How Do You Make a Landscape Look Natural?

How Do You Make a Landscape Look Natural?
There’s a sense of harmony with the surroundings that only a natural landscape can nail. Whether you’re a hardened landscape enthusiast or a new homeowner who has never worked on landscaping—One thing you’ll agree on is that keeping a natural-looking landscape is aesthetically pleasing and a tough job. Natural landscaping helps elements blend seamlessly, effectively mimicking the beauty of nature.
It doesn’t matter if you have a small garden or a sprawling backyard, achieving a natural aesthetic requires careful planning and thoughtful implementation. Not to mention the myriad of design considerations!

How Do You Make a Landscape Look Natural?

We’re going to look at the fundamentals and essential techniques that help make a landscape look natural and inviting.

Three Principles of Natural Landscaping

There are three main principles of natural landscaping. Understanding these key principles will help you make better decisions for your landscape throughout the process.

Simplicity

When studied closely, most natural elements look cohesive because they are simple. So, curating landscaping ideas, look for and implement arrangements and patterns that are simple.

Sustainability

Choose native plants and materials that are well-adapted to the local climate and soil conditions. This ensures seamless integration into the surroundings and sustainability.

Harmony

Harmonizing elements with the existing environment is very important. Don’t put anything that conflicts with the rest of the things in or around your house that you cannot change.

Organic Shapes & Patterns

Nature has an intrinsic irregularity and flow. And you’ll find that there’s order, symmetry, and balance in that. You can achieve irregularity and flow by using organic shapes and patterns in your landscaping.
  • Choose curving pathways instead of straight ones.
  • Irregularly shaped flower beds add a touch of natural flow and irregularity to any backyard or garden design.
  • Meandering borders often create a more natural look that’s also visually appealing to the eye.
  • You can also incorporate gentle slopes of varied heights and layering of plantings to add depth and dimension. This also emulates natural topography.

Plants for a Natural Look

Choose your plants for a natural garden look. Keep in mind, how you arrange them is also important.
For example, some natural plant communities are found in groupings. There’s also random spacing in nature that you can recreate instead of planting everything in a calculated and rather robotic way. Don’t shy away from intermingling different species if it will create a more organic and realistic landscaping.
First of all, limit your selection to native species that thrive in the local environment. Unless you have a lot of time to spare, choose plants that require minimal intervention and maintenance. As hard as that might sound, you’d be surprised by the number of options you have for this in every region!
Carefully consider growth habits, textures, colors, and seasonal interests when you select your plants. A more diverse and varied selection can create a visually pleasing composition.

Natural Elements & Materials

Stone, wood, and gravel gel nicely with natural landscaping. They also enhance the overall look of the landscape and exterior in general. You can source materials locally that go with the rest of the set up like your building material and natural flora.
Incorporate natural features into your landscaping. This includes, most prominently, water elements and rock formations.
Whatever hardscape elements you have should go with the landscaping and flora. This can be hard to do but you can look into different hardscape materials and alternatives and you’ll find a way to make things more seamless and natural.
And don’t forget the flooring!
You can use mulch and ground covers—100% organic materials—That mimic the forest floor itself. You might not want to go overboard with this. We also recommend aiming for a natural but subtler ground covering that keeps things natural while promoting a more cohesive and harmonious landscape design.

SOLMAUNA Creations & Landscaping Designs in Colorado

Our team of landscape designers brings a unique combination of landscape architecture education paired with extensive knowledge of plants to the table. Contact us Today.

How Do You Make a Landscape Look Natural?

How Do You Make a Landscape Look Natural?
There’s a sense of harmony with the surroundings that only a natural landscape can nail. Whether you’re a hardened landscape enthusiast or a new homeowner who has never worked on landscaping—One thing you’ll agree on is that keeping a natural-looking landscape is aesthetically pleasing and a tough job. Natural landscaping helps elements blend seamlessly, effectively mimicking the beauty of nature.
It doesn’t matter if you have a small garden or a sprawling backyard, achieving a natural aesthetic requires careful planning and thoughtful implementation. Not to mention the myriad of design considerations!

How Do You Make a Landscape Look Natural?

We’re going to look at the fundamentals and essential techniques that help make a landscape look natural and inviting.

Three Principles of Natural Landscaping

There are three main principles of natural landscaping. Understanding these key principles will help you make better decisions for your landscape throughout the process.

Simplicity

When studied closely, most natural elements look cohesive because they are simple. So, curating landscaping ideas, look for and implement arrangements and patterns that are simple.

Sustainability

Choose native plants and materials that are well-adapted to the local climate and soil conditions. This ensures seamless integration into the surroundings and sustainability.

Harmony

Harmonizing elements with the existing environment is very important. Don’t put anything that conflicts with the rest of the things in or around your house that you cannot change.

Organic Shapes & Patterns

Nature has an intrinsic irregularity and flow. And you’ll find that there’s order, symmetry, and balance in that. You can achieve irregularity and flow by using organic shapes and patterns in your landscaping.
  • Choose curving pathways instead of straight ones.
  • Irregularly shaped flower beds add a touch of natural flow and irregularity to any backyard or garden design.
  • Meandering borders often create a more natural look that’s also visually appealing to the eye.
  • You can also incorporate gentle slopes of varied heights and layering of plantings to add depth and dimension. This also emulates natural topography.

Plants for a Natural Look

Choose your plants for a natural garden look. Keep in mind, how you arrange them is also important.
For example, some natural plant communities are found in groupings. There’s also random spacing in nature that you can recreate instead of planting everything in a calculated and rather robotic way. Don’t shy away from intermingling different species if it will create a more organic and realistic landscaping.
First of all, limit your selection to native species that thrive in the local environment. Unless you have a lot of time to spare, choose plants that require minimal intervention and maintenance. As hard as that might sound, you’d be surprised by the number of options you have for this in every region!
Carefully consider growth habits, textures, colors, and seasonal interests when you select your plants. A more diverse and varied selection can create a visually pleasing composition.

Natural Elements & Materials

Stone, wood, and gravel gel nicely with natural landscaping. They also enhance the overall look of the landscape and exterior in general. You can source materials locally that go with the rest of the set up like your building material and natural flora.
Incorporate natural features into your landscaping. This includes, most prominently, water elements and rock formations.
Whatever hardscape elements you have should go with the landscaping and flora. This can be hard to do but you can look into different hardscape materials and alternatives and you’ll find a way to make things more seamless and natural.
And don’t forget the flooring!
You can use mulch and ground covers—100% organic materials—That mimic the forest floor itself. You might not want to go overboard with this. We also recommend aiming for a natural but subtler ground covering that keeps things natural while promoting a more cohesive and harmonious landscape design.

SOLMAUNA Creations & Landscaping Designs in Colorado

Our team of landscape designers brings a unique combination of landscape architecture education paired with extensive knowledge of plants to the table. Contact us Today.