Backyard Landscaping Ideas for Privacy

Creating a beautiful, secluded yard is a surefire way to boost your home’s value and create a stunning (and private) outdoor living space. Try our tips to build the perfect backyard get-away.

Depend on a Tall Fence

Decorative and useful hardscape pieces and plantings soften the lines of a towering fence.

• Simple detailing, including a wide cap piece, breaks up an otherwise overwhelming facade on an extra-tall fence.
• Hung on the fence, a decorative latticework sculpture serves as an outdoor-ready, artistic element.
• A low stone bench, with river rock collected on top and at the base, offers an additional seating spot.
• Near the base of the fence, lights provide a safety element and ambience for nighttime gatherings.
• Groundcover and a midheight tree soften the geometric lines of the paved seating area

Open Up for Privacy

A stripped-down fence and airy plants offer subtle screening from neighbors.

•  Two oversize urns planted with rhododendrons mark the transition from public face to private space.
• The open latticework fence offers a discrete but unmistakable barrier; bright green paint and wood framing gives it distinctive character.
• Double doors are a steadfast signal of a secluded area; the latticework details and wood inserts neatly complement the contrasting fence pieces.
• Lacy, branching trees gracefully arch up and over the fence for a soft, protective canopy.
• A wispy groundcover of sweet woodruff softens the space between gravel pathway and fence.

Use Lattice as a Screen

A fence and carefully chosen plants insulate a side yard.

• A clamoring vine -- here, Boston ivy -- softens hardscape edges and adds another layer of privacy.
• A door is a distinctive, uninterrupted signal of a private space; fitted with a small section of latticework, it includes a decorative element that repeats the design in the fence.
• While the fence's woodwork signals a secluded landscape, the lattice's open weave filters both sunlight and views.
• Low-growing shrubs, such as a dwarf globe blue spruce, provide a way to maintain a year-round, softscape barrier.
• A carefully chosen selection of plants and materials -- river rock, patterned pavers, variegated hostas, black-eyed Susans -- offers low-maintenance beauty.

Perfect Pairing

Plants and fence work in tandem to shield a front yard from view.

• A pergola can be a decorative piece and a privacy element; here, it's integrated into a fence.
• A few shrubs and plants, including coleus, soften the narrow stretch of space between pathway and house.
• Wisteria works in tandem with the more substantial privacy elements, including the stucco fence, to offer a second layer of screening.
• Balanced on top of the pergola, a wide, shallow container contains trailing plants.
• Two materials in the fence -- stucco and wrought iron -- break up what could be a static facade.

An Artful Fence

Distinctive features play up the elegance of a private patio.

• Most every fence needs edges and cap pieces; here an edge shaped into a curve and a cap piece in the form of a pyramid offer visual accents.
• Several sizes of similarly styled containers, planted with sunny zinnias, can be moved into different positions within a secluded nook to offer another layer of privacy.
• A trimmed boxwood shrub supports the style of the fence and closes the gap between public and private spaces.
• Trees, including a Japanese maple, planted close to house and fence enclose the area overhead.
• Richly stained wood doors break up a large expanse of stucco on the fence.

Ready for Roses

A fence offers seclusion and a space for a pretty plant's blooms.

• Architectural details on hardscape elements can add visual interest to privacy elements. Here, a gentle curve keeps the eye moving along the top of the fence.
• Rambling plants, such as this climbing rose, offer a pretty way to soften fences.
• The tight weave of the open latticework fence screens the view while allowing for good air movement and filtering light to the semiprivate yard.
• Grass that runs right next to a fence can prove difficult to mow; this backyard includes a wide berth, covered in gravel, to separate lawn and fence edge.
• Tall trees and an elevated urn mark the end of the fence and continue the separation between public and private.

Create a Restful Nook

Use plants to cocoon a garden spot. Trees often are used as a canopy over a quiet nook. Here a pergola serves the same purpose.

• In place of the heavy-duty look of wood, a delicate metal screen shields two chairs and a table.
• Plants can complement each other and hardscape elements. In this nook, a burgundy Japanese maple pops against the yellow stucco and picks up the colors in the chair fabric.
• Lower growing plants, including a climbing hydrangea, envelop the seating area, giving the setting softscape "sides."
• Pretty blooms, including astilbe, get a boost by being planted in an elevated container.

Fanciful Fence

Dress up a privacy barrier with accents.

• In a mostly hardscape section of the garden, mixing materials heightens visual interest. Here, pavers combine with river rocks and shredded wood for a distinctive edge.
• Garden ornaments, including an imaginative birdhouse planter and a series of bright purple paintings, adorn the fence.
• A pair of metalwork obelisks provides a spot for vines to clamor up.
• Staggered landscape elements, such as a raised bed, offer delightful garden details.
• A tall wood fence gets a pick-me-up with a simple latticework top.

Casual Corner

A few plants and accents create a pretty, private nook.

• Instead of continuing a paved section of the garden all the way to a privacy fence, a small planted nook offers a focal point and a softer edge.
• A cluster of hydrangeas, distinctive in both foliage and big blooms, takes the focus off the functional but monotone fence.
• Set on a stone pedestal, a showy urn moves the eye from the corner of the fence out toward the garden.
• Repeating patterns make the difference in even the simplest of landscapes. Here, the angles of the pavers are replicated in the angles of the corner bed.
• Tucked against the backdrop of the fence, two hanging baskets pick up the color of the blooms in the containers and in the ground.

Plants in Place of a Fence

Clusters of midheight to tall growers offer an appealing alternative to hardscape elements.

• Most homeowners rely on hardscape elements for privacy, but in this secluded nook, oversize ornamental grasses backed by larger shrubs and trees stand in for a fence.
• When the grasses are cut back in the spring, evergreen magnolia and Alaskan cedar maintain structural interest.
• Located in a large container, a water fountain helps filter out noise from neighbors, making the yard feel more private.
• While taller plants offer a natural "back" to the seating area, intermittent placement of midsize growers, including supplies a lower screen.
• An array of plants in oranges, light greens, and purples, such as coralbells, creates an attractive color palette.

Adapted from Better Homes and Gardens. Used with permission. ©Meredith Corporation. http://www.meredith.com. All rights reserved.