15 Great Front Yard Landscaping Ideas

Creating the perfect front yard can increase your home's curb appeal, possibly even increasing its value. But how do you design an attractive and functional front yard? In this article, we cover the seven principles of design as well as 15 front yard landscaping ideas. 

Before getting started, let’s talk a little bit about the seven principles of design. These concepts are usually applied to disciplines like graphic design but can also be helpful when approaching other design projects. These will help you during the design process and let you take full advantage of these front yard landscaping ideas.

In design, emphasis means giving your design a focal point — something people can focus on. In your front yard landscape design, this could be a large tree, a bed of particularly vibrant flowers, or a well-designed stone pathway. 

In design, balance refers to having the same amount of visual impact on both sides of your project. When considering landscape ideas for your front yard, think about what will look balanced from the curb.

You can make things perfectly symmetrical. For example, placing a path up the middle of your yard to your front door with mirror-image plants on either side of the path.

Or you could opt for a more asymmetrical design that isn’t a perfect mirror image but still has equal visual interest on each side. For example, a big tree on the left side of your front yard could be balanced out by a large flower bed on the right side.

The best way to keep things balanced is to analyze your front yard space and plan accordingly. A site plan can help you plot out the space you’re working with to create the perfect balance in your front yard design. 

Proportion refers to the size of the elements in your design and how they relate to each other. In your front yard landscaping, you can achieve proper proportion by grouping similarly sized items and working to make sure no one element of your design overshadows the others.

You want everything to have appropriate visual weight and impact in your design. For example, you could group a cluster of small shrubs or bushes together so they feel in proportion with larger elements like trees. 

Contrast is what makes your design “pop.” This is often achieved by using different colors to help different design elements stand out from one another.

Your lawn will most likely be the main element of your front yard design. To help the other parts of your front yard landscaping stand out from the grass, choose colors that contrast well with green, like reds, purples, and dark blues. This will help each element, like flowers, fences, and mailboxes, stand out.

Repeating elements of your design can help unify and strengthen its visual impact.

Using multiples of things like flowers, trees, bushes, and more can help give your front yard a cohesive design. You can also achieve good repetition by using the same colors across multiple elements, like plant pots that are the same color as your front door. 

In design, movement means arranging things so the eye is naturally drawn from one element to another. Your design should tell a story, like words on a page, with each element leading to the next.

To achieve movement in your front yard design, use elements like paths, fences, or water features that create connections between different sections of your yard. 

Think about the front yards that you’ve seen and loved. Were they chock-full of plants, lawn statues, multiple winding paths, and plants of all shapes, sizes, and colors? Or were the elements evenly spaced out with lots of negative space between them? Leaving enough negative space in your design helps keep things from feeling too busy or crowded.

In landscaping, this usually means giving each element of your yard enough “breathing” space. Consider leaving enough space to comfortably walk around each element. If things start to look too crowded, consider removing parts of your design and incorporating more negative space. Remember, less is more. 

With all those design best practices in mind, let’s look at some specific landscape ideas for front yards. These simple landscaping ideas will help you design the beautiful front yard of your dreams. 

For that lush, green front yard, you’ll need to think about your grass. If you already have grass growing in your front yard, try to figure out what type of grass it is. This will help you maintain your lawn over time and buy the right kind of grass seed.

If your current grass is thin or patchy, you can try planting new seeds in those areas. Overseeding, or planting grass seed directly into your existing lawn without tearing up the soil, is a great technique to try.

If you find that the grass you currently have isn’t growing well or isn’t suited to your climate, you should consider planting another type of grass. Different varieties have different properties that will be better suited to different types of climates. For example, fescue grasses will tolerate wet climates well. Meanwhile, varieties like Kentucky bluegrass and Bermuda grass will thrive better in dry climates.

If, after all your efforts, you’re still seeing bare patches, it’s time to get creative. You can put something else in those areas, like different plants, a bench, or even some garden gnomes. 

Mailboxes are a great way to add character and interest to your front yard design. If you’re looking for something fun, you could choose a novelty mailbox with a fun design. Some popular choices are animals like cows and fish or mailboxes that look like vehicles like cars or planes.

For a more refined look, choose a sleek, modern mailbox. You can find lots of great modern mailboxes made with premium materials like metal, stone, and wood. Choose mailboxes with a square shape that mixes metal and wood for a sophisticated design. Or opt for a mailbox encased in stone or concrete for a strong look.

