Hardscape

Where does the term hardscape originate?
Most materials used to build these structures are very hard, resilient, and durable. These structures are sketched out first in the landscape master plan. This is because they establish order and system throughout the yard, and often serve to highlight even more the lush shades of green and vibrant colors of garden design and manicured lawns.

What are some of the more common types of hardscape you build?
Elements like paved areas, sidewalks, brick patios, atriums, courtyards, and walkways are common examples. We also build retaining walls to create boundaries between architecture and vegetation. Other landscape features include custom fountains, sports courts, outdoor stairways, patios, pergolas, trellises, arches, masonry walls, and planters.

What are the more common materials you use?
They can be anything that provides a firm surface that will resist the elements and add decorative curb appeal to your property. Stone is a popular material because it looks so natural and can go with any residential landscaping design. Concrete is also another popular form. Concrete can be colored and stained to mimic stone, or stand out with a unique, decorative statement all its own. Wood and brick are mainstay materials that have been with us for centuries and will no doubt continue to remain with us for centuries to come.

What can hardscape do for us?
There are several practical and aesthetic benefits that hardscape contributes to every landscape. Some of these benefits include, but are not limited to, the following:

• Create transition by providing a clear, recognizable transit area that moves traffic from one point of interest to another.
• Make a small yard look bigger by creating diversity between forms that lend perspective and depth to the scene
• Create borders around vegetation and activity zones
• Change the grade of the Houston landscape
• Create privacy with a wall that encloses a private space, like a courtyard
• Screen the view with such elements as lattice walls or raftered ceilings partly open to the stars
• Establish entertainment and seating areas, such as swimming pool patios, terraces overlooking spas, and outdoor fireplaces
• Create grand entrance in the form of stairways and steps leading to and from pools, outdoor buildings, backs of homes, and natural ponds
• Creating shade in the form of garden pergolas and arbors
• Create vertical impact with masonry constructs and architectural walls
• Create curb appeal with front yard walkways leading up to the home, and custom driveways and motor courts that are decorative and safe

Is hardscape more decorative or functional by nature?
That is an excellent question. To be honest, we try to make as many elements as possible both practical and highly pleasing to the eye whenever possible. However, there are times when something that is exclusively decorative can make the difference between having a nice yard and a superb yard. Custom fountains are one example of this. Other examples include trellises and small architectural walls, which do little to create enclosure or privacy per se, but make a world of difference when it comes to adding dimension and vertical impact to your home and property.

Plant Landscape Designs

The best Houston landscapes exploit interesting and vital design concepts that are in balance and ones that serve both form and function. With your plant landscape design, you have an opportunity to intermix hardscapes, plants and natural features in an artful way.

Before any planting takes place, soil deserves a special mention in a Houston plant landscape design. In any dirt component, there is usually a mixture of sand, silt and clay, with one predominant element. In our region, the soil has a high concentration of clay, a special challenge for gardeners. We recommend amendments for planting soil in this ratio: 1/3 loam (or soil), 1/3 sand, and 1/3 organic matter.

Landscape design tree placement also needs to figure in the early days of this process. Trees are vital components in your design, yet they are the structural elements that take the longest to mature. Therefore, we counsel our clients to plant them early and to plant them with their mature size in mind.

When thinking about creating a memorable plant landscape design at Exterior Worlds, we are mindful of three basic areas of your landscape. Public spaces, such as the front yard, are on view by the public, which includes everyone from the postman to the mom on her way to the grocery store to potential buyers arriving with their real estate agent. Private spaces are the back and side yards and any other space shielded from accidental view. Utilitarian spaces encompass trashcan, compost heaps, a/c units, and pool equipment areas and are best kept out of sight.

In considering the placement of plants within a landscape, we always concede that plants have personalities. While some are showy and flashy, others are soothing and hardworking, and still others are here today and gone tomorrow. And just like with a party, you want a good mixture of the different types. If you only invite the quiet types, you have a totally forgettable affair. With too many show-offs, the place gets overwhelming.

Bush planting forms the foundation for your landscape. Taller, evergreen bushes generate a pleasing background, shorter bushes provide filler texture and flowering bushes provides the splash of color. Here in Houston, you can choose among evergreens that create a year-round structure and also incorporate deciduous shrubs, such as planting azaleas, that afford ornamental value throughout the year.

