Garden Structures

What are garden structures?
Garden structures create visual interest and a point around which your landscape can develop. They can be practical, pleasurable or whimsical. They range from the elaborate, such as a wooden garden gazebo complete with an outdoor fireplace and built-in seating, to a simple rose trellis. If you have a garden structure in mind, Exterior Worlds wants to work with you to make your landscape come alive with your personal aesthetic.

Give me examples of garden structures.
A list of garden structures would include:
• Pergolas. A shade structure often built over a deck or patio, pergolas can be used as a trellis to support vines. Within a patio design, pergolas are outstanding additions to a covered outdoor room because the pergola’s open fratwork creates a transition space between the full shade of the room and the full sun of the yard.

• Outdoor gazebos. While many gazebo designs resemble Victorian-style structures, they can be designed to suit any setting, even a modern landscape design. Screened-in gazebos are practical for areas like Houston that have a problem with mosquitoes.
• Garden and wall trellises. A garden trellis is an outdoor structure, usually in a latticework, that supports plants and vines. A wall trellis works well in a Mediterranean landscape design, especially if near an outdoor kitchen. Your fresh vegetables are right at your fingertips.
• Garden arbors, also called garden arches. Whether singly or arranged in a series, arbors and arches are classical elements of landscape architecture. Either decorative or functional, they can be used to highlight an entrance or a pathway.
• Rose pillars. Think climbing roses, honeysuckle, wisteria and bougainvillea. Now put them on a single column and you have the garden pillar. Beautiful when placed by doors and gates, along paths, or beside a luxury swimming pool.
• Antique garden structures. Outdoor antiques, such as marble urns and columns, stone benches and gates, turn a nice landscape into something memorable.
• Pedestrian bridges. Bridges make eloquent statements and fit particularly well within a Japanese garden design.

What other elements of landscape design need to be considered when working with garden structures?
Landscape lighting, from the simple to the intricate, enhances outdoor structures. Landscape lighting heightens its beauty and the pleasure it provides while increasing the security of your property. By creating highlights, spotlights and shadows, your yard becomes something enchanting in the nightscape.

While these structures are appropriate for any home landscape design, they also serve a purpose within commercial landscaping. A pergola or gazebo in a commercial landscape design makes a good first impression. It also creates a respite for your tenants when they need a quiet lunch spot or a quick break.

Whatever your landscaping ideas are, you can always turn to the expert staff at Exterior Worlds. We are passionate about landscapes, form and function, and the world of design. We also have long-standing relationships with artisan craftsmen in the Houston area who can put your plans together with precision, integrity and dedication.