When you have a lawn, you want to enhance it as best as possible, but that doesn’t always mean adding flora and fauna. Sometimes, something as simple as the right accessory, like a pergola, is all it takes to create a stunningly simple effect.
Pergolas are usually a combination of four posts that connect with a lattice design. The overall finished structure ends in a point, thus giving it its name, pergola, or a “projected roof.” You can visit sites like The Luxury Pergola to envision what various designs would look like in your backyard or garden and the relaxed, elegant atmosphere it would create.
Beyond looks, though, a pergola can be used for a variety of other reasons. Here are 7 ways you can make the most of your pergola to turn your yard into your dream landscape.
1. Combine Your Pergola With Your Flower Bed
One of the most common ways to spruce up a yard is to add bright flowers to it. Yet, a large pergola takes away part of the property that could have been used as a garden. It doesn’t have to come down to a choice between one or the other, though. You can use the trellises that make up the pergola to help climbing plants, like roses or tomatoes, thrive.
2. Let There Be Lights
Why sit in the dark in your backyard when you can enjoy the atmosphere with a string of fairy lights or a group of solar LEDs? If bugs are an annoyance, consider using sodium vapor bulbs or yellow lights instead of cooler shades that attract insects.
3. Make It a Place to Sit a Spell
Although they may not look it, pergolas are very sturdy. Add a porch swing attached to the overhead trellis, throw some soft cushions atop the seat, and relax in the fresh air. You can even add a roof to keep you dry during inclement weather and out of the sun when it’s too bright. If you don’t want to lose the effect of watching the brilliant, sparkling stars at night, make your roof out of clear vinyl. You get the protection of a solid surface instead of an open area but an obstructed view.
4. Give the Kids a Place to Play
Do you want to make your yard more family-friendly without sacrificing its beauty? Your pergola can make this happen if you add a swingset inside its open space. Provided the structure is anchored firmly in the ground and the swing is strong enough to withhold your children, the pergola is ideal for swinging and playing.
5. How About Some Privacy?
Adding fences around your backyard gets costly, but it’s the only way to ensure you get your much-needed privacy — or is it? Rather than spending thousands of dollars for a fence that people can easily peer over, use dark drapes or curtains in your pergola as sunshades and a way to get some privacy when your yard isn’t as secluded as you’d like. These can be tied up when you want to let in the sun and air.
6. Hang a Hammock
Hammocks are notoriously ideal for grabbing a few z’s in tranquil peace, but you need trees close enough together to hang one. That is, unless you have a pergola. Use the overhead trellis or add posts and put up a hammock for the perfect afternoon siesta or star-gazing evening.
7. Add a Deck
Connect your home to your pergola or extend the structure further into your yard by adding a deck. It’s an excellent way to barbecue, have an outdoor party, or sit and play a game.
Pergolas are a rare type of structure that allows you to combine aesthetics with function. Whatever your vision is for your yard, a well-designed pergola can help make it come true!