Deep red pansies, pink geraniums and black-eyed Susans—they delight us and draw us. Planting annuals supplies the eye with something new to look at by providing color and texture. Seasonal color acknowledges the changing of the seasons while renewing your enjoyment of the outdoor landscapes.

Exterior Worlds like to use plants in unexpected ways, such as a living garden wall. We create these walls by training plant material to grow around a metal frame. We then position them as you would any wall, say, a seating area within a larger zone or to provide protection from the sun and wind.

Enliven your Houston patio and garden with a design conscious landscape from Exterior Worlds that reflects your genuine style. We will create a thoughtful plant landscape design for you that will define you as a serious homeowner, one who cares about lush but appropriate statements.

Outdoor Gazebo

What is an outdoor gazebo?
It is an outdoor structure that can be used as either a garden shelter, outdoor room, or viewing pavilion. Gazebos go back 5,000 years in history to Ancient Egypt. The modern outdoor gazebo, however, is based on the combined design motifs of Japanese teahouses, Chinese garden shelters, and small Dutch buildings.

What types are there to consider?
There are several different types that you can choose from. There is the conventional style that is basically an outdoor room with a floor, supporting pillars, and a ceiling. Some people, however, prefer to have a custom patio substituted as the floor, or to have the gazebo itself built on top of a courtyard patio.
You can also have a portable gazebo constructed that can be moved from point to point within your yard.
What shape are they built in?
They can be built in hexagonal, octagonal square or rectangular designs.

Why should I consider an outdoor gazebo?
It is a great way to enjoy a view of your home, garden, and the surrounding Houston landscape. The covering gives you shelter from the sun on hot days, and it gives you shelter from rain on cloudy days. A screen can even be built around the sides to keep out mosquitoes.

What are these structures made of?
They are almost always made of wood. Cedar and pressure treated pine are the two most common wood types used. Cedar is much more expensive. Pressure-treated pine can be stained and painted to make a strong, sturdy structure that will last and that looks good near any garden, pool, pathway, or natural pond.

Can any other materials be used to build an outdoor gazebo?
Yes. In contemporary gardens, such a structure can be built out of metal, reinforced concrete, or even stone. The roof can be made from copper, slate, or some other inorganic material to contribute to the Mentalist themes of contemporary landscaping and contemporary gardens.

What are a few features to consider?
Outdoor lighting is always a good thing to have in any outdoor structure. It will not only make it easier for you and your guests to see each other at night, but it will also make the gazebo itself a notable landscape element in its own right.

You can also have a small bar installed, complete with an electrical outlet so you can plug in a blender for mixing drinks. Most Houstonians also want a ceiling fan installed in the top of their gazebo.

What is the best architectural style for an outdoor gazebo?
To a certain extent, the style is flexible. The only absolute here is that it has to compliment the architecture of the home. Beyond that, anything from an Amish design (which you typically see in garden pictures) or a wrought iron Victorian style will work with a variety of outdoor landscaping themes.

Try not to restrict yourself to a preconception of style, however. What we prefer to do is to create a landscape master plan that reflects the entirety of your dream of an outdoor lifestyle. The many elements of your landscape will both individually and collectively create this experience. The actual style of your gazebo will ultimately be determined by its location. If it is built near the home or garage, it will compliment building materials in those structures.

If, on the other hand, it is built in or near a garden, or setback among the trees, it will reflect a more organic theme and geometry. The colors and stains used will also support these motifs, so that when you look at your outdoor gazebo, you see an extension of the landscape itself in the form of a structure that both pleases the eye and invites your attendance.

Landscape Yard Design

A professional landscaping company is your best resource for landscape yard design. It gives you access to a team of people that will create an outdoor environment based upon the very essence of your personal desires and sensibilities.

Exterior Worlds differentiates itself from lawn and garden service companies in this respect. We do more than trim trees, cut grass, and maintain flower beds. We work according to a set of principles that create a holistic unity between your house, your yard, your outdoor architecture, and your garden design.

These principles constitute the core values of all landscape yard design, regardless of the style of landscaping itself, the size of the yard, or the many unique elements we can populate your landscape with.

The first of these principles is the establishment of thematic unity through a landscape master plan. This plan is a CAD document that details everything that will be created in your yard. It shows how individual elements will work together in relationship with one another to establish an outdoor living environment that compliments your home and extends your lifestyle beyond its four walls.

