Do Front Landscaping Plants Need to Be the Same on Both Sides?

Balance

• Both symmetry and asymmetry can create a sense of equality in the landscape, though in opposite ways. Symmetry, which is easier to achieve, lends a formal character. Plantings in this style boast a strong, geometric form. Landscaping with an asymmetrical design gives a softer, more casual feel, suited for houses, as well as owners, whose identities reflect a relaxed attitude. Frequently, an asymmetrical balance proves harder to pull off. A way of explaining how to achieve this is to imagine a large, round weight placed on one side of a scale. To balance the other side, without using a matching object, you would have to find several smaller weights that would together equal the first weight. In this way, you create asymmetrical balance through careful arrangement of unequal elements.

Focal Point

• When planning landscaping around a house, the most important architectural element to highlight is the front door. Three features suggest matching plants on either side of the door: the presence of a small portico at the door; a pair of lanterns, one on each side; or matching side window panels on the door. These details override the fact that the house may have an asymmetrical form and the remaining foundation plantings may be informal. You can compromise by placing a balanced, mixed planting on either side of the doorway and varying the plants in the groupings. Modern door designs, particularly those featuring a single glass panel on one side, generally look more interesting with asymmetrical plantings.

Transition Zone

• Foundation plantings around a house, broken by the walkway and front door, create a transition zone from the building to the terrain of the earth. If successful, they frame the house and anchor it to its site. Of the principles of landscape design, the harmony, or unity, ranks first. A predominately symmetrical site plan can become more informal and asymmetrical as it moves away from the house into other parts of the yard. The variation works best if introduced gradually.

Planting Plan Testing

• To avoid wasted time and money, not to mention aggravation, you can first create a planting plan to scale on paper. Begin by taking a picture of your house, including the part of the site you plan to landscape. Enlarge the photograph to the size of a sheet of legal paper. Go through magazines and catalogs, cutting out pictures of trees, shrubs and flowers you are considering. Photocopy the plant pictures on white paper, trim around them, and enlarge or reduce them until they are in scale with your house photo. Front doors are generally about 6 feet tall, so use this figure to establish scale. Place the plant photocopies over the house picture with removable tape or rubber cement, moving them around until you are satisfied with the effect. To finish, trace the layered photocopy onto tracing paper, and color in the plants, if you wish.