Hardscape/Softscape Explained

When it comes to your Arizona backyards, Imagine Backyard Living provides many services to help you achieve the outdoor environment of your dreams. We believe that the exterior of your home is an extension of what is within and a beautifully landscaped outdoor living space can provide a refreshing setting for you and your family or friends to spend quality time together. We’ve partnered with Creative Environments and their team of experienced professionals specializing in successfully implemented custom designs to help bring these spaces to fruition.
Before getting to the details of a custom designed backyard, one must always start with inspiration and a little bit of background knowledge. Here are a few key terms when it comes to landscaping that can help you articulate the wants and needs of your space:
Hardscaping
This term refers to design elements that are made of solid, hard materials like patios, decks, outdoor kitchens, water features, and walkways, stairs, or retaining walls. Most often, hardscaping includes materials such as slate, flagstone, or concrete.
Softscaping
Just as the name implies, softscaping refers to landscaping elements that are non-permanent and made of softer materials than listed above. In this category you’ll find items such as plants, trees, flowers, turf and other organic materials. Softscapes can also be changed out. For example, a raised bed can be replanted with different plants to achieve different atmospheres depending on the time of year.
Landscaping
Together hardscaping and softscaping create a wealth of design options to fit any backyard. The combination of these two distinct material compositions allow for a balanced, well-designed, landscaped yard that is visually interesting and functional all at the same time.
If you are looking to remodel your existing backyard living space or are starting from scratch on a newly constructed home, allow Imagine Backyard Living to bring over 50 years of experience to the table to help you design and build a beautiful and functional space worthy of your dreams.