Pictures of a Mediterranean backyard landscape design built around a pond. The hardscape featured here includes: a patio, covered outdoor walkways, and a garden summer house. Ideas for landscaping a hill.
Safety Tip:
A pond should always be well lit at night.
You wouldn’t want a guest to accidentally wander into it.
Thoughtfully placed lighting can reveal drama and glamor you didn’t know your yard possessed.
The sloping terrain in this Spanish backyard made designing its landscape a tricky business. Installing a large pond on the flattest part of the site is an intriguing solution.
Water is always fascinating in a garden. Like a mirror, its surface reflects the objects surrounding it, creating an optical illusion and adding depth and color to the landscape.
Seating on the adjacent patio and walkways provides a comfortable vantage point from which to enjoy these features.
The square columns lining the walkways provide more architecture for the dark surface of the water to reflect and make the picture more interesting.
The slope is covered in Escallonia clipped to mimic the hillsides surrounding the house. Small pink or white flowers (depending on the cultivar) will appear each summer and contribute color to the scene until fall.
The summer house at the top of the hill is ringed with ivy, the deep green leaves of which contrast subtly with the lighter foliage of the evergreen Escalonia.
The summer house gives this backyard landscape design another focal point and also provides a different vantage point from which to view the pond.
The pergola-style covered walkway leads to the second level of this terraced landscape. A flowering vine makes a sun-filtering roof atop the structure and casts dappled shade which is sure to be appreciated in such a hot climate.
More Escalonia and ivy plants clothe the hill above the terrace. The curving path leads to another informal seating area.