Soft Landscaping Ideas For Your Garden Design
While cohesive garden design relies on both hard and soft landscaping, only one seems to get the most attention. It makes sense for hardscaping to take centre stage during your renovation, because installing new features such as patios, decking, and even driveways is typically more complicated and expensive.
However, soft landscaping is just as important and deserves your attention too. Soft landscaping refers to all the living elements of your garden design, from the plants to the turf and everything
in between, which makes up your unique garden design.
As a leading landscaping company, Gloucestershire Garden Design appreciates that a beautiful balance of both soft and hard landscaping is required to create a cohesive design.
To help you create a stunning outdoor space, we are sharing some of the best soft landscaping ideas in this post. We aim to inspire you and encourage you to focus on all areas of garden design when renovating your outdoor space.
Understanding Soft Landscaping: Key Features
As we have mentioned, soft landscaping refers to all the living elements of garden design. Primarily, soft landscaping is focused on planting, but it can also include turfing and lawns, as well as garden maintenance.
This is the part of garden design that brings life and colour to your outdoor space. Plants, shrubs and trees are used to complement your home, surroundings and hardscaping to create a cohesive appearance to the landscape.
As well as the plants, soft landscaping refers to the maintenance of the land and the things which provide life to your landscape. For example, soil, mulching and regular pruning are all part of soft landscaping and vital for the health, vibrancy and appeal of your outdoor space.
When choosing soft landscaping ideas for your garden, you need to look beyond the plants and trees you want to include. You also need to consider how to care for these and whether your landscape is suitable for these kinds of elements.
Like all other forms of garden design, soft landscaping can be tailored to suit your specifications. The plants, maintenance, and layout you choose when incorporating soft landscaping can be personalised to complement your home and outdoor space.
Working with professionals, like our team, ensures you find the perfect fit for your garden and can maintain a vibrant landscape throughout the year.
Why Is Soft Landscaping So Important For Garden Design?
Soft landscaping can offer a range of benefits to your outdoor space when chosen well. This is the perfect complement to any form of hardscaping, offering a beautiful contrast to the space.
If you are not sure if soft landscaping is worth the planning and maintenance, consider these benefits:
- Year-Round Colour And Texture: The main appeal of soft landscaping is visual, as it offers colour and texture to the garden. Based on the kind of plants you choose and the combinations included in your garden design, colour and texture can be offered throughout the year, with changing displays based on the season.
- Promotes Biodiversity: Plants attract wildlife and pollinators, helping the growth of other species throughout the ecosystem.
Softens Structure: The contrast between hard and soft landscaping creates a beautiful visual effect, breaking up the hard lines between paving, buildings and other surfaces. - Environmental Benefits: There are various ways plants can contribute to better environmental health, including cleaner air quality and supporting drainage. The natural root patterns of many plants and trees support drainage in the soil, creating healthier environments for future growth. Likewise, plants absorb carbon dioxide and release oxygen to give us all cleaner air.
- Health and Wellbeing Improvements: It should come as no surprise that nature can do wonders for your health. Spending time outdoors, in green areas, can offer a boost to both your physical and mental health and with soft landscaping at home, this can be done whenever you need.
How To Plan Soft Landscaping For Success
Now that you understand the benefits of soft landscaping, it is time to incorporate it into your own outdoor space. However, before you can choose from ideas and designs, you first need to ensure your landscape is prepped.
Preparing your landscape for plants and similar features ensures that they will thrive in the environment. As we have mentioned, soft landscaping goes beyond the plants and flowers you choose, as it also refers to the land condition, including soil and maintenance requirements.
This is why planning your garden renovation, specifically the soft landscaping, is so important. It ensures the layout will look great, but also endure in your conditions.
To plan soft landscaping, consider:
- Soil condition and ph balance
- Sun exposure patterns and shady spots across the garden
- Local climate and weather conditions
- Maintenance needs, and whether you can align with these
This is why the beginning stages of all garden design projects are a site consultation. Our experts take the time to understand your landscape and desires for it, performing all necessary assessments to ensure success in the renovation.
As well as assessing the land, you may also want to plan out what kind of displays you want to create. For example, are you looking to create seasonal displays or ensure a uniform appearance within your garden throughout the year? This will also need to be determined ahead of time to help you choose what kind of plants you want to invest in.
Low-Maintenance Planting Ideas: Soft Landscaping Without The Hassle
In many cases, a lot of work is required to maintain your garden and keep the soft landscaping healthy throughout the seasons. With our busy schedules, work routines and family lives, many people do not have the time to keep up with their garden needs – but this does not mean they have to miss out.
It is possible to experience the benefits of soft landscaping without the hassle, simply by choosing low-maintenance options. Some great ways to incorporate low-maintenance planting into your garden design include:
- Drought-Resistant Plants: Options such as succulents, lavender, and yarrow can provide colour, texture and incredible scent to the garden without the need for constant watering. These plants are resistant to extreme dry conditions and can go a long time without watering. With the frequent showers of the Great British Weather, almost no work is required to keep your garden vibrant and healthy with these plants.
- Native Plants: Plants that can be organically found in the region are a great option for your low-maintenance garden, as they will thrive in the preexisting conditions and climate. Local landscaping experts, like our team, can recommend the best options for you.
- Evergreen Shrubs: Evergreen shrubs maintain their foliage throughout the seasons, making them a great solution to add structure to your garden all year round. Plants such as Boxwood, gardenia, and yew can be used to create a private garden, separate zones, or simply adorn the landscape.
- Organic Mulching: To reduce the amount of work needed in your landscape, rely on organic mulch across your flower beds and planting areas. Mulch such as compost, wood chips or other organic matter will provide essential nutrients to the flowers as they decompose. An even layer of mulch can also maintain a suitable soil temperature and overall support the growth of your soft landscaping areas.
Soft Landscaping Ideas For Small or Unusual Gardens
Soft landscaping can be tailored to suit your specific needs, which includes even the smallest gardens. Those who have small or oddly shaped gardens may feel like they have to miss out on the best design elements, but this is not the case.
Plants, flowers and other soft landscaping elements can be incorporated into any kind of garden through the following methods:
- Vertical Planting: Those with small courtyard gardens or even balcony spaces can benefit from soft landscaping by planting vertically. Using climbing plants or tall grasses against fences, pergolas, or other structures allows you to have the beauty without taking up essential ground space.
- Container Planting: This is a great option for patios or decking areas, as well as allowing flexibility in your garden design. Using containers and planters for flowers, shrubs, or grasses can make them easier to care for while also allowing you to add unique pops of colour throughout your garden.
- Tiered or Raised Planting: For awkward areas or unusual corners, use tiered planting. Not only will this draw the eyes up and away from these areas, but it also allows you to create a stunning display without requiring much space. Use smaller, ground-cover flowers as the base and rise up to tall grasses or shrubs.
Conclusion
Soft landscaping is a wonderful complement to any outdoor space. While it may not get as much attention as the major renovations of hardscaping, it is just as important and deserves consideration when creating your dream garden.
Soft landscaping refers to more than just the plants and flowers you choose for your garden, as the care and maintenance of these plants is also included. There are various soft landscaping options to complement all kinds of outdoor spaces, and we are here to help.
Working with professional landscapers such as Gloucestershire Garden Design is a great way to ensure your garden gets the best care possible and thrives in all conditions.
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