Sunny Landscape Ideas (2024)

The bright days of summer bring out the best in flower gardens. Try the ideas in these sunny landscape gardens and enjoy the blooms (and your neighbors' envy) all summer long.

Hardscape and softscape elements complement each other in this sunny bed.

Stone columns define the edges of a slim garden bed.

A wood fence provides the flowerbed with a bright backdrop.

Planted at regular intervals, ravenna grass offers wispy foliage.

Large patches of Shasta daisy accent the color of hardscape elements such as a fence.

Purple asters lend pops of color to the space.

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Gorgeous Garden Bed

Sunny Landscape Ideas (1)

Foliage and trees fill a gently sloped site.

Many trees do best under the warmth of full sun.

Curves in this sunny garden bed soften the squares and angles of the house behind it.

Sun-loving beds aren't just for flowers; consider ornamental grasses, which often demand full-time rays to reach their full height.

Lavender and black-eyed Susans provide pops of color in the garden bed.

Plants conquer the gentle slope of this site, filling what would otherwise be a boring garden vista with graceful foliage and blooms.

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A Tower of Plants

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Tall flowers play up color and foliage.

An open spot in a lawn provides a good place for tall, sun-loving flowers.

Most ornamental grasses love full sun. A bonus: They offer structure during winter months.

If plants need day-to-day maintenance, such as daylilies that require deadheading, put them in front to enable easier access.

Many flowerbeds include plants that gradually transition from short to tall, but this flowerbed offers dramatic height throughout.

Dahlias and lilies supply bright pops of hot color.

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Sun Lovers

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A lovely collection of plants adds beauty to a yard.

Place plants with contrasting colors—hot purples and pinks versus pastel oranges—in separate areas of a garden.

Edging can be formal or informal; the former, shown in this sunny bed, provide a neater border for a garden.

To draw winged visitors, offer a moving source of water, such as this pretty birdbath.

Patches of annuals, such as petunias, fill in empty spots in a mostly perennial bed.

Strategically placed stretches of boxwood break up large expanses of flowers.

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Bend in the Bed

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A rippling flowerbed dresses up a garden.

Undulating curves create a gentle edge to both the border and the beds in this garden.

In place of a hardscape material, a stretch of lawn serves as walkway.

A castor bean adds vertical height to the flowerbed.

Repeating plants, including delphinium and phlox, supply visual consistency.

Annuals such as snapdragons add welcome bursts of bright color.

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Pretty in Pastel

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A casual cottage garden distinguishes itself with a loose collection of plants.

Places to sit or display are often separated or surrounded by flowers; here, a table nestles naturally within a bevy of plants.

Glass cloches are used to shield plants from cool, early-season temperatures, but later in the year, they provide an interesting hardscape element for a garden.

Tall flowering shrubs, such as butterfly bush, supply vertical interest and draw wildlife, too.

Herbs are good additions to sunny gardens; they work well planted in-ground or in containers.

Clusters of pastel plants, including zinnias, coneflower, and cosmos, provide color without being overwhelming.

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Spectacular Blossoms

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Purples and yellows supply a flowerbed with subdued color.

Narrow beds are accessible from both sides, making them easy to maintain.

Repeating plants and colors, shown here in a planting of cranesbill and coral bells, fills a pretty flower border.

Mounding plants maintain a view of the rest of the garden.

To create a casual appeal to the garden, flowers and shrubs are left to grow in a natural pattern.

The foliage of bearded iris offers vertical visual interest to the garden.

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Right Angles

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Geometry supplies beauty in this stately garden.

A series of squares and rectangles lends calming visual interest.

Use sculptures and stately containers, such as the patterned pieces in this space, to reinforce your garden's design.

A long metal bench provides a spot to enjoy shrubs and trees.

Site tall trees and shrubs to shield house facades from view.

Showy flowers dress up most sun-loving gardens; this one relies on elegant compositions of shrubs to define interior spaces.

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Better Blooms

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A show-stopping collection of sun-loving plants supplies front yard brilliance.

A parking strip is the perfect place to include flowers.

Give a garden bed presence with an edging material that provides vertical support.

Nearly hidden by showy foliage, lower-height stucco walls offer terraces for plants.

Many flowers—iris, verbena, freesia, daisies—do double duty: Pretty blooms outside can be cut and brought indoors.

Pops of color brighten the ivy-covered front facade of this house.

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Bountiful Border

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Blooms brighten a slim space between sidewalk and fence.

A sunny spot is a good spot for a trellis planted with a climbing rose.

Matching containers planted with bright annuals flank a home's walkway.

Chosen for their height, flowering plants don't obscure the fence.

Grouping flowers in threes is a common planting rule of thumb, but alternating plants, as this border does, also offers a visually appealing design.

Lights cling close to the ground, supplying security and highlighting flowers.

