Southern Customs in Landscaping

Porches

• Southern landscaping can revolve around the porch, which is often large and welcoming. Homes are often of a light color reflecting the intense sunlight, and greenery is everywhere. The front porch itself can almost act like a small gazebo, and can provide a welcoming introduction to the home. Porches are ornate, and woodworking is common. The greenery should act as a compliment to the rational geometric design of southern homes, based on neo-classical order.

Front Yards

• In the deep south, you can dispense with grass and use pebbles or mulch surrounding a walkway. House colors are always light. They can be light green, blue or yellow, which reflects both the heat and the surrounding vegetation. The entire ensemble of the landscape should give a sense of "oasis" or "shade," a shelter against the heat.

Contrast

• The neo-classical order so typical of southern housing is imposing and stable. It is based around sharp lines and angles, and is often buttressed by Grecian columns. The straight lines and angles of the typical home are complimented with such trees as the dogwood and some low lying shrubs. It is often a good idea to landscape with orange or peach trees, and to use flowers like azaleas that are resistant to drought conditions. The contrast here is between the orderly lines of the house and the very common flowering bushes, trees and flowers.

Proportion

• The southern landscape shows several important customs of design. First, the house is sheltered by trees to keep out the hot sun. The greenery is omnipresent, but is also ordered in a neo-classical style. There are "lines" or trees or shrubs which are functional, but clearly arranged according to the human, not natural, order. The neo-classical look induces columns, and this can be imitated in a shady tree line. Trees are natural columns, and the stateliness of an Old South mansion can be magnified with them. The greenery should compliment the structure of the home.