Front of a House Landscaping Ideas

Create a bold and inviting front yard landscape to jazz up your home's exterior. As the focal point to the house, front yard landscaping requires a balanced, unified and harmonious design. When passing by, the front of the house is the first impression of the home and should reflect the personal style of the homeowners. Don't be afraid to tweak the look and make changes as you go along. Have fun adding your own touches to the front yard to create your very own design.

Stone Path

Create an inviting stone path in the front of the house to lead to the entrance and other areas of the landscape, like a backyard or side yard pergola. Use the natural curves of the front yard to design the meandering path. Stones like flagstone, slate, crushed granite or pebbles are weather-resistant and durable to ensure a long-lasting design. Flagstone, with its natural colors and flat surface, makes an ideal path to install. For a walking path and easy access for gardening equipment like a wheelbarrow, lay the flagstone 2-to-3 feet wide. In between the stones add an aromatic, creeping ground cover like thyme to trail around each of the stones and cause a nice fragrance when passing by. Flanking the path, plant low-growing plants like hostas and liriope. Both grow in upright, clumping tufts that are striking along a stone path.

Perennial Bed

Plant a perennial flowerbed along the front landscape to add a burst of color and texture to the space. Use a corner of the yard to create the niche garden to fill with bright blooms. Because perennial flowers have only a one-time planting requirement, you ensure color year after year in the front yard. Grow larger, upright perennials like black-eyed Susan in the back of the flowerbed for their clumping form. The bright yellow blooms and contrasting dark centers create a showy garden display. Black-eyed Susans are also drought- and heat-tolerant, creating an adaptable perennial variety to grow. Another vibrant perennial to grow is coreopsis. Summer-blooming, coreopsis has fringed, yellow petals that sit atop the parsley-like, bright green foliage. Planted along the front and sides of the bed, coreopsis provides vibrant texture.

Water Feature

Water features bring a tricking, soothing noise to the front landscape. Nestled along the front walkway or within the perennial bed, water features become the focal point to the front of the house. Water features are available in a wide range of shapes, sizes and colors. Some water features are large with several tiers, while others are smaller, more compact container fountains, ideal for any size or shape of yard. Place a container fountain along along the front of the house to create a vibrant addition. Typically made of terra cotta or glazed, containers are easily moved around the landscape to fit into any area. Along a front yard entrance, situate the container fountain to welcome guests as they enter and exit.