One of the most important aspects of landscape design, and this definitely applies to small spaces, is creating a front entrance that is inviting and curb appeal that is attractive and adds value to a home. Even if your front entrance is small, you can have a beautiful front entrance. Even if you have no front yard- your curb appeal can be maximized with careful planning and thought. You can easily use what small space you have to create a large impact on how the façade of your home feels and looks. An inviting and beautiful front to a home will increase neighborhood pride in ownership. It’ll add literal desirability to your home which adds value, important if you’re selling it.  And most importantly, a small, beautiful front space will bring you home each day with a smile. Here are three simple tips on how to create maximum appeal with your small front yard and space.

• Use vines! Vines are a small space’s best friend. In typical design, it’s easy to add impressive dimension by layering objects based on size, and this is especially important when it comes to landscaping the front yard. Taller objects are behind shorter ones, which creates dimension and can make an area appear larger than it already is by taking advantage of vertical space when horizontal space is limited. In an area that may not fit large trees and shrubs that add vertical elements to a front yard, vines can be substituted and can have the same effect. Use trellises that are specially designed to support vines of size, or sink trellises into the ground or in pots to support smaller vines. We love Clematis because of its beautiful and long-lived flowering. Place vines in the rear of your design, along walls and porch columns. Train them to grow around doorways. Allow them to take up as much height as they can, which will add a large visual element to your small entrance.
• Pots, pots, pots! Another way to add size to small spaces follows the same principle as adding vines, but instead with pots! Pots are made in all sizes- from very large, to tiny. Use varying sizes of pots to create visual depth in an area that doesn’t have a lot of actual depth. Place larger pots behind smaller ones in groups, and don’t be afraid to fill them with perennials that you often see in large landscapes. Many perennials will live just fine in pots. Grasses are a wonderful choice in pots and do well in pot culture. There are many sizes of grasses, and they are all excellent choices depending on the size of the pot. Try layering medium pots among a display with this lovely Acorus Ogon Grass. Its bright yellow variegation will brighten up a small space without much work. The ‘Chip’ series of butterfly bush is another great perennial for pot culture, and their small size makes them ideal for small spaces. ‘Blue Chip’ will play well with the Ogon grass in a pot display in full or partial sun. Layer in pots of annuals too- often found in pretty, ready to display pots for purchase.
• Opt for smaller ornamental versions of the big things. One simple example- Japanese maples. Even if you have limited ground space, there’s likely a cultivar of these amazing small trees that will be able to grace your front area. Some of these trees can even be grown in large pots- which is essential if you live in an area where it may get too cold to keep most Japanese maple cultivars outside year-round. We love the Japanese Butterfly Tree, which tops out at a small 10 feet in height and sports lovely color in foliage all year long. You can trim Japanese maples to take on that open, gnarled, and layered characteristic that we all picture well-kept Japanese maples as, or you can allow this cultivar to grow and fill out as it pleases for a lovely, balanced look. It’s small and unobtrusive size will make it perfect for most all small spaces, and will easily add a pop of color where you need it most.
• For more ideas on adding small size plants to your small yard, check out our Small Size Plants.

We hope these three ideas help you create a big impact in your small front yard space. Build a beautiful front yard with these three ideas and you’ll soon have the front façade of your dreams- even if it is tiny!