The second principle we follow is simple garden design in key locations. This creates pockets of beauty and interest in otherwise fallow portions of your yard. By simplicity, we mean avoiding overkill that would smother the senses with too much input. Our experience has shown us that less is more. By focusing on the design and pattern of a garden and choosing two or three colors to repeat throughout its form, we can establish a high level of aesthetic without creating runaway growth or excessive complexity that could potentially create a distraction.

The third principle in landscape yard design is the principle of balance. There are two types of balance, these being symmetrical balance and asymmetrical balance. Symmetrical balance is based upon the idea of creating mirror images through complimentary identical elements. Asymmetrical balance uses interwoven geometry, complimentary colors, and motifs of forms to link vegetation and architecture through subtlety and suggestion.

The fourth principle of landscape yard design is transition. Transition is the establishment of movement from point to point within a landscape. It can take both conscious and unconscious form. Obvious elements of transition include gated entrances to entry gardens, entrances and exits to custom patios, courtyards, and outdoor rooms, and walkways of stone or brick. More subtle forms of transition involve variances in perspective. The positioning of certain elements in relationship to one another can alter the sense of depth when you look into the yard. Differing heights of vegetation can also create a line of sight that pulls the eye in a certain direction. Landscape lighting can motivate movement toward the back or front of the yard, depending on the position of the observer and how the lighting is installed.

For more information on how we can use these elements to create a landscape yard design that will add curb appeal to your home, call our office for a free consultation to discuss the preliminaries of a proposed Houston landscape design plan.

Exterior Wall Fountains in your Landscape

Within the landscaping vernacular, exterior wall fountains belong to the category called custom hardscapes. They are the non-plant structures and materials of your landscape design. This category, whether custom or not, include landscaping elements such as decks, patios and courtyards, garden arbors and arches, pathways, gates and fences.

Exterior wall fountains make stylish additions to your landscape. The clients of Exterior Worlds have found that they add auditory pleasure and visual charm as they direct the admiring eye across the outdoor design. In addition, they are extremely versatile, taking center stage as a large water fountain that covers an entire wall or fitting snugly into the odd corner.

If your plantings were chosen for their ability to attract wildlife, as with a butterfly garden design, you will find that fountains of all designs and sizes are excellent choices to make. Wall fountains naturally pair up with outdoor structures such as brick garden walls, whose rectangular surface seems to invite the gracefulness of water. Another excellent location for a wall fountain is a retaining garden wall—the moving water turns the retaining wall’s stolid and functional nature into an element of beauty. In fact, exterior wall fountains fit into any garden theme, from traditional to modern, from stone landscaping to shade garden design.

Exterior Worlds recommends that you consider a custom fountain. Our custom-built water fountains address any design problems upfront, such as the problem found in pre-fabricated fountains when water bounces out of the fountain. This over-spray leads to subsequent problems, such as discoloration of the surrounding material due to Houston’s hard water and the area near the fountain becoming slippery and moldy.

You can find exterior wall fountains in a variety of materials, including stone, slate, cast concrete and metals, such as copper and steel. We highly suggest that, in addition to its visual quality and attraction, durability be an important characteristic you look for since you want your fountain to withstand the constant contact with water and Houston’s various—and notorious—weather conditions.

You will also want to include the fountain in your overall residential landscape lighting plan in order to maximize your overall pleasure in it. As your lighting design experts, Exterior Worlds will help you imagine the wall fountain in daylight and nighttime conditions. We will use lighting techniques that make it a nighttime highlight or a subtle accent, depending on what you want to achieve.

From a design viewpoint, wall fountains are adaptable and flexible resources, a quality that has to do with their varying sizes. At one end of the spectrum, you could install a freestanding wall, complete with fountain, within the spare lines of a contemporary backyard design. Or if you have a wall niche in a small side garden, one can fit perfectly there. In the same manner, a wall fountain at your front entrance establishes a welcoming ambiance. Your imagination and good taste should be your guide you as you contemplate installing a water fountain. It will provide you with years of pleasure and peace—which is a fine investment for your property and for you!

Swimming Pool Landscape Design

For a Houston landscape, a swimming pool landscape design is often the pièce de résistance. Our climate invites the presence of a pool and people are naturally drawn to it. The creativity applied to the attendant landscaping only heightens the impact. Not merely the glue that holds everything together, a pool and its landscaping are the jewels atop the crown.