Mailboxes are also a great place to exercise the design principle of contrast. Choosing a mailbox with a color that contrasts with your house or fence can be a great way to make it a standout feature.

Or if you’re happy with your current mailbox but think it needs a facelift, try planting flowers around the base for a quick upgrade. 

Speaking of filling in bare patches of grass, rock features are a great way to cover up areas with poor grass growth. Creating paths out of gravel, areas with eye-catching boulders, or adding rocks to plant beds can all be excellent ways to incorporate rocks into your front yard landscape design.

Plus, adding rocks to your front lawn doesn’t have to cost a lot of money. For example, HomeGuide notes that gravel prices average $10 to $50 per ton or $1 to $3 per square foot. Meanwhile, river rocks and stones cost $45 to $130 per ton. This makes using rocks to create pathways and feature areas in your front yard an attractive and affordable option.

Just like growing flowers around your mailbox can improve your front yard design, you can grow flowers around trees to add some visual interest to your front yard.

To pull this off, you’ll need to choose flowers that can grow among the tree’s roots and continue to thrive under shady conditions.

Some common plants to grow under trees include:

• Wild violets

• Periwinkle

• Hosta

• Cyclamen

• Bellflower

• Daffodils

When planting flowers under trees, you can create clearly defined flower beds with mulch, gravel, or edging. Or you can opt for a more natural look by placing flowers organically around the base of your trees. 

A bright, sunny front yard can be wonderful, but sometimes that sun can be too hot. That’s why creating shade is a great front yard landscaping idea. Shady areas make it easy to enjoy the yard on hot days, and shade can help prevent the sun from getting inside.

One of the easiest ways to create shade in your yard is to plant a large tree. However, most trees take years to grow, so homeowners may want to consider other options.

For a place to enjoy your yard with protection from the sun, consider installing a large umbrella or canopy above a bench or patio. You may even want to put a gazebo in the yard for a sturdier shade option.

If you’re set on trees being your main source of shade, you could try planting fast-growing shade trees like sycamore, birch, or cypress trees.

If you enjoy watching birds fly around your yard, you can attract them in a few different ways. Here are a few great ways to attract birds to your yard:

• Add a birdbath - Birdbaths look great and encourage gorgeous birds to visit your yard. Still water birdbaths require less maintenance, and options with moving water will attract more birds and make a comforting sound but require more upkeep.

• Install a bird feeder - Bird feeders are a great way to bring birds into your yard. The Humane Society of the United States suggests only feeding birds during the late winter/early spring months when they need more energy. They suggest placing bird feeders 12 feet away from trees so birds can quickly reach cover if a predator appears. 

• Add bird-friendly plants - According to the National Audubon Society, plants like flowering plants, vines, shrubs, and trees are all great plants to help you attract birds. Just make sure you’re choosing varieties that are native to your local area.

Mulch is a great option for ground covering in your front yard design. Mulch is placed on the surface of the soil to improve soil moisture, reduce weed growth, and enhance the visual appeal of your front yard. You’ll commonly find mulch in plant beds, around the base of bushes, and around trees.

While mulch can be a great front yard landscaping idea, it will require regular maintenance. Mulch can go bad when it becomes drenched in water and sits for too long. You should replace your mulch every year, especially if you live in an area with heavy rains or high humidity levels.

Shrubs are similar to bushes and can make a great statement in your front yard. How are shrubs different from bushes? Shrubs are woody plants with several stems, while bushes are denser and grow closer to the ground.

Shrubs are a great, low-maintenance front yard landscaping idea. They’re easy to maintain yourself and come back every year, so you won’t have to replant every spring. There are several different shrubs to choose from, so how do you know what type to plant in your yard?

You want something low maintenance and beautiful. You also want something that won’t grow so large that it overpowers the rest of your yard.

Some of the most popular shrubs to plant include:

• Yew

• Azaleas

• Boxwood

• Hydrangea

• Camellia

Lighting is a great addition to your front yard. Adding lights to your yard has both aesthetic and practical benefits. Lights can add visual interest to your property and can be used to create beautiful designs. Plus, lights are practical. They help you move around your front yard in the dark and can act as a security measure to deter trespassers and other bad actors.

When planning where to put lights in your front yard, consider the areas that would benefit most from some extra illumination. A great way to do this is to walk around your yard in the evening when it’s getting dark. Make a note of the parts of your yard that seem especially dark, areas that have steps or could be tripping hazards, and any plants or trees that you’d like to be more visible at night.

