Are you struggling to come up with landscaping ideas for your small backyard? We have got you covered with these 9 amazing small backyard landscaping ideas that you can copy for your outdoor space!
As the owner of a 1,200 square foot home, I know how much of a challenge designing a small backyard’s landscaping can be. When we first bought our home, the plants were overgrown and bushy. We wanted a simple backyard landscaping design that was clean and fresh. We are so limited in our outdoor space and have learned over the last five years what works for our backyard’s landscaping and what simply failed.
In this blog post, we will show you small backyard landscaping ideas that you need to know about. We are here to share some of our best tips and our mistakes with you so that you can have the small backyard landscaping that you have always dreamed of.
This post is all about how to design small backyard landscaping the right way.
Planning Your Small Backyard Landscaping
Before you think about what plants you want and where you want them, you must first assess your small backyards layout.
- Typically in a small backyard, the landscaping will not be right in the middle of the yard. Any flower beds and landscaping designs should be around the perimeter or along the fence in your backyard to make it appear larger.
- In a small backyard, the key to having the best backyard landscaping is finding the plants that are most suitable for your landscaping area, sun exposure, and soil.
- Consider what your ideal backyard would look like and what features it has. Decide what works best for your family in your outdoor space. After-all, the backyard is the outdoor space of your home that should be customized to your needs.
What is the most low maintenance landscaping?
Here are the most low maintenance landscaping ideas to consider:
- Mulch
- Drought tolerant plants (ex: lavender, coneflowers, yarrow, etc)
- Perennials (flowers that come back each year)
- Rocks
- Hardscaping
- Ground covering plants
Best Low Maintenance Plants For Landscaping:
Low maintenance plants are ideal for landscaping in your small backyard. We have narrowed it down into a list of the best low maintenance plants for your landscaping.
- Hostas
- Black Eyed Susans
- Coreopsis
- Boxwood shrubs
- Forsythia
- Gold Thread Cypress
- Fountain Grass
- Ribbon Grass
- Rose of Sharon
Things to Consider When Buying Plants
- When choosing what plants to add to your landscaping be sure to consider your soil conditions, gardening zone and the amount of sunlight you get in your small backyard.
- Almost all plants in the local nursery or gardening store are suitable for your gardening zone. They usually don’t carry plants that won’t do well in the zone you are purchasing them from.
- Another tip to consider when shopping at the nursery is that whatever plants they are selling at the time are usually ok to plant right away and are in blooming season.
Small Backyard Landscaping Ideas
1. Cute backyard paver pathways
If you have a very small backyard with no grass, this could be the perfect idea for you! Elevate your concrete or paver walkways with large flower bushes along the sides of them. In this cute small backyard idea, they feature hydrangeas which are gorgeous when grown properly. Here are some tips for hydrangea growth.
HOW TO GROW HYDRAGENAS:
- When initially planting hydrangeas, try to plant them in the Fall for the best results.
- Hydrangeas prefer only partial sun and need conditions where the soil is very well drained. This means if you plan on putting them in containers or pots make sure you have several holes draining the water. We made that mistake!
- Watering hydrangeas can be tricky. They need to be thoroughly watered about three times a week. If possible, water these plants in the morning so that they have plenty of water to withstand the dry sun throughout the day.
We love hydrangeas for a small backyard landscaping design because they look so beautiful when they mature and are excellent plants to grow along a fence line.
2. Ideas With No Grass
BEST BACKYARD GRASS REPLACEMENTS:
- Turf
- Rock Yard
- Mulch
- Paver Patios
- Concrete Patio
HOW TO CREATE A MULCH BED IN YOUR LANDSCAPING:
Creating a mulch landscaping area in your small backyard is fairly easy if you follow the proper steps.
For this project you will need:
- Shovel
- Wheel Barrow
- Garden Hoe
- Mulch Bags
- Garden Stakes
- Landscaping Fabric
- Knife or Scissor
- First, you must decide the area you want to add mulch to. Mulch works best in an area with borders and edges to prevent it from traveling out of your landscaping beds.
- Once you determine where the mulch is going, you must make sure the area is free of any trees, plants or grass that isn’t going to be a part of your new landscaping design.
- After you clear the area, make sure that the ground is level and has no holes, hills or roots sticking out of it. The goal is to have a flat surface that is free of bumps. Get your shovel out and garden hoe to make sure that the dirt is evenly spread across the area.
- Now that the space is ready for mulch, you must lay down your landscaping fabric. Cut the fabric to the desired size of your landscaping area. We recommend working in smaller sections for beginners especially if you have an oddly shaped area. This is crucial to prevent weeds from growing through.
- Secure you landscaping paper with garden stakes at every edge to prevent the paper from peeling up at the edges. This ensures your mulch design will have a neat edge.
- Pour your bags of mulch on top of the paper and evenly spread.