Exterior Worlds offers luxury designs that take the basic elements of swimming pools and give them sophisticated élan, creating a special atmosphere for all your festive occasions. Our swimming pool landscape designs allow you to move seamlessly from the interior to the exterior with the pool area functioning as a continuation of your living space. Because it serves as this linkage, it is imperative that the swimming pool design properly complement the architecture of your house. Our professional landscape designers will help you achieve all the prerequisite demands.

There’s even good news for homeowners of older residences with pools designed and built in, say, the 70s and 80s. If you’ve been looking with desire at the latest shelter magazines with their exquisite spreads of swimming pool landscape designs, a swimming pool restoration or swimming pool remodeling project from Exterior Worlds could be your solution.

A restoration project is the least involved of the two projects. Perhaps the pool’s shell could use re-surfacing to achieve a particular aesthetic that is available with today’s product offerings. Or it could mean updating the pool decking with more current material choices.

With a remodeling job, however, a complete re-do is required. It is a project that involves reconsidering your pool area and tailoring it to your specific site, including terrain, tree elements, drainage and all structural architecture, and complying with your specific needs and desires. Since no two remodeling jobs are ever alike, an Exterior World’s professional design team is best suited for this extensive venture. Bottom line, though, both re-do options are viable alternatives to consider.

Items to consider in your swimming pool landscape design:

• In conjunction with your swimming pool designer, you will first need to ascertain the best location of the pool, a choice driven by the space available and the spatial relationship of the house and yard. You want it to be eye-catching and inviting. At the same time, you want it to fit the space without overpowering it.
• Another major element is the patio, the wonderful and much-used outdoor space is often the “living room” of your backyard. Common construction types include flagstone patio, wood patios and patio pavers.
• One feature of the pool to pay close attention to is the pool coping. Coping is the masonry product that sits on the edge of the pool’s shell, often rising above the patio and is the hard surface on which you sit when you dangle your feet in the water. Coping material choices are driven by two functions: compatibility (it should be coordinated with other material choices made for your home and landscape) and safety (it needs to be a non-slippery surface like brick or stone).

For more than 20 years, Houston has turned to Exterior Worlds for high-end landscape design and services, including custom swimming pools. 713-827-2255.

Your Front Yard Landscape Design

A front yard landscape design speaks volumes. It clearly sends messages like “All are welcomed here” or “We like our privacy” and is the first thing that registers with people about your home. As professional garden designers, Exterior Worlds can bring all your landscape design elements together. We help you make decisions on lighting, plant placement, the use of various plant textures and the best focal points. Employing sound design principles and our years of horticultural expertise, we can transform your yard into an image of pleasure that greets you every time you pull into the drive.

One way to add a big wow factor to your front yard design is by selecting a theme. This concept works best when coordinated with the architecture of your home. For instance, rock landscaping accentuates a Southwestern style home or a home built in the style of a French chateau invites a formal garden.

However, a simple choice can make an impact in your front yard landscape design. Planting annuals puts sparkle in all outdoor environments. Any well-drained garden spot, including pots and urns, can be used, with the ideal location being one that is highly visible and thus lends itself to maximum effect.

Typically one of the most prominent features of the front yard, driveway designs include the circular drives and the straightaway drive, sometimes with an apron for additional parking. While driveway designs need to be practical above all, we can help you add a design element to them with your choice of materials, such as stone, brick, pavers, decorative concrete and combinations thereof.

A wrought iron driveway gate completes a driveway with its powerful presence. Wrought iron, sometimes called ornamental iron, has utilitarian value, too, since it is practical in matters of security. These gates let you control who has access to your property when outfitted with an automatic gate opener, remote controls, sensors and code entry keypads. Wrought iron gates work wonderfully well with fencing that is also made of wrought iron, a choice that brings unity to your overall design, and equally well with wood, stone and brick fences.

When planning your front yard’s design, Exterior Worlds likes to include the side yards. They may present an opportunity for a small garden design, which will further unite the different zones of your property into one cohesive look.

While the front yard landscape design is always important for your daily pleasure, it is particularly significant when you need to sell your property. Exterior Worlds are experts at creating what real estate agents call curb appeal in your Houston landscape. Studies have proven that professionally designed and maintained residential landscaping is a major player in adding value to your property. It is an investment in your pleasure now. It is also an investment in the future with an expected return, often several times over, when you sell your home. Let us use all the landscaping elements at our disposal to create a valuable and sophisticated front yard landscape design for you.