When designing your garden, always begin with the permanent structures. Let the physical area and surroundings dictate the shape and form of your design. Make sure drainage, grading and compaction are properly planned because you don’t want problems cropping up after the garden is done. Design the garden, then plan your irrigation. Make sure you have it all worked out before construction begins.

Hardscape materials are as varied as your imagination. But for weight-bearing construction, you are safest with tried and true materials like stone, wood, cement and the like. Most folks like patios and shade structures. But even these can be built with creativity, forming them to original designs and choosing imaginative materials. Cement can be colored, stamped or embedded. Mosaics, pavers, tiles, brick, colored gravel, crushed glass, etc. or a combination of materials can make flat surfaces swirl with interest. Look into some of the decorative choices in permeable paving and walls that use earth-friendly materials and help deal with rainfall efficiently. By incorporating eco-friendly techniques like living walls, drainage ponds, and dry riverbeds you can make your garden less expensive and easier to maintain. Consider adding structures for both usage and beauty. Here are some items that make a yard into something special:

• Art sculptures
• Arches or archways
• Boulders or rocks
• Bridges
• Built-in barbecues
• Built-in furniture
• Car ports
• Built-in decorative pots
• Dry river beds
• Fences
• Fountains
• Gates or Gateways
• Gazebos
• Hot tubs
• Outdoor rooms
• Paths or pathways
• Patios
• Pergolas
• Pilasters
• Play area
• Ponds
• Potting sheds
• Ramadas
• Shade covers
• Sport courts
• Steps or stairways
• Storage sheds
• Swimming pools
• Trellises
• Walls
• Waterfalls

These are just some of the ways you can sculpt personality or themes into your landscape turning it into a unique, living painting while offering practical use. Always get plans for the overall design recorded on paper first. Whether it is your own quick sketch or a finished, professional plan, whatever time and money you invest in drawing out your hardscape design will end up saving you far more than whatever you spend for designing it.