You’re meeting with a new landscaping company and you hear the word hardscape. What does that mean, exactly? And what are the best ways to incorporate it into your own property? The experts at Borst Landscape are here to sort it out for you.
Landscape means things like your lawn, shrubs and plants. Essentially, anything that’s “soft” and living. This is also considered softscape.
On the other hand, hardscape is a term in the landscape design industry that refers to patios, walkways, driveways and retaining walls – features that are built into the landscape using natural materials like field stone, bluestone and manmade materials like bricks and pavers and interlocking concrete walls. So hardscaping is changing or enhancing the flow and function of your property while beautifying it at the same time.
Hardscaping has an architectural quality that requires some thought and planning. On a technical level, drainage will affect your plantings; frost lines need to be considered, etc. While hardscaping also must consider drainage it must also compliment both the exterior and interior of your home. Hardscape must also be designed to consider property grades, how it flows, functions and improves outdoor living.
There should be a certain harmonious quality to hardscaping, subtle things that make the experience fully enjoyable to all the senses. That requires a landscape design expert who can see the full potential in your unique property. By combining hardscape and landscape elements in smart ways, you’ll create a backyard that’s a luxurious, beautiful extension of your living space.
Borst Landscape has decades of experience in expertly blending both landscape and hardscape elements to make any property a unique and beautiful masterpiece!