I’m going to have a trip across the continental U.S. from east to west, to look at some gorgeous outdoor spaces. From gardens in rural Maine into a contemporary roof deck overlooking the Pacific, these landscapes are certain to stun. Whether you are seeking to plant a perennial garden or bedeck your deck, stop a moment to pick up some lessons for your own backyard.

Matthew Cunningham Landscape Design LLC

Pastoral Property at Maine

In rural Maine, a retired couple desired to remove the need to purge their present 2 acres of grass. The new design includes meadows, an orchard and colorful perennial gardens near the house.

Matthew Cunningham Landscape Design LLC

In the foreground, the landscape architect intended out more manicured elements: a diverse mix of perennial colors, shapes and textures, offering interest during three seasons. In the distance are views of Acadia National Park and Blue Hill Mountain.

Matthew Cunningham Landscape Design LLC

Lesson from the backyard: Perennials supply a palette of colors, textures and shapes to work with, in addition to seasonal changes. Plants like irises add tall green spikes and blossom earlier in the season, while plants like lamb’s ear add soft silvery green texture closer to the floor for weeks. When developing a plant program do your homework. It is as easy as reading the tags.

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Cottage Gardens at Virginia Wine Country

Two landscape architects made beautiful gardens at the Virginia countryside, a stone’s throw from the homes of former presidents Thomas Jefferson and James Monroe. The principal part of the yard is really a rectangle of grass surrounded by perennial borders.

They made this stairs from the driveway into the back entry out of stones located on the property.

Extensive border gardens on a hillside welcome those who come up the driveway.

Lesson from this backyard: working with a simple grassy rectangle, or tapis vert, surrounded by edge gardens is a very simple and striking method to style your yard. Verify the tags in your plants when you’re putting them so that they move from shortest to tallest from the border of the grass to the edge of the backyard.

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Windsor Firms

Sculpture Gardens to a Minnesota Lakefront

Once a tangled woodland, this expansive property takes advantage of the spaces and outside views, including among Lake Minnetonka.

Windsor Firms

Entertainment space and sculpture placement helped drive the plan, as did the spectacular trees that are present.

Windsor Firms

A cutting garden occupies this place between the main house and the swimming pool and tennis court.

Lesson from the backyard: Choose flowersyou’ll enjoy using in floral structures within the house.

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Prideaux Design

A Desert Oasis at Arizona

This well-planned backyard contains a pool, an open fireplace, an outdoor kitchen, a dining area and a lot of room to socialize and lounge.

Prideaux Design

Fireplace illuminates the outdoor lounge on cold desert nights, which makes this room as comfortable as any indoor living room.

Prideaux Design

An outdoor dining and kitchen room imply that what is close at hand, and the homeowners may maximize the time they spend outdoors. Colours and materials continue from one area to the next, such as the piled stone, the tile and the pops of orange, red and bright blue.

Lesson from this terrace: Plan outside rooms just as you’d indoor rooms. Consider how they are arranged (for instance, the dining room near the barbeque), the stream between the scale, the joys of materials and the views each will have.

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Joani Stewart-Georgi – Montana Ave. Interiors

Coastal California Roof Deck

Large lots are difficult to find at Marina del Ray, so citizens make the most of vertical space and roof decks.This expansive area enjoys views of the Pacific and supplies lots of room for soaking in sunlight and entertaining.

Joani Stewart-Georgi – Montana Ave. Interiors

An extensive outdoor kitchen means lots of parties and entertaining on the roof. Stacked stone creates continuity between the outside rooms.

Lesson from this space: Don’t overlook that outdoor furniture is more trendy and comfortable than ever. Do your homework and find durable and trendy pieces, in addition to fabrics, like Sunbrella, that can stand up to the weather.

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Remember the Rooftop
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