You have just come back home after attending a house warming party at your relatives. They recently moved into a beautiful house in the neighborhood and you really liked the home. But what’s still fresh in your mind is theff outdoor landscaping that they have done in their yard. You have been thinking about working on the landscape in your backyard for quite some time now and this just might be the trigger that pushes you to finally work on it.

Though obviously there is a reason you have not been able to start work on it up till now. And that reason is that you don’t understand how to do it. Nor do you know the composition that makes up a good landscape.

To gain a better understanding of what a landscape consists of, you should understand its two main elements – hardscape and softscape. A good landscape design will generally include a combination of hardscape and softscape landscaping.

What is Hardscape?

Hardscape consists of, as the name suggests, hard materials. It represents those elements that don’t change in your garden as time passes. That is, you don’t have to change the materials frequently and only have to make changes after a considerable amount of time has passed such as ten to twenty years.

Hardscape Elements

Hardscape elements include elements that are solid. Some are even fixed but most of the others are easily movable from one place to another. But one thing that is uniform about all these elements is that they are not a living thing i.e. they are inanimate objects. They don’t wither away over time as living things do which makes them a great resource for people who are too lazy to take care of it constantly.

The main materials used for hardscape landscape are concrete, bricks, and stones. They are much more expensive than softscape materials and also take a much longer time to build.

What is Softscape?

Softscape consists of everything that is animated and can be included in landscape design. These elements are much softer than the materials that consisted of hardscape materials. They need to be replaced very frequently sometimes even monthly depending on the health of the materials. Most of the time, they require replacements seasonally.

Softscape Elements

The materials that can be included in this category are trees, plants, flowers, shrubs, vegetables, soil and so on. All of these materials are living organisms and not artificial. Softscape elements add a touch of nature to your landscape that is much needed for a healthy environment.

What Are the Differences Between the Two?

While they are both equally important, they differ in multiple ways. Let’s take a look at some important differences between hardscape and softscape.

• Hardscape materials are mostly artificial objects, unlike softscape materials which are living things.
• Softscape objects cannot be moved from one place to another while it is possible to do so with some hardscape materials.
• Hardscape materials are more likely to survive the change of seasons, unlike softscape elements which are most likely to wilt away after a short time period after which it needs replacing.

Remember, a beautiful landscape consists of hardscape as well as softscape elements. So, choose them wisely!