garden before you start.
7. Integrate Your Mail Box Into Your Garden Wall
The mailbox is a staple element of your front yard landscaping ideas. Therefore it must fit into the scheme.
Why not embed your mailbox into your garden wall? It is an aesthetically pleasing way to ensure your mailbox is integrated into your garden design and provides an extra security level. If you don't have a front wall, there are still lots of mailbox landscaping ideas that are sure to add curb appeal to your front yard landscaping ideas.
8. Create A Talking Point By Adding A Water Feature To Your Front Yard
Paving is a great low-maintenance choice for front-yard landscaping ideas. However, a fully paved front yard can look unimaginative and featureless. Therefore, adding character features to your front yard landscaping ideas is vital.
While water feature ideas are popular for backyards, they are often discounted regarding front garden design. However, the right garden fountain ideas can bring height and interest to your front yard, create movement, and bring sound to the space. Consider partnering with a concentric paving design to focus the eye toward your fountain as the centerpiece of your front yard.
9. Add Rendered Walls And A Rustic Gate For Added Privacy
Front garden wall ideas offer a great way to add privacy to your front yard landscaping ideas. 'As well as providing screening, they also define boundaries and are a great backdrop for abundant planting or climbers. They also serve the practical purpose of protecting the more delicate plants in your garden,' explains Ben Macdonald, garden designer and founder of Ben Macdonald Gardens.
'When deciding on front garden wall designs, remember that the materials that you choose should compliment the existing architecture and local vernacular.'
Rendered brick walls provide the perfect choice for a wide range of front yards, its white facade brightening the space and offering a plain backdrop against which the colors of your planting will stand out.
10. Create Inviting Front Yard Landscaping With Lush Planting
Anyone seeking lush grounds with a touch of whimsy will fall in love with this front yard, courtesy of Emily Henderson.
The duo paired the mélange of leafy greens with a stone walkway, water fountain, and tomato-red front door. All the front yard landscaping ideas used were designed to lead – and invite – the eye up to the front door, enhancing the home's front door to make it a standout feature.
11. Design Manicured Front Yard Landscaping With Box Hedges
If you're looking for front yard landscaping ideas that are truly elegant – and low maintenance – give your home a memorable and majestic first impression with a structured planting.
Landscape designer Fernando Wong pulled out all the stops, from manicured box hedges to pristine flowerbeds. This front yard is elegant without being too restrained by sticking with leafy greens – and adding a few pops of white buds.
12. Frame The Front Door With Large Specimens That Accentuate The Vertical
California-based designer Kendall Wilkinson made the most of the sloped front yard on this Monte Sereno property with raised flower beds.
'We wanted to highlight the grand entrance with varying levels of plantings to draw your eye up and usher you into this amazing home with a water feature and a mix of cement and stone in grey tones,' Kendall explains.
'It's always important to partner with a landscape designer whose work complements the architecture and interior design, utilizing regional plants and mixing varying heights and textures.'
13. Design A Driveway That Blends Away
Get a little strategic about your grassy areas for an unexpected take on typical front yard landscaping ideas.
'The classic detail of a grass strip down the driveway guides the eye through the porte cochere and creates a sense of anticipation, thereby encouraging movement through the entirety of the exterior space,' explains Carson McElheney, a landscape and design architect in Atlanta.
Carson explains that this driveway or front walkway will add visual interest and function while maximizing even the smallest spaces.
14. Choose Front Yard Landscaping Materials That Echo Your Home's Exterior
For a front yard that puts Mother Nature in the spotlight, embrace your space's natural features. Architectural and design firm Ike Kligerman Barkley planted tall grass and leafy greens around the yard's large rocks. Paired with a wide stone walkway, this front yard strikes a balance between organic and artificial – and, importantly, echoes the materials of the exterior of the house for a cohesive look.
15. Pay Attention To Detail
As this front yard from an Australian renovating company called Kyal & Kara proves, the devil lies in the details. From larger pavers to gravel accents, it initially looks like this space is only focused on hardscaping. However, small succulents are tucked in the gravel panels, giving this yard an unexpected and oh-so-charming edge.
How Much Does Front Yard Landscaping Cost?
Front yard landscaping will, on average, cost around $15,000 – but what you spend really will come down to its size; the intricacy – or simplicity – of the design; the materials used (with off-the-shelf stone, for example, being much less expensive than special orders) and, of course, the extent of the planting you are planning.
As a general rule of thumb, we advise spending around 10% of the value of your home on the landscaping cost of both the front and back yards to get a good return on investment.
How you divide this budget is down to you, but curb appeal, even if achieved simply and on a budget, is vital when you come to reselling.
How Can I Make My Front Yard More Attractive?
Flowering plants are a great way to make your front yard more attractive. Flowering plants can bring new life into your front yard landscaping ideas by adding color, texture, and greenery to your space.
Updating the hard landscaping in your front yard is another great way to make it more attractive. Replacing an old parking spot with a new driveway design or repairing crumbling front walls will create an elegant basis against which the rest of your front yard landscaping ideas will be able to shine.
What Plants Look Good In The Front Yard?
Camellias, boxwoods, and hebes all look good in the front yard. Opting for evergreen plants creates year-round interest and means that you don't have to worry about your front yard looking neglected and bare during the year's colder months.
You can supplement these evergreens with seasonal blooms to introduce points of additional interest. Select some of the best spring and summer bulbs for a low-effort way to add color to your front yard landscaping ideas.
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