Inspiring front garden ideas for your home from across Australia

In this piece, we've curated a selection of front garden ideas from some of the most beautiful front gardens from properties across Australia. Some of these ideas are simple, some a little more complex, but one thing is for sure: you'll find plenty of easy to implement no matter the size or shape of your garden.

If you have a particularly narrow entryway to your home, or have some stairs leading up to your entrance, consider placing plants or a hedgerow on either side of the staircase. You can go for evergreen plants if you're looking for a year round solution, for a splash of colour feed in some flowers for a welcoming appearance. To further accentuate your staircase, consider installing step lights within the risers for a modern look that also improves visibility at night.

Featured Project: Coastal Life by Secret Gardens

A simple front garden patio can be an easy way to stylise a front garden. You can use irregularly shaped pavers for a more customised appearance or fixed shape pavers for a more traditional design. Arrangements can also be customised as well. Maybe you want a classic fixed patio design, or you can create a pathway leading visitors from your front door to the street.

Featured Project: Dover Heights by Garden Society

For an impactful front garden that requires minimal upkeep, consider using decorative rocks as a central feature. They add natural texture and can be arranged in different shapes and patterns to create a rugged, yet polished landscape. You can place larger boulders as focal points among native shrubs and ground covers, or use smaller pebbles to fill spaces between plants. Sprinkle in some bunches of decorative grass to add another dash of variety to the garden.

Featured Project: Contemporary Native Garden by Dream Design Scapes

To create a lush leafy retreat in your front garden, focus on a variety of foliage with different shapes, sizes, and shades of green. Broad-leafed plants like the bird of paradise can serve as elegant architectural features, while the rich tones of red and purple from plants like bromeliads provide a vivid contrast. Arrange these against a backdrop of softer, silver-foliaged plants to add depth and interest. The diversity of leaves can turn a simple garden into a textured, verdant paradise that feels both vibrant and serene.

Featured project: Rozelle Garden by Garden Society

Sometimes, greenery doesn't need to be a priority in a garden, and you can achieve the look you want with a standout material such as concrete. Materials such as this are particularly beneficial if you want to create a cohesive look between the cladding and building materials of your home's exterior and your front garden. For example, contemplate building a timber deck in your front garden if your exterior contains many timber elements. Or, if your home has concrete elements, such as in the example below, consider how to place large concrete slabs or pavers in your garden for design consistency.

Featured Project: Hedderwick Street by Peachy Green

There are a tonne of different accessories that you can use to style your front garden. Some of the most popular include outdoor cushions, wall decor, decorative lanterns, letter boxes, vases and plant pots and hangers. The options are pretty much limitless, and you can get as creative as you want, without breaking the bank.

Featured project: Waters Edge by Secret Gardens

For a clean, slick front garden, think about stripping back the design and getting rid of anything you deem to be taking up too much space or not contributing to the aesthetic you're looking to create. If you have a gravel driveway, an idea would be to keep the space you need to park completely clear, and in the 'garden' area, lay pavers or dot trees or decorative plants across the space. It only takes a little to create a front garden or driveway area that's not overcrowded but still looks fresh and pleasing to the eye.

Featured project: Torquay Project by Greysea Landscape Group

If you have multiple elements in your front garden, such as a lawn (or divided lawn) and a pathway, you can choose materials and tones to create a colour contrast. The easiest way to do this is to choose outdoor tiles, slabs or pavers with a strong colour, such as red or orange, that contrasts with the dark green of grass or plants - a simple way to make your front garden immediately eye-catching.

Featured Project: Hunters Hill by Utz Sandy Architects

For a front garden that truly awakens the senses, incorporate a palette of plants known for their rich hues. Bottlebrush with its striking red brushes, Hardenbergia with deep purple blooms, and the golden tones of Banksia flowers are all excellent choices. These plants are well-loved in Australian gardens for their vibrant colors, resilience, and ability to attract local fauna. Adding these to your garden will create a lively display that's both beautiful and beneficial to the environment.

Featured Project: Northcote 02 by Josh Norman Landscapes

If you only have a small place to play with you my want to keep expansive designs to a minimum, and prioritise well-designed elements such as flower beds that have a simple structure, and clearly defined edges. If you have multiple flower beds or planting areas consider keeping the design the same for all of them to keep things straightforward and maximise open space.

