Extend Your Home to the Outdoors

I often think of a garden as a meeting place between people and nature. Think about it: without us, there would be no gardens, only wild spaces. By creating a landscape, we extend our homes outdoors.

In garden design, we often use the concept of “rooms” to create different zones or spaces within a layout. This idea is inspired by the principles of interior design and architecture, treating outdoor spaces in the same way as indoor spaces, with specific zones dedicated to different functions.

How to Design an Outdoor Room

If you’ve already drawn up a base plan and carried out a site analysis of the area you’d like to landscape, you’ve probably already determined the areas you’d like to include in your garden, such as a dining room, tool storage, herb garden or relaxation area. These will be your “rooms”. Before linking these rooms together to create a harmonious whole, it’s important to design each one carefully.

Function

To create a room in landscape design, start by defining its purpose. What will be its primary use: dining, relaxing, playing, gardening or entertaining? Also consider who will use the space and how it will be used. For example, a family might need a children’s play area, while an avid gardener will want a dedicated vegetable garden.

Location

Next, choose a suitable location by assessing your garden for sun exposure, shade, winds, soil type and drainage. Make sure the room is easily accessible from the house or other areas of the garden, and consider proximity to utility sources if necessary, such as water, gas and electricity. If you’re planning a dining area, it’s best if it’s close to the kitchen, while a vegetable garden will need plenty of sun and access to water. Also consider the surrounding area in terms of privacy and noise.

Layout

Planning the layout of an outdoor room involves ensuring that the space is the right size and proportion for its intended function. The first thing to consider is the room’s key elements. Place them first in your drawing and build around them.

Taking the example of a dining room, determine the size and shape of your table according to the number of guests you plan to welcome. Measure your existing table or go shopping and draw it on your plan. Leave at least 3 to 4 feet around the table for circulation. If you prefer round tables, a rectangular space may not be the right choice. For a fireplace, consider the size of the chairs you’ll be using, and leave enough room to move around without risk of burns.

Features

Think about the functional features you’ll need in your room. Make sure you have access to utilities like water, electricity or gas depending on the room’s needs. Choose appropriate seating and furniture, such as lounge chairs for a relaxation room or a dining set for an outdoor kitchen. Incorporate features such as pergolas, umbrellas or trees to provide shade and shelter, and include functional and decorative lighting to extend the use of the space in the evening. Make sure you have a water source close to your vegetable garden. Also consider storage space for tools, cushions or other items to keep the space neat and organized. It’s best to draw these items into your plan now to ensure you have enough space for them in the future.

Materials

Choose materials for paving and landscaping. Select durable materials for patios, walkways and other hard surfaces that complement the design and your home, taking into account factors such as cost, local availability, weather resistance, environmental impact and maintenance requirements. Stone is durable but expensive, pavers are cheaper but concrete has an environmental impact. In some regions, wood can be produced locally, but requires regular maintenance. Decorative stone or gravel is much cheaper, but doesn’t stay in place. Weigh up the pros and cons, and your wallet!

Select plants that suit the room’s function, microclimate, light conditions, pH and design theme, taking into account seasonal interest, maintenance requirements and overall visual appeal.

Repeat materials, plants or colors throughout your landscape for greater unity.

Connecting and Separating Rooms

Once your pieces have been chosen and arranged, you need to make sure you can distinguish them from each other while keeping them connected.

Délimitations

Define boundaries using physical elements such as walls, fences, hedges or trellises to create clear delimitations of space. Visual boundaries can also be established with changes in ground materials, plantings or low borders to create a sense of separation without physical barriers.

Since the garden is a place where we’re meant to coexist with the elements, flora and fauna, I find that plants are the best delineators: they can soften the hard edges of built objects with their organic shapes, offer varied heights and densities, and change with the seasons. They offer design flexibility, environmental benefits such as improved air quality and wildlife support, and act as barriers against noise and wind. What’s more, plants enhance aesthetics with their natural beauty, offer privacy without solid barriers and increase our enjoyment of outdoor spaces. Their growth and evolution over time add dynamic qualities that static built elements lack.

Make sure you leave enough space between rooms, at least 1 metre, so that plants have enough soil to grow. The same applies to the vegetable garden. I generally recommend beds of 1 to 1.5 m (3 to 5 feet) to reduce the ratio of beds to paths, allowing for more planting.

Walkways

The paths between rooms are crucial to functionality and aesthetics. Think about how you’ll get from one place to another, and how often. You want to keep traffic flowing while ensuring safety and accessibility. You might find it annoying to have to walk around tables and chairs and then jump over your children’s sandbox every time you want to add something to your compost.

The selection of materials must be durable and adapted to the climate. Driveways should be appropriately sized. You may need a wider paved driveway from your parking lot to your house, as you’ll often be carrying things and don’t want to trip over pebbles. Step stones could be used to access the bird feeders you occasionally fill at the back of your garden. Gravel or decorative stone is ideal for a fire pit used occasionally, while a wooden deck would be preferable for placing chairs and tables.

Conceptual Plan

Before going into too much detail, I usually create a few drafts of a layout plan. This allows me to try out different ideas. Remember, it’s much easier to draw something on paper than to make a mistake in its installation and have to start again. Use tracing paper to draw different versions of your landscape on your base plan or, better still, use an app and create different layers for each version of your plan.

Take your time. The most beautiful designs I’ve drawn have come to me through serendipitous inspiration. Put your plan aside for a while and come back to it later with a fresh mind. Share it with others, especially those who will be using it, and see what they think. Take a walk and look at other landscapes and borrow their ideas. It’s not a crime, unless you walk away with one of their plants!

Ideas for Outdoor Rooms

• Outdoor dining room
• Outdoor living room
• Outdoor kitchen
• Fire pit
• Herb garden
• Vegetable garden
• Children’s play area
• Ornamental garden
• Reading or meditation corner
• Outdoor gym
• Spa or relaxation area
• Entertainment area
• Outdoor workspace
• Greenhouse
• Tool storage area
• Orchard
• Fountain
• Pond
• Zen garden
• Rock garden
• Composting area
• Rain garden
• Vertical garden
• Miniature golf course
• Petanque court
• Open-air cinema
• Picnic area
• Sensory garden
• Plant maze
• Barbecue area
• Shade garden
• Flower path
• Butterfly garden
• Bird garden
• Water garden
• Mediterranean garden
• Tropical garden
• Medicinal plant garden
• Pet area
• Relaxation area with hammock

Share your ideas for outdoor rooms with us in the comments!