BEST PLACE TO BUY LANDSCAPING MULCH:
The best place to buy mulch for your small backyard is definitely Lowes. Lowes has an amazing Spring sale every year and the mulch is only 5 for $10. That is a complete steal!
3. Small Backyard Landscaping Ideas With Pools
Not only is the design gorgeous of this backyard, the landscaping enhances the pool and makes the backyard feel like a private oasis.
To achieve this landscaping look, try layering different flowers and shrubs. Place tall privacy bushes in the back row, medium flowering shrubs next, and lastly add colorful flowers in the very front edge of your landscaping.
BEST FAST GROWING PRIVACY BUSHES FOR SMALL BACKYARDS:
- JUNIPERS
- EMERALD GREEN ARBORVITAE
- PRIVET
- LEYLAND CYPRESS
- ARBORVITAE “GREEN GIANT”
- ENGLISH LAUREL
- CHERRY LAUREL
- BORDER FORSYTHIA
4. Low Maintenance Landscaping
In this landscaping design near the fire pit there are not many plants, but instead long skinny trees and green shrubs. To get this look add pea gravel to your fire pit area with larger walking stones on the border. Rocks are a low maintenance lovers best friend!
5. Add a flower bed to your landscaping
FLOWER BEDS AROUND TREES
When creating a flower bed around a tree consider the amount of sunlight your plants with receive under the tree.
These flower bed areas can be on the smaller side so be sure to keep the appropriate distance between your plants.
BEST PLANTS FOR AROUND TREES:
- Ferns
- Primrose
- Lilies
- Hostas
ADD FLOWERING TREES TO YOUR LANDSCAPING
BEST SMALL FLOWERING TREES:
- Japanese flowering cherry
- Crape myrtle tree
- Rose of sharon althea tree
Check out our similar blog post on flower bed ideas for more inspiration!
6. Create a centerpiece with a fountain
We love a good fountain in a small backyard landscape design. The fountain serves as the main focal point in the garden bed.
This is our small backyard landscaping in the center of our yard. This is when we first planted the trees and shrubs, since then they have grown tremendously. I will post updated pictures so you can see!
GAIA RESIN SOLAR 2 TIER FOUNTAIN:
After owning this solar fountain for two years, I have some pros and cons to share with you about solar fountains in landscaping.
PROS: The fountain was very easy to assemble and lightweight. We love this fountain and bought it because it is solar powered. It pumps the water with solar energy (no plug needed). The fountain also has a cute light you can use and buttons to turn the power on and off easily.
CONS: This is so sad to say, but after two years the fountain has chipped all over. Once the water sits in it for a period of time it loosens the paint and it starts to chip.
I would recommend getting an outdoor fountain that is made from stone or concrete to ensure it doesn’t chip.
7. Small Backyard Landscaping On a Budget
We adore this low maintenance landscaping ideas on a budget! You can easily achieve this look in your landscaping by adding an edge border to your landscapes perimeter. Fill the area with mulch or rocks that you won’t have to regularly maintain. Fill the empty spaces with your favorite perennials!
THE BEST LOW MAINTENANCE PERENNIALS:
- Cone flower
- Hardy hibiscus
- Geraniums
- Hostas
- Black-eyed susan
- Ferns
My personal favorite low maintenance perennial are hostas. We love hostas because they are care free, have beautiful foliage and love the shade which makes them ideal landscaping plants for under trees!
8.Small Backyard Landscape Lighting
A big part of landscaping in the backyard that people tend to forget about it the lighting. You spend so much money and effort in keeping your landscape manicured that it should be shown off at night! Add solar lights or plug in lights under your trees and main shrubs to showcase them.
9. Small Backyard Landscaping Ideas For Dogs
When designing your backyard landscaping, don’t forget to consider your pups! Dogs spend a majority of their time in the backyard and need to be considered during the landscaping design process.
When designing a small backyard with your dog in mind, we recommend using rocks to avoid a mess in the yard. We adore this small backyard landscaping idea with large rocks and a few simple trees. This is ideal for dogs because no dog can get injured and your landscaping won’t get ruined.
If you aren’t into the simple look in your landscaping then try adding more plants in between the rocks.
One thing that many dog owners tend to forget in their backyard is that some plants are actually toxic for animals and should be avoided for your dogs safety.
PLANTS TO AVOID FOR DOG SAFETY IN THE YARD:
- Amaryllis
- Azalea
- Daffodil
- Daisy
- Eucalyptus
- Hyacinth
- Hydrangea
- Tulips
This post was all about small backyard landscaping.
CHECK OUT THESE POSTS BEFORE YOU GO
- 11 Examples of Flower Bed Ideas That Will Inspire You
- 11 Amazing Small Backyard Ideas to Try Right Now
- 9 Best Privacy Bushes for Your Backyard
