Having a beautiful garden can add peace and tranquility to any home and is certainly pleasing to the eye. It must be wonderful to hear friends and family comment on your pristine grounds. Your garden design can reflect and compliment your personal style and taste of your home environment.

Having your piece of home land designed or landscaped is a true form of art. There are certain elements that landscape artists consider when designing your ideal landscape. One of the main considerations is the budget available as landscaping can be costly and require maintenance to keep it in tip-top condition. Unless you have the finances to do it all at once, it might be a good idea to first start on a small scale and add to it as you have the money to expand and develop your garden.

It is also important to consider what you intend to use your land for. There is no use in designing your piece of land for ornamental and purely aesthetic purposes if you would like your children to play in the garden.

If you enjoy entertaining on a regular basis, your design will need to incorporate elements that will be conducive to entertaining such as covered patios and braai or barbeque areas and the like, where social areas are easily accessed.

The amount of maintenance your home ground will require is another element to consider. Hardy plants such as succulents are low maintenance and require little watering and attention whereas roses, for example, require pruning and dead heading to encourage bloom.

Large grassy areas, beautiful as they are, will need lots of attention if you would like it to stay neat and green as grass that is too long will look unsightly. Over grown hedges and shrubs cause a garden to look shabby and unkempt. Beds require regular weeding in order to maintain the designer look.

Themed gardens are also very attractive and can be low maintenance depending on the style chosen. These themed gardens can be adapted to your own personal taste and some unusual elements can be quite striking. Simply themed gardens can require little effort, such as stoned and pebbled areas instead of grass, hardy ever-green shrubs, aloes and other succulents can add interest and will pretty much look after themselves.

If you do not want to hire a professional, it is possible to do it all yourself. It will not only save you money but will also allow you the full enjoyment of designing and creating it all on your own. Researching types and styles of designs will give you a good idea of the layouts available for your type. You can also find out what flowers will work well in the different areas, such a shade, semi shade and full sun spots. Drawing or sketching your own design ideas as you research will help conceptualize and structure your future masterpiece.

If you would like to do it yourself but just do not quite have the confidence, there are many books and courses you can attend. Whether professionals are hired or you do it yourself, garden design can provide almost instant gratification or become a wonderful hobby for beginners.