Full feature article · Front Yards
Front Yard Kerb Appeal Design Ideas and Landscape Photos
The five metres between the footpath and the front door decide what people think of the whole house — path, planting, lighting and letterbox done properly.
Kerb appeal is not decoration, it is choreography. A visitor walks a fixed route from the street to the door, and everything they see on that walk forms their impression of the house. The best front yards make the route obvious, generous and pleasant: a wide path with a crisp edge, planting that changes as you move along it, a level landing at the door, and light where you need to see your feet.
Width is the most common failure. A path under a metre wide forces people to walk single file and makes a house feel mean, while 1.2 to 1.5 metres feels hospitable and allows two people to arrive together. The material should relate to the house rather than the street — large format pavers, exposed aggregate or bluestone laid with tight joints — and the edge should be defined by steel, stone or a clipped hedge so the line stays sharp for decades.
Planting in a front yard should be simple, structured and evergreen for most of the year. Three or four species repeated in blocks, one specimen tree positioned to frame rather than hide the facade, hedging to hold geometry near the boundary, and a groundcover or gravel instead of thirsty lawn in the awkward corners. Keep everything under sill height near windows so the house is never obscured, and keep the tree canopy clear of the entry so the door stays visible.
Details finish it. A letterbox and house number that match the architecture, a screened bin store, a hose point out of sight, a low wall or bench that lets the path pause, and lighting that reads as a sequence — a graze on the boundary planting, a wash on the tree, a warm light at the door. Done well, the front yard is the cheapest possible improvement to a house and the one every visitor notices first.
