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Five 2023 Landscape Design Trends to Improve Your Landscape

February 06, 2023

Now that 2023 is in full swing, many homeowners will be thinking about their landscaping goals and projects for the year. Burkholder offers five 2023 landscape design trends to incorporate into home landscapes. Now is the time to meet with your hardscape and landscape contractor, and these trends for 2023 are versatile and practical enough to be suitable for any property.

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A central theme of many of these trends is homeowners wanting to maximize their available spaces and use those spaces to their full advantage. A beautiful, sustainable garden or an entertainment area are just two of the many ways to combine style and practicality, which will be a big element of 2023 landscape design.

Five 2023 Landscape Design Trends

If you have been wondering what you can do to improve your landscape, here are some ideas to get you started.

1. Making the Most of Outdoor Spaces

As people remain in one home over many years, their desire to improve their homes and yards becomes stronger. Outdoor features and structures let homeowners expand the indoors to the outdoors, and this practice has been a growing trend for some time. For example, extending a deck or patio gives homeowners more options for outdoor fun and entertainment.

Our landscape designers help homeowners choose ways to make the most of their outdoor spaces, such as creating areas for gathering, entertaining, or simply relaxing. With extra usable space from custom decks and patios, people can have lounge areas with fire pits and comfortable furniture or add features such as pools and spas. In addition, pergolas and pavilions provide shade and protection for outdoor areas, making them usable for entertaining year-round.

Double sided fireplace with entertainment system and pergola | Landscape Design Trends | Burkholder

2. More Elaborate Outdoor Spaces

In addition to more outdoor features and structures, homeowners increasingly want these features to be elaborate and unique. Homeowners in 2023 are seeking innovative ways to use their yards and to spend more time outside with family and friends.

A pavilion can have overhead electricity so that space heaters can help homeowners enjoy the outdoors even in colder months. Another increasingly widespread feature of backyards is an outdoor kitchen with the following features to make an all-encompassing dining area:

  • Dining table
  • Seating area
  • Grill
  • Fireplace or fire pit
  • Pizza oven

3. Low-Maintenance Lawn Care

While many people love spending time outdoors, most of them likely prefer spending their time relaxing or playing outdoors instead of working. As a result, homeowners are often looking for ways to keep their landscape beautiful and make lawn care more manageable and convenient. One of the most obvious ways, and one of the growing 2023 landscape design trends, is an intelligent sprinkler and irrigation system that can minimize water usage to help save money.

Natural stone for patios, shrubs, trees, and drought-tolerant or other low-maintenance plants can help create a beautiful, unique landscape while needing minimal care. Using natural elements and intelligent design, you can maintain quality and a low-maintenance lawn more easily in 2023 than in previous years. And, of course, many residents choose to have professionals, like Burkholder’s professional maintenance team, take care of lawn mowing, tree and shrub pruning, and bed maintenance. Our sister company, Burkholder PHC, offers comprehensive plant health care to keep valuable landscape plants and trees thriving.

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Pergola away garden a swimming pool integration | landscape design trends | Burkholder

4. Ambient and Invisible Lighting

Great lighting for a patio, deck, path, pool, or other focal points in the backyard will always be popular. However, the type and style of lighting people desire in 2023 will differ. Sleek, minimalist lighting will be a more prominent 2023 landscape design trend. Techniques such as lighting the essential points and junctures of a path and hiding the lights that brighten up the home landscape are elements of invisible lighting landscaping trends.

Invisible lighting involves blending the lighting into the landscape. For example, long, linear lights beneath landscape structures create the illusion of floating structures. People are becoming more interested in seeing the light rather than the lighting fixtures, so invisible lighting will continue to gain traction in 2023.

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5. Mixed Materials in Hardscape

Hardscape describes the man-made features in landscape architecture, such as walkways, pavilions, and walls. Mixing and matching hardscaping elements and amenities or technology is a creative way to add beauty to your landscape in 2023. For example, creating a natural stone path to a sturdy wood pergola, with perhaps some metal furniture or a grill, can become a favorite sight.

Walls, decks, patios, and pools can incorporate these contrasting materials. In addition, hardscapes surrounded by vibrant, native plants and even soothing water features such as a fountain or a small pond create a unique outdoor living space.

All of these 2023 landscape design trends tie into a broader theme: creating a comfortable, easy-to-maintain living space that is unique to your home. When planning improvements for your landscape, consider making a unique, inviting space in your backyard.

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Burkholder’s team of landscapers and designers has the skills and passion for creating your ideal landscape. Our landscape professionals have served Main Line communities like Malvern, Villanova, and Bryn Mawr for decades, understanding their needs and providing all types of landscaping services. Contact us today to learn more about 2023 landscape design trends or our services.

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