A landscaped yard has many benefits to your overall health, state of mind and even property value. There are a lot of creative ways how you can transform the outdoors area of your property and hardscaping is one of the most beneficial.
Our hardscaping services are fueled by imagination and set on the foundation laid by 20 years of experience in the field. We are proud to be one of the few Chicago landscaping companies that work with residential, commercial and municipal clients - no project is too big or too small.
What Is Hardscaping
A hardscape is the man-made portion of your landscape that uses hard, non-living materials. It serves to provide definition, organization and extended functionality to the exterior area around a residential, commercial or public property.
Some examples are decorative structures such as statues, fountains and statues and practical structures such as fences, seating areas and benches. Ideally, the practical and decorative purposes are combined to get exquisite results for elements such as patios, outdoor kitchens and arbors.
At the time of sale, hardscaping and landscaping in general add roughly between 5% and 13% to your property's value.
Hardscaping vs Softscaping
They are both vital parts of landscaping. Hardscaping covers the heavy materials used to build the landscape, while softscaping encompasses the living materials, such as plants, trees and flowers and the soil supporting them. Both hardscaping ands softscaping can be used to create changing color schemes meant to relax and entertain.
Most Popular Hardscape Elements
Because our imagination is the only limit when it comes to landscape design, there are an ever growing number of elements used for hardscaping. They vary wildly based on purpose, size and material used to build them:
Patios
They are paved outdoor areas, similar to courtyards, but have no walls. They are built using concrete, bricks, natural stone, tiles, etc. They usually lay on a concrete or sand and pebbles foundation.
Learn more about our patio installation services.
Pavers & Stepping Stones
Pavers are pieces made of concrete, stone or brick used for patios, driveways, paths and walkways. They are usually shaped like bricks, tiles or have an asymmetrical shape, such as stepping stones. They have a few different purposes:
- Decorative
- To harden the ground and provide people who use them with even footing
- To distribute weight, such as in the case of driveways
- To provide the landscape with proper water drainage
Retaining Walls
An outdoors wall is called a retaining wall when its purpose is to hold (or retain) the soil on one of its sides. Some of the most popular materials for retaining walls are concrete, timber or natural stone. To ensure longevity of the retaining wall, expanding frozen soil during winter has to be taken into account.
Firepits and Fireplaces
They give any landscape a welcoming feeling, because people associate such controlled fire places with warmth and safety. Firepits and fireplaces can also be categorized based on the fuel they burn, such as wood and gas. We install any type of firepits and fireplaces, from bricks to mortar and from fire bowls to fire tables.
Paths and Walkways
They greatly enhance the beauty of any landscape. They also serve to keep your shoes clean and, if properly installed, help drain excess water.
Paths and walkways can be installed in a great variety of styles, materials and combinations: stone slab paths, paver paths, flagstones, concrete walkways, etc.
Driveways
They are privately owned paths meant to distribute a car’s weight whether it is parked or in motion. They usually connect public streets with a private property. Some popular types of driveway materials are bricks, asphalt, concrete and any combination of these materials.
See our driveway paving services.
Fence Installation
A fence is a construction built between 2 different land areas, meant to act as a safety barrier, as a property boundary and as privacy screen. Fences are usually made of wood, metal or chain link, vinyl, plastic or composite materials.
R & G Almanza Landscape offers high quality fence installation services using cedar wood fences.
Pillars
They are hardscape elements that can instantly give a classic look to your property. They can be used on their own or combined with other landscape features, such as outdoor rooms, walls and posts.
Hardscape Design
A good hardscape service will help you keep the balance between the various important factors so you can enjoy your outdoor area for years to come:
- Durability
- Exquisite design
- Low maintenance
- Within your budget
