Gardening Ideas For Front Of House With Bricks

Front Yard Landscaping Ideas

Give your front yard curb appeal with landscaping ideas and design plans that showcase the front of your house.

Image courtesy of King Landscaping

Think of your yard as a natural extension of your main entrance, the true star of your home. Here is an example where all the elements come together in a harmonious and elegant presentation for maximum curb appeal.

No matter the size of your front yard, it's easy to showcase the front of your house with landscape designs that add instant curb appeal.

One of the simplest ways to begin the design process for landscaping your front yard is to draw up your own plans based on the architectural style of your home and the size of your yard. This is not a hard and fast rule, and you can certainly landscape your yard in a style that contrasts and complements the style of your home. But it gives you a quick and easy way to start.

Plans for front yard landscape design according to architectural style

Is your home a detached brick colonial? A modern stucco townhome? A clapboard New England cottage? A minimalist contemporary mansion? A California ranch house with a tiled roof? Categorizing your home based on its shape and the primary materials with which it was built can give you clues to which front yard style might make the most sense.

For example, a two-story Georgian brick home yearns for a front yard full of symmetry – a centered walkway leading to the front door and matching rows of hedges underneath the first-floor windows (think neatly-trimmed boxwoods). A lone dogwood or other small flowering tree looks great in a side yard of mature fescue or Bermuda grass, where it softens the corners of the home without blocking the view from the street. Contemporary styles – homes with sharp angles and minimal exterior details (no crazy shutters here) – can handle looser, more natural approaches to front yard design. Laying woodchips in amorphous patterns and grooming your grass or natural pine straw around its edges can be a gentle, attractive distraction from your home's hard lines.

Plans for front yard landscape design according to front yard size

If you have an expansive front yard with oodles of space between the front door and the street, you can create mini-gardens within your overall design. Keeping in theme with your home's style, your front walkway could meander through a flower patch with a bubbling fountain before meeting up with the front steps or a flat-stone patio. If your yard is compact or narrow, then your primary task should be maximizing the space in order to get the most visual impact. Do you want to add curb appeal and pizzazz with color and creativity or go streamlined with a low-maintenance design that always looks neat and tidy? Daylilies add zip to a short brick walkway. Pampas grass has the look and feel of a flowering plant without all the fuss. You can't go wrong with an immaculately trimmed front lawn presided over by a pair of giant topiaries or mid-size firs.

Just remember, your front yard is the first impression of your personality! Show neighbors and passersby who you are with a front yard landscape design that adds curb appeal to your home.