An attractive front yard that is maintained and beautifully landscaped increases a home’s curb appeal and can significantly boost its resale value.
Paths constructed from pavers or stepping stones make an eye-catching design element for front landscapes. One Tilly client used regular rhythm of pavers with even gaps to guide guests towards his entrance door.
Flower Beds
Flower beds provide the perfect opportunity to add color and texture to the front of your home, whether they’re rounding off the base of a front walkway or framing your mailbox, these plantings help increase curb appeal.
Add depth and visual interest to your garden beds by layering flowers and foliage plants together in your flowerbeds. Plant taller blooms near the back for greater visual impact while filling gaps with lower-growing groundcovers or perennials; trailing “spillers” and showy “thrillers” offer even greater visual intrigue.
Mulch can help reduce weeds and retain moisture in your flower beds. Be sure to replace old, faded mulch for optimal landscape aesthetics.
Border Edging
Garden beds benefit greatly from having some form of edging around them to give it an attractive appearance. You can customize its shape or curves depending on your taste; and it serves a dual function by keeping turfgrass from growing into each other’s space, something which becomes quite visible by midsummer.
Landscapers can achieve a sharp, clean edge to beds by using an edging shovel or spade to dig shallow trenches along the lawn’s outer edge, then angle them in toward borders or beds. While this technique requires repeated labor-intensive effort each year, its results provide a polished appearance while simultaneously protecting existing beds that may need expanding in future years.
This home’s designer opted for a contemporary shape when creating its front flower bed, layering in pollinator-friendly flowers, ornamental grasses and ground cover. Come late summer, cosmos in shades of pink will bloom for weeks with only minimal trimming needed to maintain a fresh appearance.
Specimen Plants
Well-placed specimen plants can make a stunning statement in your landscape, setting the scene and drawing people’s eyes from across the street, creating an array of colors and forms that take visitors by surprise. Be it an impressive tree, hedgerow or even an urn – these eye-catching plants make passersby stop in their tracks, helping increase home values, reduce utility bills and provide habitats for wildlife alike.
Replace your mailbox with an eye-catching colorful model to instantly improve its curb appeal and make your house appear more welcoming. This project should only take you a few hours and should have dramatic results on curb appeal.
Large paver walkways (or stepping stones) add strong visual qualities that add curb appeal. Their graphic qualities become even more eye-catching when irregularly spaced and broken up by low grasses which soften edges and corners.
Window Boxes
Window boxes and porch planters with vibrant floral displays make homes stand out. Their lush plantings amplify flowering plants while adding seasonal flair. Trailing plants like ivy or sweet potato vine also bring movement and vibrancy into front yards.
This new build home features curved walkways framed by vibrant perennial and evergreen plantings such as deergrass, various varieties of sedums and two stunning manzanita trees. Also featured is spreading ground cover and drought tolerant shrubs for year-round curb appeal.
To install a window box, the first step should be creating cleats along the wall using two 2″x4″ pressure-treated boards cut into three 8″ pieces (Image 1). Next, drill two pilot holes and drive screws through them (Image 2). When ready, fill your window box with gravel for adequate drainage to avoid overwatering, add layers of potting soil as necessary and plant whatever you desire!