Here are some ways you can use lights in your front yard:

• Place lights in plant beds

• Add lights to your walkways

• Drape string lights over your patio or porch

• Install lights on either side of your front door

• Use lights to accent your favorite features

Fencing is another item that contributes to security and enhances the overall appearance of your front yard.

Fences come in many designs and materials, so choosing the right one can be overwhelming. You should consider what type of fence will look good with the design of your house. Consider what will match the color and materials of the exterior of your home. And consider how the architectural design of your house will look with different kinds of fences. For example, a traditional colonial house might look better with a picket fence than a modern metal one.

Some of the most popular fencing to choose from include:

• Wood fences

• White-picket fence (PVC or vinyl)

• Chain link fence

• Bamboo fence

• Aluminum fence

Remember that taller fences will be more secure but may block your view of the neighborhood from inside the yard or house. If you’re worried about your fence blocking light, choose a shorter fence or one that you can see through, like a chain-link fence. 

One of the best parts of a beautifully designed front yard is having a nice place to sit and enjoy it. That’s why it’s a good landscaping idea to create seating areas to your design.

Common ways to add seating to your front yard include adding a porch at the front of your house, adding benches throughout your yard, or adding a table and chairs. If you opt for a table, adding an umbrella is a great way to add some extra shade to the yard.

Where you place your seating is entirely up to you. You could place your seating in areas with nice views over the whole yard. Or try tucking a bench away between flowering plants for a secret spot. Adding benches under large trees is also a good place to escape the sun when it’s hot outside. 

Upgrade the borders around your flower gardens to make your flower beds look their best. Sometimes called garden edging or lawn edging, garden borders come in all kinds of materials and looks.

Some popular garden border choices include:

• Cobblestones

• Bricks

• Terracotta tiles

• Wooden logs

• Flexible edging strips made of plastic

• Galvanized steel strips

Choose the garden border that meshes with the rest of your garden’s design, and try matching materials to your fence or pathway for a more cohesive look.

Flowers are an obvious choice for sprucing up your front yard. Planting flowers is a simple landscaping idea that can make a big impact. But deciding which flowers to plant can be tricky.

You might want to opt for popular choices that match the other gardens in your neighborhood. Roses, tulips, daisies, and mums are popular flower options.

Or you could go for less common flowers you won’t see everywhere else. Poppies, orchids, coneflowers, and red hot poker plants are all unique flower options for your front yard.

Here are just a few more of the most beautiful flowers you could grow in your front yard:

• Water lilies

• Cherry blossoms

• Bird of paradise

• Lotus

• Bleeding heart

No matter which flowers you choose, read up on how to plant them, how much water and light they need, and if they’re perennial or annuals. 

A beautiful walkway will enhance any front yard and provide a convenient place for people to walk around. Your walkway should provide a direct route to the front and back doors or back gates.

You can also create walkways throughout your front yard. They’re a great way to add visual interest, break up big sections of lawn, and make it easier to access different areas of your yard. You could add a winding walkway to a seating area under a big tree or create a path to a small pond or water feature.

Some of the most popular materials for front yard walkways include:

• Stone

• Cement

• Gravel

• Brick

• Wood

When planning a pathway, a site plan can give you a better idea of your garden's space and how you might want to use walkways to divide it up.

You can add a little personality to your front yard landscaping by incorporating a theme. Some great front yard themes could be Alice in Wonderland, Magical Forest, or Paris.

Once you settle on a theme, you can buy lawn decorations that enhance it. For example, fairy statues and garden gnomes can perfectly complement a Magical Forest theme. To add a Parisian touch to your front yard, add a mini Eifel tower, some big stone plant urns, and some cafe chairs with a small table to turn your yard into a French retreat.

The best part of themed lawn decorations is adding as many or as few as you want. Remember those essential design principles of negative space and balance when picking out your lawn decorations. This will help you keep everything on theme without creating too much visual clutter in your front yard design.

We hope these front yard landscaping ideas have helped you start thinking about what you might want to incorporate into your design. Remember those seven design principles, and you’ll be on your way to creating a beautiful, relaxing front yard in no time!

At My Site Plan, we can provide detailed site plans of your yard to help you plan landscaping from a bird' s-eye perspective.

We make landscaping and home renovations easy, especially when you want to prepare your home for the market and enhance your home’s curb appeal.

Contact My Site Plan today to get a site plan of your yard and get started designing your dream garden.