Boost The Allure of Your home With Landscape Walkway Ideas
Searching for great landscape walkway ideas is fun and exciting. Bringing those ideas to life is a bit more difficult. Often, after spending a weekend hard at work, the end result disappoints many DIYers. Without considering the home’s architectural style and surrounding landscape elements, most DIY walkways will fail to meet expectations.
Walkways Have Great Benefits
Often, we think of walkways as just a particular course leading us safely from one point to another. If you’ve ever walked across soggy turf to reach a front door, you understand the necessity of a designated pathway.
Additionally, pathways join different areas of your yard highlighting particular features on your property. Moreover, a designated path will keep visitors out of your garden and plantings.
Yet, a walkway should be much more than a functional element. The right pathway can give your home a warm, welcoming feel. Plus, installing the right walkway will create a sense of cohesiveness throughout your yard. Choosing the right materials connect your landscaping to your home.
Finally, you can create a particular mood just by the shape of your walkway. For example, straight pathways lend themselves to formal gardens. While curved walkways give a more natural, casual appearance.
Best Materials For A Walkway
Once you’ve narrowed down your landscape walkway ideas, designing and constructing a path may seem simple until you start to consider all the possibilities. Like many landscaping projects, choosing the best materials include several factors:
- Budget
- Home construction
- Purpose
Pricing for materials varies considerably from about $2 to $30 per square foot. However, choosing the cheapest material won’t always enhance your home. Thus, you need to also consider the surrounding landscape and architectural style of your home.
Additionally, the function of your walkway can help you decide on the right material. A well-traveled walkway needs to be able to stand up to constant foot traffic. While other pathways may have the occasional stroller.
Using a professional landscaper can help you design and choose the best material for your walkway:
- Brick
- Pavers
- Concrete
- Natural stone
- Gravel
- Wood chip
Brick
Often used for historical homes, brick walkways add a sense of elegance and grandeur. Plus, you can choose patterns like herringbone or basket weave to create interest. Moreover, bricks are durable and offer easy repairs. In addition, you can choose color variations of red, orange, and brown to contrast with your surrounding plants.
Pavers
Probably the most popular choice for walkways, concrete pavers offer plenty of size, shape, color, and texture options. Thus, pavers offer seemingly endless design options. Yet, pavers are also durable and affordable.
Concrete
If you have an older home, you may still have a plain, gray concrete walkway of the past. However, today’s concrete pathways can mimic natural stone or brick at a more affordable price. Plus, you can add a non-skid additive for a slip-resistant surface.
Natural stone
Your natural stone choices include granite, marble, limestone, travertine, and slate. Although a more expensive option, stone walkways are extremely long-lasting. Also, stone gives your home a natural, rustic look.
Gravel
Gravel also lends a natural, rustic appeal and is very inexpensive. It’s also easy to install and promotes good drainage. Often, manufacturers make gravel from recycled materials making it an eco-friendly alternative.
Wood chip
Undoubtedly, the easiest to install and cheapest material is wood chips. This material suppresses weeds, avoids water loss, prevents erosion, and looks attractive. However, wood chips will decompose and require a fresh layer every 2-3 years.
FAQs About Landscape Walkway Ideas
Often, the most important type of walkway is the path to your front door. Usually, homeowners have a straight path from the street or driveway to their front door. While this type of design is highly functional, it’s not very aesthetically appealing. To help you increase your curb appeal, we’ve answered some commonly asked questions.
What’s The Best Way To Landscape Around Walkway?
While a straight line to your front door is the most direct, linear lines can sometimes appear uninteresting. However, you can soften these lines by adding plants to create texture and movement. Low-growing ground covers, especially flowering ones, can add a pop of color.
Moreover, adding path lights to guide your guests safely to the front door is essential. Outdoor lighting can also create a warm and inviting feeling while adding visual interest.
Why Should I Hire A Professional Rather Than DIY My Walkway?
If you search the internet, you’ll find plenty of videos on how easy it is to build your own walkway. Often, the problem with these DIY helps is that they address the function of the walkway but not the beauty.
The truth is, many people do understand the mechanics of building a functional walkway. They dig to the proper depth, choose the best base material, and correctly edge the path.
Yet, beauty is also an important part of any landscaping element. Often, DIYers ignore the guiding principles of landscaping design and then wonder what’s wrong with their project. Your walkway should be eye-catching while creating a welcoming atmosphere.
A professional landscaper can create an alluring, inviting path that’ll be the envy of the neighborhood. Moreover, one of the premier landscaping companies in the Piedmont Triad area is Landscape Solutions & Design, Inc.
We can take all those landscape walkway ideas you have to create the perfect pathway. Whether you own commercial or residential property, we have the experience and equipment to beautify your land. Plus, we can show you how your new landscaping will look with our innovative 3D software.
Today, book your free consultation by calling 336-442-0160.