Landscaping is a common feature in many yards that adds elegance and beauty. However, have you ever considered landscaping around your home’s foundation? Not only will it add beauty to your home but it also comes with benefits.
When it comes to landscaping, the planted areas of your yard receive more attention than the rest. As a result, the area around your home’s foundation may lack water and nutrients. Landscaping around your home ensures the foundation receives the care it needs.
It is important to note that all concrete structures should be properly built to allow water to drain away from the home. Otherwise, the water will puddle in one area, causing damage to both the foundation and the land. With that in mind, keep reading as we show you 15 of the best landscaping ideas along with tips on how to achieve each look.
We sometimes include affiliate links and curated AI content to highlight top design styles.
1. Jungle Landscape Featuring a Patio with Sofa and Pond
For this look, line your foundation with ivy and ferns, giving your home a nice jungle feel. You can even add a few banana trees.
Add a concrete patio with a nice covering and place a stylish sofa on the slab. Next, dig a pond, planting lily pads and other aquatic plants. This is a great time to splurge on a few koi fish for your pond as well. Before you finish, build a pier-type walkway along one edge of the pond.
2. Tropical Landscape
If you live in a warm climate, you can take this opportunity to design your foundation landscape with palm trees and banana trees. This design is well-complemented with a swimming pool and concrete patio area. Don’t forget to add small plants and shrubs around the outskirts of the swimming pool as well.
Coconut palm trees will be a large staple, while smaller items such as sago palms or fan palms will look nice in pots around the foundation.
If you want to create more relaxation, tie a hammock between two of the larger palms or add a hanging egg swing to the mix. Don’t forget to bring the look together with hibiscus flowers, elephant ear plants, and ferns.
View this egg swing on Amazon.
3. Modern Exterior Landscape
For a more modern design, you should concentrate on straight edges and very little clutter. Line the sides of your home and flowerbeds with gravel.
For a more lively feel, you can use colorful gravel options. Utilize plants such as ferns and sedge along the sides of your home. Next, create a walkway using stepping stones lined with pencil hollies to tie the look together.
4. Natural Stone Retaining Wall
One of the most beautiful landscape designs to go all the way around your foundation is a natural stone retaining wall.
Although it looks a lot more complex than the other structures, you can achieve this look on your own with a bit of hard work and determination. However, if you prefer, you can hire a professional to do it for you.
Watch this YouTube video to guide you through building your retaining wall:
Once you have built the wall, you can choose several plants to help achieve a personalized look tailored to your taste and style. A few options include colorful flowers like daisies and tulips as well as shrubs, ferns, and succulents. Don’t forget to add a few decor items such as hummingbird feeders, birdbaths, and solar lights.
Click here to see this birdbath on Amazon.
5. Flower Garden Surrounding Home
For this look, you will create a stone pathway all the way around your home. On the side closest to your home, plant small flowering trees and shrubs. On the other side of the walkway, arrange vibrant flowers such as lilies, daisies, and wildflowers.
If you want to add a little magic to the atmosphere, color the stones yellow to give off a Wizard of Oz vibe. You can even plant several apple trees in the front yard to tie into this theme. Next, place giant lollipops in the garden along with a scarecrow and maybe even a tin man.
6. Fairy Garden Landscape
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Surrounding your home with a fairy garden will bring out the wonder and excitement in everyone who visits. To achieve this look, use a combination of potting soil and mulch as you create the flower bed around your foundation. Place stones on the outer edges of the bed.
Click here to see this product on Amazon.
Succulents and ferns are wonderful options for plants, but wildflowers and daisies are a couple of other excellent choices. Once you have the plants situated, it’s time to add a magical touch by creating a fairy world. You can purchase figurines for fairy gardens, or you can create your own scenes.
One magical option is to fill a birdbath with soil, arranging your figurines on top of the dirt.
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7. Strategically-Groomed Shrub Landscape
This look is fairly easy to achieve, but you will need to keep your shrubs properly trimmed. If you don’t have any experience with pruning and shaping shrubbery, you may want to hire a professional.
Other than the shrubs and bushes, you will simply add a mulch garden base around the foundation of your home.
Take a look at this video guide to pruning bushes:
8. Desert Landscape
Maybe you live in the desert, or perhaps you just love the look. Either way, this desert landscape will bring out the beauty of your home. Since this design uses cacti, you will not have to worry about watering them when you are under watering restrictions due to drought.
This beautiful, white retaining wall is a look that you will likely want to hire a professional to help you achieve. Fill the retaining wall with black soil, and strategically place small cacti (such as Rainbow Hedgehogs) all the way around your home. For the corners of your foundation, use larger cactus plants such as saguaros.
Add some color and charm to your patio with Rat Tails.
Click here to see this Red Tail cactus plant on Amazon.
9. Rock Retaining Wall Landscape
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This beautiful look is quite easy to achieve. You’ll need to dig a small trench all the way around your foundation. Make sure it is several feet away from the home. Don’t forget to dig in a wavy design. Once you have dug your trench, you’ll pound your wooden blocks into the ground.
Now, attach wire to the front and back of your logs. The rest is simple. Fill the spaces between each log with large stones of your choice. Finally, fill the area between the wall and your foundation with mulch, and plant an assortment of flowers, succulents, and shrubs.
10. Landscaping with Logs
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This country design is easy to achieve. An assortment of ferns will be your go-to planting choice. First, you will need to dig a trench all the way around your foundation for the retaining wall.
Cut your wooden blocks to different sizes, then pound them into the trench. Once you have the retaining wall in place, it’s time to pour the soil, begin planting, and place your log slices.
Click here to see these wood slices on Amazon.
11. White Picket Fence
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Nothing quite says “American dream” like a white picket fence. For this design, go all the way around your foundation with white fencing. On the outside of the fence, plant tulips all the way around.
12. Wildflower Rock Garden
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This landscaping technique will give a crisp, clean look to your home. For the first step, surround the foundation with white gravel. Use this space to plant shrubs, placing them roughly three feet apart. Next, add a wavy garden of mulch and wildflowers along the outskirts of the gravel.
13. Rock Garden Landscape
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This design is chic and easy to achieve and maintain. Since there is no retaining wall, you will not have to dig a trench. Instead, line the sides of your foundation with flowerbeds.
Plant grass all the way through, blocking off sections with lava rocks and white stones. Finish the look by planting aloe vera and barrel cacti.
14. Succulent “Stream” Landscape
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This is another design that does not require a retaining wall. Create a flowerbed all the way around your home. On the outer edges, use light-colored gravel. Now, create the stream by using lava rocks on the outer edges, leaving a space in between for your plants. Make sure to create curves.
In the middle of the lava rocks, you will place your soil and succulents. On the outside of the curves, create a circular planting space for a couple of larger succulents to tie the look together.
15. Spilled Flower Pot Landscape
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This landscaping features a retaining wall all the way around your foundation. Fill with mulch and your choice of plants. Along the way, strategically place large flower pots tipped on their sides. Fill the pots with white gravel, allowing it to spill over into the garden.
View these wooden planters on Amazon.
In Closing
When you think of landscaping, you probably imagine beautiful flowers in the front yard. However, your home can benefit greatly from landscaping around the foundation. Use the above ideas to get started, or create your own landscaping ideas around your house foundation.
For more tips, check out these other posts:
What Color Landscape Rock With A Red Brick House?
21 Ranch House Landscaping Ideas To Inspire You