Part 3: Hard landscaping

2. Garden structures

A garden structure is anything that has been built from hard landscaping materials (as opposed to soil or planting) in a landscape.

A structure can be functional, which means it has a practical use, or it can be aesthetic, which means that it is artistic or has visual appeal. In practice most structures are designed for both their function and aesthetics so that they are useful but also look nice.

These structures might be considered more functional than aesthetic:

Concrete laid out to look like planks.

Concrete path
Pixabay / Licence

A new build house with a tarmac driveway.

Tarmac driveway
Pixabay / Licence

A wall made up of concrete blocks in standard brickwork style.

Concrete block wall
Pixabay / Licence

Metal fencing and barbed wire above.

Metal fencing
Pixabay / Licence

These structures might be considered more aesthetic than functional:

Green copper dragon scupture with water pouring from mourth.

Water feature
Pixabay / Licence

Japanese style wooden pergola standing in gardens next to water.

Pergola
Pixabay / Licence

Ironwork sundial within a bed of orange flowers.

Sundial
Pixabay / Licence

Sculpture of a kneeling angel with wings pointing down onto grass.

Sculpture
Pixabay / Licence

A garden is a collection of functional and aesthetic elements combined. Some very functional items can be designed to be more aesthetically pleasing.

You could replace this:

Whirly-gig loaded with drying sheets.

Pixabay / Licence

with this:

A line full of washing drying in a sunny garden.

Pixabay / Licence

Or replace this:

A large manure tip at the end of a garden.

Pixabay / Licence

with this:

A wooden and metal fencing composting system in garden area.

Pixabay / Licence