Functional Landscaping Elements: Beauty, Function and Value

There are several ways that you can enhance the look of your landscaping with functional elements and structures. These functional elements can solve your landscaping issues such as erosion, steep grading and moisture saturation. Four of the most commonly used functional designs elements for landscapes are retaining walls, raised flower beds, rock gardens and walkways.

Retaining Walls

Retaining walls are structural elements used in landscaping to create a barrier between two grades in a yard. They are commonly used to protect driveways and walkways, as well as used to create staggered grade levels in a yard. There are several materials that can be used to create retaining walls. Concrete and concrete blocks are the most common building materials to construct retaining walls. To enhance the look of concrete retaining walls a venire of brick or stone is often applied to the exterior face of the wall. Stone can also be used to build these walls.

Raised Flower Beds

Raised flower beds are another very common element in landscaping. Aesthetically they are used to add color, texture and organic flow to a landscape. Functionally they are used to solve fertility, drainage and moisture use issues that the yard has. Raised flower beds can also be used to transition between grades in the yard and to help prevent erosion in the yard.

Rock Gardens

Rock gardens are the perfect option for people who do not have a lot of time to maintain their yards or who live in an area that gets very little rain. Rock gardens can also be used for preventing erosion and to reduce a household's consumption of water. Rock gardens are made from both rocks and from drought resistant plants and trees.

Walkways

While you may not think that a walkway is a functional structure it is. Walkways can be designed to make navigating through a steep grade easier to do, they can be designed to prevent erosion and they can also be designed to help direct runoff water away from a building. Walkways can also be created to reduce the amount of foot traffic delicate lawns or gardens receive. Walkways can be created using a number of durable building materials including poured concrete, concrete tiles, stone tiles, gravel and brick.

Designing a Functional Landscape

All of the above functional design elements can add value to your home. However, you need to think about more than just their function when planning out your projects. You also need to think about their aesthetics. If you forget to think about how the functional element looks, where it is placed and how it relates to the rest of your landscape's design you can end up reducing the value of your home.