5 Outdoor Trends You’ll Want

Outdoor Trends5

You'll Want for Your Own Yard!

by Allyson Mattingly

There’s nothing like Dogwood Winter to make you fear for your newly planted bulbs’ lives. While you’re brainstorming creative ways to ensure your plants make it to fruition, we’ve compiled some of the year’s trends to make your backyard more than a plot of grass. If you’re ready to transform your backyard into your own personal paradise, we recommend you read on.

Seamless Spaces 1

Outdoor kitchens have been popular for years, but outdoor living rooms and home offices are recently catching the eyes of homeowners. When you’re done gardening, grilling, or catching some rays, enjoy the tranquility of the outdoors with all the added comforts of your living room. These spaces don’t include just a chair or two, but entire outdoor furniture sets, fireplaces, rugs, TVs, and any other accessories you need to achieve maximum comfort. While all work and no play makes Jack a dull boy, Jack still needs to get some work done! Many professionals continue to have a hybrid work schedule in 2022, making a home office more necessary than ever before. If you’re one of such professionals, moving your home office outdoors can provide mood boosting energy, plus some fantastic lighting for your Zoom sessions. To create your outdoor workspace, you’ll need a desk and chair which can be substituted with a chaise lounge and side table, shade for those days when you are squinting at your laptop screen, privacy to muffle any noisy neighbors, and decor like tropical trees and flowers. You’ll never want to go back to the office with this setup!

2

Resort Dreaming

It seems that after two years of staying in, people are dreaming of going far, far away - who would’ve thought? Pinterest has seen an incredible increase of users searching for resort aesthetics and other vacation-related trends. If you can’t actually jet to Turks and Caicos, you might as well make your backyard feel like one of the islands’ finest 5-star resorts.

If you’re dreaming of resort living, consider thrifting some pieces of rattan furniture, putting up a couple fringed patio umbrellas, planting vibrant, tropical plants, incorporating eye-catching canopies, and using only cocktail glasses worthy of a tiny pink umbrella. To cool you off after a long day of luxury, an outdoor shower is also a feature to consider for an authentic resortlike experience. If that sounds like a dream but your reality is living in the Midwest, try an indoor shower with floor-to-ceiling frosted glass or a bathroom on the balcony.

3

Blossoming Gardens

We may be using neutral tones inside our homes, but the backyard is for maximalism and color. Think less monochrome and more polychrome with plants that transport you to the tropics, bicolor flowers, fragrant herbs, dark foliage, and vivid containers. If you’re new to tropical plants, we recommend checking out Rose Mallows, Cannas, and Caladiums. Make these plants stand out even more by surrounding them with dark foliage plants like Crepe Myrtle bushes, Sweet potato vines, Ninebark shrubs, or Heuchera plants. Some of our favorite bicolor plants include Dahlias, Hydrangeas, Tulips, and Irises. Growing your own food is not only satisfying, but healthy and fun, too! Whether you want to plant a few herbs or a garden to supply your whole kitchen, the grow-your-own trend is increasing in popularity. Some of the easiest veggies to grow are green beans, cucumbers, summer squash, spinach, bell peppers, and tomatoes.

A-Tisket, A-Tasket 4

Once you’ve worked in your yard and tended to your garden, you’re going to need something to do with the fruits (or veggies) of your labor. Putting together a harvest basket for friends, family, or neighbors is a perfect way to get some social interaction and make sure your leftover harvest doesn’t go to waste. It may be simple, but it’s heartfelt and will be much appreciated! You can purchase beautiful, affordable baskets from Stonewall Kitchen, Etsy, Earth Easy, and more. Fill them with homegrown vegetables and flowers for everyone to enjoy. As a bonus, a harvest basket or garden hod can make your everyday harvesting chores a whole lot easier. If the thought of cutting your flowers makes you shudder, plant a garden specifically for cutting. Sprinkle some seeds in a sunny spot in your yard, water, and you’ll be crafting a gorgeous homemade bouquet in no time.

Terrain.com

Food52.com

5

Bird is the Word

While I used to think bird watching was exclusively for birding clubs and my grandma, I now enjoy discovering what types of birds call my yard home. Apparently, other homeowners feel the same way, as the sales of bird feeders and birdseed increased by almost 50% in 2021, and continue to increase this year. (Although, this could be because our editor Fran loves birds!) If you want to learn more about the birds in your backyard, you can download Audubon's Bird Guide app that can identify over 800 species of North American birds. To contribute to your colorful garden and provide food for birds, you can plant Sunfl owers, Dogwood trees, Cardinal fl owers, and Milkweed. • (available at your favorite bookstore)

Nikon Trailblazer ATB Waterproof Binoculars

(rei.com)

EcoClean Medium Seed Tube Feeder (available at Wild Birds Unlimited)