The Hardscape Part of Landscaping

by Kevin Smith Author

When you hear landscaping you think nice grass, flowerbeds, and trees, and maybe a hedge or two. But the overlooked part of landscaping is something called hardscaping. Hardscaping are those features such as patios, retaining walls, pathways, pergolas, decks, etc. They are just as much a part of a good landscaping plan as the greenery and trees. In fact, hardscaping is sometimes the focal point of a good landscaping plan. Many landscape architects will create a hardscape patio, for example, and then build in both softscaping (the growing things) and hardscaping elements to complete a perfect design.

Hardscaping Elements

Most landscape architects like to use a variety of different stone types for hardscaping elements because stone is a natural material that blends nicely with grass, flowerbeds, trees, hedges, etc. But not everything in a patio hardscape in Alpharetta, for example needs to be stone. You could pour a cement patio off the back of the house and then surround it with a sitting wall made of natural stone. This is also a cost saver. A cement patio is much cheaper than a flagstone patio, for example.

By hemming in the patio with a flagstone, or dry stacked stone, wall you bring in the stone effect. The wall offsets the landscaping and creates a boundary so to speak. Walls can have a practical effect as well such as providing a windbreak for a firepit or barbecue area. Not all backyards are flat. If there are slopes, stone stairs are a nice feature. They are practical in the sense that you need them to get to higher areas in your yard, but as with walls, stone stairs provide a nice hardscape look that blends with the natural environment of grass, flowerbeds, trees, and hedges.

Water Features

Another part of hardscaping is water features. If there is elevation in your yard, you can add a stone waterfall. Within that area of your yard, the waterfall becomes the focal point with greenery planted around it as the water descends into a small pond with stone used to create the boundary edge around the water. One word of caution, the pumps required to recirculate water from the pond up to the top of the waterfall use a great deal of electricity. Some homeowners are surprised to find out how much their utility bill increases once they’ve run the waterfall.

Living and Non-Living Things

Hardscaping are those things in a landscape design that are not growing or living. It includes everything from pavers to gravel to stone to lumber, and can be made from natural stone or manmade materials. So, if planning a redo of your backyard consider the big picture of not just the nice grass, flowerbeds, and trees, and maybe a hedge or two, but also a patio hardscape in Alpharetta.