Garden Decorating Ideas

Step into your outdoor space with a notebook and pencil in hand and sketch your garden space. You don’t need tape measures or rulers. Just approximate the scale as best you can. Fill in with bubbles to represent the trees and shrubs and other landmarks.

When you’re outside, observe your landscape from many points of view. What draws your attention when you’re approaching the house? Think of how you can use paths and plants to draw in visitors and guide their steps.

Look for the focal points in your landscape. Elements like plants, paths and grass guide the eyes to this attraction. Focal points include water features, pergolas, patios and even trees. Your landscape may include a single focal point, or several.

We grow flowers and shrubs for color, but that’s not the only way to bring a vibrant pop to your garden. A bright painted door on a garden shed can transform your garden. You can paint trellises and arbors that will hold heavy vines in summer. In winter, the bare architectural feature will stand out with a bright coat of paint. Birdhouses and peace poles are whimsical and colorful, too.

In the Paint Center, look for front door-type paints sold by the quart that transform your garden space in under a day.

Arbors and gates welcome visitors to your garden and frame the view. They make a colorful statement when planted with climbing roses or tropical vine plants.

Garden gates can be heavy-duty doors that will protect your garden and keep pets and children safe. They can also be ornate and decorative.

Trellises are closely related to arbors, but they’re more practical. Trellises support vegetables like twining cucumbers or rambling tomato vines. Trellises keep vines like jasmine from becoming unruly in the summer heat. In your garden, employ trellises as focal points. Obelisk style trellises showcase structural shapes that look good even in a bare winter garden.

Tip: Make garden features stand out with a coat of bold colored paint.

Paths guide visitors in your garden, as well as define the landscape’s edges. Wood mulch, pea gravel, decomposed granite and brick are common path materials. Paths should be about 4 feet wide to accommodate two people walking side-by-side.

Make your garden more accessible by design. A 5-foot width allows for a wheelchair to make a 180-degree turn. Making a path 6 to 7 feet wide allows for two wheelchairs to pass. You can use fine crusher run gravel or upgrade to a paved path or pavers.

Learn more about creating paths in your landscape.

Benches should be part of every garden landscape if only to remind gardeners to sit down and enjoy the beauty. Benches are made of wood, metal, resin, concrete and other materials.

Place a garden bench in a quiet spot and observe birds and butterflies visiting your plants.

You’re never too old to try out a garden swing. Choose an outdoor swing with a canopy and fill it up with decorative outdoor pillows for a personal garden retreat.

The sound of flowing water in a garden is soothing. It masks noise from busy streets and loud neighbors. You can add plants and fish to a small pond in your garden. Include a small bench to sit and soak up the experience.

In the Garden Center, find all the materials and tools you’ll need to create your own water features for your garden.

You can experience water features with tabletop fountains and rain chains. Decorative rain chains make rainy days more fun by directing rainwater from a gutter to the ground. Rain chains are a savvy replacement for unattractive downspouts.

Attract fine-feathered friends to your garden with bird baths, bird feeders and bird houses. The nesting creatures will appreciate the habitat and flourish in your backyard.

Plant trees, shrubs and perennials with fruit, berries and seeds to sustain the birds. More than 90 percent of birds feed insects to their young. Fill your garden with flowers that lure beneficial insects for the birds. Install bird feeders throughout your garden to attract different kinds of birds, like hummingbirds, robins and chickadees.

Birds need fresh water for bathing and drinking. Look for a bird bath that’s fairly shallow – no more than 2 inches deep in the center and a half-inch deep at the edges. Keep bird bath water fresh, especially in summer. That's when mosquitoes are active and can lay eggs in stagnant water.

Learn more about How to Feed Birds.

Bring whimsy to your garden with decorative accessories like gazing balls, flags and statues. No matter your gardening style, you’ll find garden objects that express your personality.

For a classic style, look for sundials and gazing globes. Shiny, mirrored gazing spheres catch the eye and reflect light throughout your garden.

Garden statues, whether playful critters, saints, gnomes or yeti, come in all sizes for your garden space. Delight visitors to your garden by placing statues and accessories throughout your landscape.

Tip: Sometimes a little artistry goes a long way. Too many accents in a garden can appear cluttered. Best advice is to choose your favorite style and stick with it.