Sunny Landscape Ideas (2024)

FAQs

What are the 7 principles of landscape design PDF? ›

Design principles include unity, balance, transition, focalization, proportion, rhythm, repetition and simplicity.

What is the best location for a garden to get sunlight? ›

The direction your garden faces helps you determine when it's exposed to the sun, and how bright that sunlight is. South-facing gardens get the most sun exposure.

How to tell how much sun a garden gets? ›

To determine your yard's sun exposure: Observe the planting area throughout the day. Make note of the times that receive direct sunlight, indirect sunlight, and full shade. Keep in mind any trees that will leaf out during the warmer seasons and cast shade.

Should a garden be in full sun? ›

For vegetable gardens, full sun is a requirement. You'll have some veg successes with less than 6 hours of full sun, but you'll have a lot of disappointments as well. It's a bit easier for the ornamentals. No matter what the exposure of your flower beds, there are great options out there.

What is the first rule of landscaping? ›

01: OBEY THE "LAW" OF SIGNIFICANT ENCLOSURE

The law of significant enclosure says that we feel enclosed when the vertical edge of a space is at least one-third the length of the horizontal space we're inhabiting.

What are the 5 elements of landscape design? ›

An aesthetic landscape design incorporates five key elements: line, form, texture, color and scale. The perfect balance of these design features appeals to the eye and brings harmony to a space.

How to make a sun map? ›

To map, simply go outside throughout the day and note where the sun hits your garden directly. You can do this with a different colored pen or a highlighter if that's easiest! Next, sketch any places in your garden that have shade on your piece of paper with a gray colored pencil.

What direction gets the most sun? ›

It's All About the Lighting
  • South-facing windows receive the most light and are the hottest.
  • North-facing windows receive the least light and are the weakest and coolest.
  • East-facing windows receive light in the morning and are weak and cool.
  • West-facing windows receive light in the afternoon and are strong and hot.
Nov 12, 2020

What is the best garden for sun all day? ›

South-facing gardens tend to see very little shade, as they see the sunlight for most hours of the day including the evenings. The advantage of a south-facing garden it is typically better for growing a wider range of sun loving plants and flowers.

How do I make sure my plants get enough sun? ›

An unobstructed south-facing window will provide the highest level of natural light for plants.

How much sun do tomatoes need? ›

Tomato plants need at least six hours of full sun exposure daily, but if you want to achieve the best results, increase the yield and grow sweeter fruits, you might aim to give your tomato plants at least eight hours of sun per day.

How much sun is considered full sun in landscaping? ›

“Full sun” definitely means at least six hours per day, but some plants such as vegetables really need eight to ten hours per day. “Partial sun” or “partial shade” means that the plant needs 3-6 hours of direct sun per day. The terms sometimes are used interchangeably.

Should I water my garden every day in hot weather? ›

During extremely hot weather (daytime temperatures above 90F and nighttime temperatures above 70F), try to water daily or every other day. In a 10x10-foot garden, this would mean giving your plants 8 to 9 gallons of water each day.

Which needs more sun, tomatoes or peppers? ›

Most types of peppers prefer as much sun as they can get. Like cucumbers, squash plants have very broad leaves and beg for sunlight. Growing them on a trellis or stand can maximize sun exposure. Like peppers, assuming plenty of water is available, tomatoes will always take as much sun as they can get.

Which vegetable plants need the most sun? ›

Vegetables which produce fruits generally like full sun, as the sun is an important element in producing the starches and sugars that give these vegetables their flavour. This includes tomatoes, eggplants, capsicum, chilli, cucumber, zucchini, pumpkin, sweetcorn, beans, peas and rockmelons.

What are the 7 principles of design and explain? ›

The fundamental principles of design are: Emphasis, Balance and Alignment, Contrast, Repetition, Proportion, Movement and White Space. Design differs from art in that it has to have a purpose. Visually, this functionality is interpreted by making sure an image has a center of attention, a point of focus.

What are the 7 steps to landscape design? ›

  1. Step 1: Plan a Landscape Project. Like any home project, planning is one of the most important aspects of re-landscaping your yard. ...
  2. Step 2: Remove the Lawn. ...
  3. Step 3: Install Hardscape. ...
  4. Step 4: Build a Healthy Soil. ...
  5. Step 5: Install an Irrigation System. ...
  6. Step 6: Purchase & Install Plants. ...
  7. Step 7: Water Efficiently.

What are the 6 rules of design? ›

Start with the six principles of design: balance, pattern, rhythm, emphasis, contrast, and unity. Just as instructional design models and methodologies shape your training strategy, so should these principles shape your basic visual strategy.

What are the three major principles of landscape design? ›

The principles of landscape design, namely proportion, order, repetition and unity, are the fundamental concepts of composition that professionals use to plan all kinds of open spaces.

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