If you are wondering what is driving landscape design so that you can adopt trends that make sense for your lifestyle, you will want to be sure to pay attention to these 2021 landscape design trends for your next Huntington, NY, landscaping project. Whether you choose to update your landscape using one or several of these trends, the results will make you happy to spend more time outdoors in the months ahead.
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Eco-Friendly Landscape Design
Eco-friendly landscape design is one of many hot landscaping trends. Some homeowners are deciding to reduce the size of their lawns, and replacing thirsty and labor-intensive grass (which can also be a food desert for wildlife) with native plants. A few wilder areas within the landscape create a beautiful contrast to more formal parts of the landscape. Pollinator-friendly plants can be confined to raised masonry planters if you prefer a more structured look. Trees and shrubs, a water source, and a bird feeder will reward you with hours of wildlife viewing.
Favoring native plants also pays off in terms of lower water usage and fewer maintenance requirements. Natives rarely require fertilizer because they are ideally adapted to the local soils. There are dozens of gorgeous specimens that will delight you with a seasonal display of color and fragrance.
Indoor-Like Outdoor Living
Purely traditional patios or decks have proven to not offer the same comforts enjoyed indoors. Today’s homeowner has higher expectations for their outdoor spaces and want to blur the line between indoors and outdoors, which means a more sophisticated design of outdoor living spaces. Splitting the patio into distinct zones—each with its own activity level and character—can mirror the effect of rooms in the house. While patios have gotten larger and lawns smaller, you can still experience a wonderful outdoor space that makes you feel at home in nature—but with perks like outdoor entertainment systems, water features, an outdoor fireplace, and a full outdoor kitchen.
Shelter can be a key element to making an outdoor space feel more livable. A pergola will offer relief from the sun, and a pavilion will offer protection from rain as well. Adding a fireplace to either structure gives it a cozy living room feel.
Permeable Surfaces
It’s amazing how much water runs off a solid surface such as a driveway or patio. Water always has to find a place to go. Choosing permeable pavers for your driveway and patio would allow water to seep through the paver joints into a special substrate that disperses water into the ground before it runs off or pools. This will keep your patio and driveway drier after a rainfall, and less icy in winter.
Updated Landscape Lighting
Modern outdoor lighting design options can bring your landscape to life after the sun goes down. They could deliver just the right amount of light in each activity zone: task lighting around the cooking area, soft mood lighting on the patio, and low-lying lights to safely illuminate steps and walkways. Lighting can be incorporated into masonry throughout the landscape: retaining walls, steps, pillars, and even the walls of a grill station can be ideal places to add unobtrusive outdoor lighting.
