Last week I paid a visit to the site of an exciting new garden project. Although there are no trees, shrubs or perennials in the area immediately surrounding the house—even the newly seeded lawn has yet to germinate—the landscape is already stunningly beautiful. How can this be? Well, as is often the case with truly gorgeous gardens, the secret is all in the hardscaping. At this point, three terraced planting beds have been installed to the front of the house, retained by dry-laid stone walls. A lovely set of stairs gently sweeps through the raised gardens, winding toward the front entrance. To the back, patio doors swing open to an enormous stone terrace, inviting guests to step out and admire the breathtaking views. Elsewhere on the thoughtfully edited lot, boulders have been artfully positioned to mark pathways and woodland boundaries, leading the eye toward calming focal points and soothing vistas. Much like the decor in a home's interior, plantings, once established, will simply soften and enhance the beautiful, three dimensional architecture of the hardscape already in place.

Although this is clearly a high-end garden design, there are some important lessons to be learned from this project, which may be adopted by do-it-yourselfers as well. Do you have a new or neglected house begging for a bit of curbside appeal? Step outside and away from the house for a moment and take a long, hard look at the big picture. Try to see past the greenery and have a look at the lay of the land and how your home sits in it. Are the pathways well laid out? How are the planting beds defined? What could be done to improve the garden's boundaries? Budget-minded homeowners are often quick to nix investment in exterior landscape structure. When building or purchasing a home, upgrades to the exterior usually come last, when funds have been exhausted by more pressing, interior details. Hardscaping, particularly stonework and professionally erected structures—such as pergolas and decks—are expensive, time consuming projects. Understandably exhausted, and financially drained, new homeowners usually purchase a few trees or shrubs at the local garden center, plop them in beside the foundation, and call it a day. This is a shame, because with a bit of effort and creativity, permanent, value-enhancing hardscaping can be added to a home with minimal financial investment.

Interested in tackling the landscape architecture of your home with a new walkway or raised garden bed, but not sure of where to look for guidance? Exterior building projects do require a bit of know-how and lots of careful planning. Magazines like This Old House frequently feature do-it-yourself hardscaping projects and lots of useful advice for the landscaping novice. In addition, I recently discovered a great, new hardscaping resource from Lark Books, a publisher well-known for their hands-on, educational titles. Lark's The Big Book of Backyard Projects focuses on how to create the kinds of landscape features, in the front as well as the backyard, that truly make a difference in the permanent exterior of a home. Patios, paths, walls, and fences are just a few of the structural elements covered in this amazing book. What impressed me most about this collection of do-it-yourself projects was not so much the beautiful photographs—and they are stunning—but more the carefully illustrated instructions and the all-critical attention to detail. With literally hundreds of hardscaping ideas from low-budget to over-the-top, there is something in this title for every do-it-yourself landscaper. 

Could your landscape use a structural facelift? What would you add—or subtract—if you could?

Michaela grew up gardening, studying plants, and picking organic produce on the family farm. When she isn't spreading compost or pruning shrubs, she can usually be found writing articles or giving seminars on all things gardening. Michaela has worked as a gardening professional for 15 years and is author of the popular blog, The Gardener’s Eden.