Landscaping Styles

There are many different styles of landscaping when you’re looking to create your new oasis. Think about your style, your house style and the main use of your yard. Do you host a lot of parties? Do you have kids and pets running around? What feel do you want to achieve in your space?

The main landscape design styles are:

- French garden

- English garden

- Japanese garden

- Alpine or rock garden

- Contemporary or modern garden

French Garden

When designing a French garden, symmetry and geometry are key. The entire garden is composed like a painting and is created to be seen as a whole. This is why most French gardens were designed to be looked at from specific places, such as terraces or balconies. The landscape is composed of very shaped, pruned and perfect plants. Every plant has its specific location and needs constant care. These gardens are stunning but it is by no means a maintenance free gardening style! Typical plants used: Boxwood, Yews, Bougainvillea, Salvia, Hostas and Echinacea.

English Garden

The English garden style is very relaxed, comfortable and entices you to slow down and stroll through the garden. These gardens often include pathways to secluded areas such as a water feature or bench and flower beds spilling over pathways. This style is known for the stunning flower borders with perennials, annuals, and sometimes shrubs combining to form masses of color. Typical plants used: Foxglove, Russian Sage, Bulbs, Roses and Delphiniums.

Japanese Garden

Also called a zen garden, Japanese garden style could be said to be somewhat between the French and English styles. On the one hand, it gives off an impression of order, but on the other hand, nature and spirituality are the dominating **forces. Japanese gardens are typically enclosed and include water, but raked gravel or sand can be used to represent water as well. Also found in Japanese gardens are rocks, preferably covered by moss, lanterns, statues and bridges. Typical plants used: Japanese Maples, Hinoki Cypress, Flowering Cherry trees, Azalea, Moss’ and Periwinkle.

Alpine Garden

The Alpine garden, commonly called a rock garden, is very different from the other styles, because it is the most down to earth. Alpine gardens are mostly inspired by Nordic landscapes. They typically include rocks, low-lying bushes and flowers, and various types of ground covers. They are well suited to northern latitudes, where the weather is colder and the sun more sparse. Typical plants used: Creeping Phlox, Candytuft, Alpine Columbine, Pinks, Ornamental grasses and Cranesbill.

Contemporary Garden

The contemporary landscaping style or modern gardens are a design oriented style. Typically, nature and plants take second place to the hardscaping, materials and textures used. Materials, structures and garden art is generally made of stone, brick, wood and even metal, and they occupy center stage in this type of design. Trees, bushes and flowers are used as decorations. Contemporary gardens are often created as an extension of the house, like an outside room. Typical plants used: Blue Fescue, Succulents, Feather Reed Grass, Agave and Horse Tail Reeds.