A well-landscaped property is more than just pretty to look at. Research shows that being around plants and trees lowers blood pressure, improves memory and attention, and increases feelings of happiness and health.

Landscaping Baltimore includes adding or changing plants and terrain along with constructing structures. It can also help you limit direct sunlight to your house for energy savings. It can even add year-round visual interest with tall grasses or berry-producing shrubs.

The color of the plants, flowers, and foliage in a landscape can make a significant impact on its aesthetic appeal. Savvy use of color can make a small space feel larger, a dull garden more vibrant, or even help your home stand out from the street. It can also be a powerful way to draw attention to focal points, establish harmony, and embrace seasonal transitions. 

When creating a landscape, the color wheel is an invaluable resource. It shows how different colors interact with each other to create a unified and harmonious palette. The wheel can be used to select complementary colors for a vibrant contrast, analogous colors for a cohesive blend, or monochromatic colors for a refined and sophisticated look.

Another factor to consider when using color is saturation. Saturation describes how bright or intense a color is and can have a dramatic effect on the overall appearance of your landscape design. By limiting the amount of saturated colors in your garden, you can create a more balanced and visually appealing design.

Intensity is another important aspect of color, as it dictates how bright or muted a plant appears. By varying the intensity of your plant and foliage colors, you can create the illusion of depth and dimension. By placing bright colors in the foreground with cooler colors behind, you can make your garden appear more open and expansive.

When choosing a color scheme, it is important to keep in mind the desired atmosphere and mood of your garden. Warmer colors evoke energy and vibrancy, while cool colors create a sense of calmness and serenity. By choosing colors that align with your desired ambiance, you can ensure your landscape will have a positive and lasting emotional impact.

Using the color wheel as your guide, experiment with different combinations of colors to find the perfect fit for your garden. Whether you choose complementary colors for a high-contrast effect or an analogous color scheme for a balanced and harmonious palette, the key is to be creative and use your color palette as a tool to elevate your landscape into a work of art.

Form

Form is one of the most important landscape design principles. It refers to the shape of plants and hardscapes as well as how those shapes relate to each other. The shape of a flower bed, pond or path can impact the way people move through the space, and it can also highlight a design feature like a fire pit or pool. Lines are another aspect of form, and they can be straight, curved, horizontal or diagonal. Straight lines can create a more formal character and are often associated with symmetrical balance, while curved lines can be used to emphasize a natural, relaxed look.

Color is also a major factor in landscape design. Bright colors like oranges can draw your eye forward and make a feature seem closer to you, while cooler colors like blues can pull the eye away from a garden. The color of the foliage of a plant, its flowers or the garden ornaments you choose should complement your overall color scheme and tie the design together.

Lines are a key element in landscaping, and they can be used to control movement, direct the eye or create a sense of rhythm or pace in the space. They can be straight, curved, horizontal or vertical, and they can be created by the edges of hardscape materials like pavers or rock and the shapes of the plants and other features you include in your landscape.

The size of plants and hardscapes is also an important consideration when it comes to form. The right size of these elements will help the design feel balanced and harmonious, but it’s also important to consider future growth and how your yard will evolve over time.

When you’re designing your landscape, it’s a good idea to create a “visual theme,” or a theme that will guide the way you use forms, color and textures in your garden. You can get ideas by looking at other designs you like, or even photos of your own backyard. Then, try to incorporate some of these elements into your own space and see how it looks.

Lines

Lines are used to create form, develop space and connect areas of the landscape. They can be straight, curved or diagonal. They are important to a successful landscape because they control movement, establish dominance, create patterns and add texture to the design. Lines are also an essential element in the perception of depth and distance.

A landscape’s lines can be natural or man-made. A man-made line can be a pathway, a walkway or even a fence. A natural line can be a stream, water fall or the edge of a pond. When designing a garden, walkways and paths should be clearly marked with lines that direct the viewer where they want to go. These paths should lead to a focal point such as a waterfall, pool or flower garden.

There are three primary types of lines in the landscape: plant bedlines, hardscape lines and path lines. A plant bedline is created when the edge of a planted area meets another surface material such as grass, soil, gravel or paving materials. These lines are often curved in nature or created using curves on the edge of a rock garden, dry creek bed or sod line.

Hardscape lines are the edges of paved surfaces such as a patio, sidewalk or driveway. They may be paved with a flat material or textured with gravel or stones. The shape of a walkway or driveway can influence the type and direction of the hardscape line.

Curved lines are often favored for their beauty and simplicity. They can be softened and accentuated by a number of landscape techniques such as clustering plantings or repeating patterns. A curved pathway from the house to the front door, a kidney-shaped flower garden or an arcing stepping stone pathway can all provide beautiful curved lines in your garden.

Lines are also important in determining the size and scale of landscape elements. A large fountain, water feature or tall tree can be framed by a low wall or hedge. Smaller landscape features such as a garden shed or fire pit can be framed by larger retaining walls or fences.

Space

Many homeowners choose to use landscaping as a way to increase the resale value of their home. In addition, studies have shown that people who live in areas with a lot of green space tend to be healthier and happier than those who do not. This is because being surrounded by nature can help to reduce stress levels and make life more enjoyable.

Landscaping also provides environmental benefits, such as reducing energy costs and improving air quality. For example, plants have the ability to absorb pollutants and toxins from the atmosphere and naturally release oxygen. This helps to improve air quality, which is particularly important in urban environments where pollution is often higher.

Landscapes also have the potential to lower energy costs by reducing the amount of time that a home’s air conditioning needs to be on. This is because plants and trees absorb heat during the day, causing the surrounding temperature to decrease. Landscaping professionals work to promote the proper balance of heat absorption and release by including a variety of species in the yard.

Another way that landscapes can improve the environment is by providing habitats for wildlife. This is because green spaces are important for the survival of many different types of animals. Landscapers can help to create habitats by planting different species of plants and trees, as well as by constructing barriers that prevent animals from entering residential areas.

Line is another crucial element of landscape design. For example, a landscaper must consider the lines of sight from one part of the yard to another. In addition, they must consider the lines of movement within the yard, such as walkways and paths. The use of lines is also important in the edging of garden beds, hardscapes and turf areas.

Green spaces are among the most beloved areas in any city, and it is not uncommon for people to go out of their way to visit them. This is because they provide a place to relax, play sports and escape the concrete jungle of the city. In fact, it has been found that simply looking at a garden can lower blood pressure and improve attention and memory. The work of landscapers is integral to maintaining these green spaces, and they are therefore a vital part of the urban ecosystem.