Redesigning your garden is a fun and exciting project, primarily when you work with a passionate team like us at Dapple Landscape Design. Our team is full of innovative ideas and solutions for your property's garden, but we have seen that the most successful projects are those in which the clients freely express their views. Therefore, our Sydney landscape designers have gathered some ideas for you to start imagining your perfect garden.
Where can you start? First, think of what you want your garden to be. Do you wish to have somewhere to sit and relax, listening to the water flowing? Or are you looking for an area to let the children play while still looking stunning? Perhaps you are after a garden design that is more colourful while still having easy maintenance. Landscape design is the best way to craft an attractive space to grow plants that gives you a practical layout with a beautiful environment that lets you use your garden as you want.
The Best Ideas to Create Your Perfect Garden
The first step is to research. Collect ideas and inspiration by visiting public gardens, garden centres, annual garden shows, or even looking at gardens from other people's houses. The objective is to find what you like and define your taste. Then, compare what you see with what you have in your garden regarding size and desired purpose. Put your rough ideas onto paper by drawing sketches until you can determine your preferences.
How can you start your landscape design?
Do you need a source of inspiration? Look at our design projects. We collected them all in a gallery so that you can see tasteful yet innovative ideas from the best landscape design team in Australia.
Elements to consider when putting together your landscape design ideas
- Hedges and fences
- Lawns
- Planting: pots, shrubs, trees.
- Water features
- Walls and boundaries
- Outside lighting
- Zoning areas
Next, consider the size and shape of your plot or area to work. Is it in front of the house? Then you might have to decide whether the attention should go to the house or the garden. Is it at the back of the house? Then, you might have to determine if the garden's beauty will be seen from inside the house or from within the garden itself. It is essential to strike a balance. If every item on your property is pretty and shiny, it will not stand out. Also, keep in mind that plants and shrubs grow differently through the seasons and depending on the location and sunlight they get. You can research which plants work best, but we would love to do this part of the job for you as your team in landscape design in Australia.
How formal do you want your garden to be? Formal gardens follow geometric patterns using lots of straight parallel lines. On the other hand, informal gardens use curves, and the planting does not necessarily follow patterns, which gives you more freedom to add special features.
Landscape Design Ideas
- Pave a pathway. Building a path is important. Creating different garden zones in your property is becoming increasingly common. This means that you need a garden path that visually looks great and appealing, as in the picture above. If you don't add it, you will soon start treading a channel into the lawn, which invalidates all the hard work you have done in the garden.
- Plan for privacy. Privacy is vital to consider when designing your landscape. You want to have your private space to enjoy your garden or desired hardscape. The scenario above has a nice BBQ area with a solid roof and tall bushes on the side that make the deck completely private. Neighbours won't be able to see you, and the bushes also absorb the noise that might come from outside, making this area perfect for a relaxing BBQ with friends.
- Use levels on your hard landscape. Divide your garden by creating different elevations. An extra level of elevation, even small ones, can efficiently separate zones of your garden. The picture above is a clear example of using levels to separate the dining area from the relaxing place. Also, different elevations come in handy when your plot already has differences in height. Instead of investing in levelling the ground, use the difference in your favour.
- Don't be short on details. There are plenty of different landscape designs, from rustic to modern. Hard landscaping is usually the star of the show when speaking about contemporary style, which comes with a wide variety of materials. Combining different materials gives different tones and flavours that make your garden unique. The picture above is an excellent example of this. Why do we just use concrete on pillars, fences, and stairways? Combine materials instead, such as a wooden fence, polished stone for the steps, and natural rock on the sides. This combo adds a different feel to the way into the property. It makes you feel welcomed and relaxed.
- Break the shape. We all tend to do straight lines when designing our garden, but combining figures or even breaking their form can make an easier transition from hard landscape to planting or lawn. For instance, in the picture above, we see a hexagon-shaped deck for dining that connects to the circle deck with a water fountain. This combination allows you to add plants around the figures freely or even inside them, as the plant within the circle deck. It looks natural at first sight because your eyes are not expecting symmetry anymore due to the combination of shapes.
- Don't let the climate stop you. Droughts are widespread in many areas of Australia, and they pose a gardening challenge. It is vital to do everything possible to preserve water, and the Australian government provides practical guidelines to do so. Nevertheless, it is a pleasure to create drought-tolerant landscaping for the best team of landscape designers in Australia. In the picture above, you can see one of our projects where droughts are a severe issue. We selected a beautiful range of plants, including Olives, Oak Trees, ornamental grasses and Agapanthus, that could deal with these weather conditions, and the results were incredible. What plants work better for these conditions? It will depend on the location, so leave that part with us, and we will give you a compliant landscape design.
- Make it organic. Rustic style is not to be confused with organic. Organic is about blending with nature to make it look as natural as possible. The picture above is accomplished by the curved path of this garden that doesn't have precise edges. The plants grow and cover some path areas, removing their borders and making them feel like nature. Also, the flowers above the plants create a layer of depth between the plants and the trees behind. It is incredible how much depth you can give to your garden in such a small space!
What is Next?
We hope that the few ideas provided here inspire you to prepare your garden landscape. Remember that the best you can do is collect your thoughts and sketch them out. Our team will be more than pleased to assist you with your landscape design. Our expertise will allow you to bring your dream garden to life successfully. We will make it sustainable, low-maintenance, and stunningly beautiful.
Call us today at 1300 DAPPLE (1300 327 753) for a free quote and consultation! We are thrilled to hear your ideas.