Landscape vs Hardscape: What's the Difference Between These Two Outdoor Living Practices?

It's pretty exciting when your new landscape designer shows up to discuss re-doing your backyard. You pour some coffee, get all your Pinterest photos out, and prepare to make some amazing plans.

There’s talk of landscaping, hardscaping, softscaping and you suddenly realize you’re not completely sure you know the difference.

What’s the difference between hardscaping and landscaping? What is softscaping?

While hardscaping deals with hard elements like pavers, and softscaping entails natural features like plants, they both fall under the broader term of landscaping.

So, then, what’s hardscaping vs. landscape construction?

Better pour more coffee. Keep reading to learn more, including:

• What is landscaping?
• What is hardscaping?
• What is softscaping?
• What's the difference between hardscaping and landscape construction?

First, What Is Landscaping?

Landscaping involves changing and improving the assorted features outside a home or building, using plants, altering the terrain, and adding living and manmade elements with a plan to improve things and create appealing, usable spaces.

Under the larger umbrella of landscaping, a landscape designer creates a plan that uses natural elements like trees, shrubs, plants, flowers, sod and mulch, as well as manmade features like paver patios and walkways, stone fire pits, wood or vinyl pergolas to improve the space.

What Is Hardscaping?

Hardscape includes the non-living elements of your landscaping — materials like concrete pavers, stone and gravel.

What’s landscaping vs. hardscape? Hardscape is just one type of landscaping — using hard materials to improve your outdoor space.

Check out these hardscaping ideas:

• Craving a new paver patio as the artistic centerpiece of your outdoor living?
• A nice big go-to expanse for grilling, dining, and lounging? Maybe even a couple separate outdoor “rooms” for different purposes? That’s hardscaping.
• Yearning for a cool stone fire pit where the whole family gathers for gooey s’mores, or you sneak away for a romantic date night with a bottle of wine and a bag of Cheetos? That’s hardscaping.
• Want to tap into your inner artist and create a paver driveway unlike anybody else’s in the neighborhood, with high-end appeal, intricate designs and the sturdiness to last for decades? That’s hardscaping.

All these hardscaping ideas use hard elements like concrete pavers or stone to create appealing and usable new spaces.

What is Softscaping?

Softscaping includes the landscaping elements that you’d find in nature — trees, shrubs, flowers, soil, bark mulch.

What’s softscaping vs. hardscaping? Softscaping uses soft, organic materials that grow in nature, while hardscaping uses hard, non-living elements like concrete and brick.

A few examples of softscaping:

• Time to tear out your thin, leggy 20-year-old shrubs and give your front yard a boost with more modern layers of pretty perennials and graceful ornamental grasses? That’s softscaping.
• Want to perk up your pool area with an appealing tropical jungle of crotons, bromeliads and philodendrons for the ultimate vacation vibe? That’s softscaping.
• Ready to replace your weedy, struggling lawn with a luxurious green carpet of new sod? That’s softscaping.
• Feel like going green with a wildlife garden of native plants to create a backyard haven for birds and butterflies? That’s softscaping.

All these great landscape renovations involve green, growing plants found in nature.

What's the Difference Between Hardscaping and Landscape Construction?

Landscape construction uses hard elements, too, but it typically goes beyond the typical paver project to include building something more expansive.

A few examples of landscape construction:

• Pondering a pretty pergola to cover and shade your patio, highlight your flower garden, or provide a private backyard getaway for you, your new book and pitcher of margaritas? That’s landscape construction.
• Wish you could turn mundane cooking into a festive party, with an outdoor kitchen where guests can happily gather around the grill, grab their own drinks from the fridge, and groove to the music? That’s landscape construction.
• Dreaming of a pond on your property with a cascading waterfall where you can relax and melt away the stress of the day? That’s landscape construction.

All these projects involve materials and equipment that go beyond just concrete pavers or stone.

Need Landscaping? Hardscaping Ideas? Softscaping? Trust Ground Source

Now that you know the difference between landscaping, hardscaping, softscaping and landscape construction, you want it all, right?

You’ve come to the right place.

A landscape renovation can include a fresh new sod lawn. A cozy fire pit. A shady pergola. An outdoor kitchen. Vibrant new foundation plantings. A multi-level paver patio. New pool plantings.

Top it all off with a dependable irrigation system and luxurious outdoor lighting to make it all glow after sunset.

Do you want to have to deal with a whole handful of different Florida landscaping companies to get your dream yard? Or make it easy and choose a full-service landscaping company with skilled and experienced designers who can lead you through the whole process, making it fun and easy.

Not all landscaping companies are full-service landscaping experts. Look for one with skilled and experienced hardscaping and landscape design in Central Florida who can help you with the total package.

We’re landscape design experts, but our skills don’t stop there. We’re with you every step of the way as you plan your perfect outdoor space.

Sod, irrigation, landscape design: let us transform your yard to a place you spend every spare minute.

Are you ready to enjoy the vibrant, impressive yard you've always wanted? Request a quote today! We’ll help you review your options and then transform your property.