Looking for a way to make your home stand out? Adding a touch of mystique to your home's front garden and entryway is a great way to do it. There are plenty of ideas to try out, for example, you could install a gate adorned with intricate designs such as vines, leaves or mystical creatures. Or add a winding pathway using natural stone pavers or reclaimed bricks; you could also add a water feature like a small fountain or pond for a captivating focal point.

Featured Project: Withycombe by Landsberg Garden Design

Welcoming guests starts at the front garden. You can create an inviting, warm entrance by adding a selection of exotic plants that are surprisingly easy to care for. Look for varieties that stand out for their vibrant colours or unique textures, like the Kangaroo Paw, with its tubular flowers, or the soft, silver foliage of the Cushion Bush. Consider the Bird of Paradise for a dramatic touch with its crane-like flowers. These plants are robust, handle a range of conditions, and can thrive in pots, offering flexibility for shifting displays as seasons change.

Featured Project: Forest Creek by Landsberg Garden Design

The Hamptons style is very popular, particularly within coastal homes in Australia. You can embrace this sophisticated, yet simple style in your front garden with a blend of structured and lush plantings. This can be achieved by adding layers of greenery with different heights and textures to create depth. A well-manicured lawn paired with informal clusters of blooms can evoke that feeling of coastal elegance. Opt for shrubs that offer year-round foliage and intersperse with seasonal flowers for a dash of colour.

Consider the natural flow from the street to your front door, perhaps with a curving path that invites visitors to enjoy the garden's tranquillity. Choose materials, plants and landscaping materials that complement the existing colours and textures of your home’s exterior to create a cohesive look.

Featured Project: Custom Hamptons Style Gregor's Creek by Dion Seminara Architecture

To create a front garden that’s both modern and low-maintenance, aim for a selection of plants that naturally keep their composure with little effort. Choose varieties that provide structure and can handle a trim, but also let their natural shape do the talking. A tidy lawn sets the stage for the rest of the garden, offering a calm, green backdrop.

For textures and shapes, pick a few plants that catch the eye without overwhelming the space. They should complement the house’s architecture, subtly echoing its form and enhancing its presence. Try and keep your colour scheme simple. A few shades of green can provide contrast and depth without the need for constant flowering plants.

Featured Project: Kew East by Andrew Plant Landscapes

For a front garden that acts as a conversation starter, go for flowers that pack a punch. Use bright purples to grab attention. Pair them with some contrasting textures from grasses and softer-hued plants to break it up. Stick to a few types that are easy to handle and work well together. They should be the kind that keeps things looking full and lively without needing a lot of fussing over. Keep it practical, let those blooms stand out, and you’ll have a garden that says ‘welcome’ in full colour.

Featured Project: Ballerina Garden by Impression Landscape Design

You can keep your garden stylish yet private with a few tweaks. You can install a classic picket fence that keeps your garden private but still allows the beauty of your house to shine through from the street. If you want to keep your home even more private, you can prioritise a larger fence or strategically place thick, lush hedges behind the fence for an extra layer.

Featured Project: Creekbridge by Daniela Fulford

Planters can be more than just containers for your plants, you can use them to shape the design of your garden. They can be placed around in nooks between hedgerows, underneath archways or canopies and anywhere else that may be appropriate. Hanging baskets can also draw the eye upwards and help you maximise space. Pots and planters can be used to shape your garden particularly around pathways and dedicated flower beds.

Featured Project: Doyle Residence by Glasshouse Projects

In small front gardens, every inch counts and a bit of creativity can be needed to make the most of the space. An easy way of doing this is to embrace the natural features already present in the garden; this could mean creating a compact flower bed around a large tree and incorporating shade-loving plants that will thrive in the area. You can still have room for a pathway, dedicated flower beds and more fun features such as a swing, garden table or bench.

Featured Project: Malvern Three by Andrew Plant Landscapes

If your garden is home to a variety of flowers, pots, and plants, or if you intend to introduce more greenery, it's essential to allocate adequate space for them to flourish. This might mean reducing the expanse of your lawn or the breadth of your pathways to establish distinct zones for your flowers. Give each plant the room it needs to grow without competing for light or nutrients to maintain and improve the overall health and beauty of your garden.

Featured Project: Highvale Road, Glen Waverley by Bayon Gardens

There you have it, nineteen fantastic front garden ideas from some of Australia's finest homes. Whether it inspires you to style your garden or start one from scratch, you'll have some great points of reference you can turn to to create your own dream front garden.

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