In general when you are landscaping a front yard you will have to use different principles and plant selection than you would in the backyard. This is because you are designing for a different purpose for the two different yards. The back garden is very much a place of solitude where you can relax and enjoy yourself in a personal space. In the front you are trying to create an inviting atmosphere, and one through which people can easily access your house. Because of this you will have to think slightly differently when creating your landscape design.
You probably don’t spend too much time in your front yard so you might be tempted to think that the landscaping is not as important, but that would be a mistake. Not only will a beautifully designed landscaping the front of your house give a good impression to people who are visiting, but it may also increase the appeal of your house to potential buyers if you are thinking of selling.
Because you are going to be designing the front landscape around accessibility, the first thing you should decide on is where your paths and driveway are going to go. In many cases this may already be decided for you depending on where your garage is. Once you know where these important parts of the front yard are then you need to create a landscaping design around them.
One similarity when landscaping the front compared with the backyard is that in general it is the simpler designs that work the best. In fact having a simple design is even more essential in the front yard than in the back. Not only will this help to make your house more inviting but it will also keep the cost down – you don’t want to be spending a lot of money on landscaping a yard that you will hardly ever use other than to walk to your front door. That said, we don’t want to play down the importance of a good front yard design either. Place attractive and colorful items in your front yard, but don’t over do it.
When landscaping your front yard think carefully about whether you really need lots of different sections or whether a simple lawn and subtle flower choices would be better. In most cases this is all you really need as any more can seem cluttered and not appealing to anyone who is visiting the house. Leave the extravagant plants and curves to your backyard and just focus on creating an understated design instead. Try to design a front yard that you would be attracted too should you see it at someone else’s house. In many ways front yard landscape design is much easier than backyard, but you still should put some time and though into it.
