The garden shed as a focal point in your landscape

We love the way our garden shed takes up space on our property. It brings such joy to watch as the plants surrounding the shed change along with the season. With this article, I want to make the case for thinking differently about a garden shed. Therefore, let’s talk about how to enjoy the garden shed as a focal point in your landscape.

I can remember touring a friend’s yard and seeing a unique element in her landscape. It was a wooden structure that had at one time been the building surrounding an old outhouse. Anyway, it was nicely painted and landscaped (no longer used as an outhouse). Further, it really caught my attention. My friend told me it’s a focal point in her landscape. When we decided to add a garden shed to our backyard, I really wanted to leverage this concept of a focal point.

So, what is a focal point? A focal point is a feature that draws the eye and grabs attention. Also, focal points encourage visitors to explore other areas of the property. Other focal points may include a water feature, a sitting area, or a specimen plant. Again, in this article, we will focus on the garden shed. 

Location

Have you ever looked around your neighborhood and noticed that the garden shed usually sits squarely on the back corner of a property? Before we purchased a shed, the first thing we did was choose a location. In other words, we intentionally chose a spot to ensure that our shed is a focal point.

First, we checked with our town to understand any applicable local ordinances associated with sheds. Second, we chose the size of the shed. Third, we measured various locations based on the shed dimensions.

After reviewing various options, we chose a location that is at an angle to our back deck. When we sit on the deck, we have a perfect view of the shed. This idea of ‘line of sight’ is important. We wanted to be able to see the shed as we sat outdoors on the deck.

Shed Features

We purchased our shed from a place that had multiple options regarding size, color, layout, and other features. From our perspective, these are the important features:

• Layout – we wanted a rectangle shape where we could have double doors in the front. Further, we wanted two windows. One on the front of the shed and the second on the left side of the shed. The front and left are where windows can be seen. Lastly, we added a window box at the bottom of each window.
• Color – Our goal was to coordinate the color of the shed with our home. Thus, we chose a light brown color for the siding and green for the shutters on the windows. In addition, we were also able to choose the shingle color for the roof and coordinated it with the shingles on our home.
• Size – This is all about utility. The largest item to go into the shed is a riding mower. This was the most important determinant of size. We chose a 12-foot wide by 10-foot deep dimension.

I should note, we had the shed professionally installed and leveled. First, a wooden base was built and filled with crushed stone. Next, the shed was delivered, fully assembled, and moved onto the wooden base.

Landscaping – Phase I

Landscaping is the next step in the process, the part that really positions the shed as a focal point. As I look at sheds that have landscaping, it’s very common for plants to be placed along the sides of the shed and in front of the shed. For our initial pass at landscaping, I worked with a garden designer. Her approach was different. Instead of placing plants along the sides, she recommended a design that flowed and encompassed the shed. Here are a few key points in the first phase of the design:

Abelia Rose

We created symmetry in front of the shed by placing an Abelia Rose shrub on either side of the plank leading the double door of the shed. Abelia rose is a deciduous shrub that grows 2-3 feet tall and spreads 2-3 feet. It likes full sun to part shade. In our area, it blooms all summer long with tubular, fragrant, white flowers.

Amsonia hubrichtii blue star

We continued the symmetry between the left and right sides of the shed by placing a border of Amsonia hubrichtii blue star on both sides of the shed garden beds. Amsonia is a Herbaceous perennial that grows 2-3 feet tall and spreads 3-4 feet. It likes full sun to part shade. From a seasonality perspective, it blooms star-like blue flowers in early spring April/May. In addition, its feathery green summer foliage turns a lovely golden color in the fall. 

Magnolia virginiana

We wanted a specimen tree and chose a Magnolia virginiana for the right side of the shed. This variety typically grows 15-20 feet tall. It features creamy white fragrant flowers.

Leucothoe axillaris

In addition, we moved two Leucothoe axillaris plants, from another part of our property to the right side of the shed garden bed. These two plants have never done better. It’s really amazing how a plant thrives when it is placed in the right place. Leucothoe is an evergreen shrub that grows 2-4 feet tall and spreads 3-5 feet. It likes full sun to part shade. It has heather-like, white flowers which bloom in May.

Callicarpa americana

On the left side of the shed, we planted three Callicarpa americana shrubs commonly called beautyberry. Beautyberry is a deciduous shrub that grows 3-6 feet tall and spreads 3-6 feet. It likes full sun to part shade. The plants develop bright, violet to magenta fruits along the stems in mid-late summer. The bees adore this shrub.

Hydrangea quercifolia

Behind the beautyberry, we relocated two Hydrangea quercifolia commonly called oakleaf hydrangea. Oakleaf is a deciduous shrub that grows 6-8 feet tall and spreads 6-8 feet. It likes full sun to part shade. This shrub has two distinguishing features. First, it has large white pyramidal panicle blooms that can easily be 8-10 inches long and around. Second, it has large, 3-7 lobed, oak-like, dark green leaves.

Window boxes

Last, but not least, I filled the window boxes with flowers. So pretty and make the shed come to life. Further, I added cute curtains to the windows which add a touch of charm.

Landscaping – Phase II

After one year of letting these plants settle, we decided to move on to phase II of the landscaping. In this phase, we expanded the garden bed on the left side of the shed. You can read all about the expansion project in my blog post “Brilliant method to create new garden beds: lasagna gardening”.

We added 100 square feet to the left side garden bed. In total, we purchased 3 shrubs which took up just over 50% of the 100-square-foot area. I wanted to leave some space for annual flowers.

• 1- Variegated Red Twig Dogwood ‘Ivory Halo’ which will grow 4-6’ wide and tall. It has year-round interest with its foliage in spring, summer, and fall. In the winter it has bright red winter stems.
• 2- Little Quick Fire Panicle Hydrangea which will grow 3-5’ wide and tall. White blooms appear in spring and change to red as they age.

In addition to the above, we also planted a bunch of iris and a lavender plant. These were propagated from existing plants on our property.

Additional features for your shed

• Lighting – there are so many options when it comes to lighting. You can use solar lighting, string lights, or path lights.
• Decorate the door – This past Christmas we added wreaths with battery-powered lights to the shed doors.
• Add a pathway that leads to the shed.

Remember, keep your shed and plants in good condition so that it continues as a focal point.

I hope you have taken some inspiration from this article. Whether you have an existing shed or are installing a new shed, there is always something that can be done to enjoy the garden shed as a focal point in your landscape.

Additional Information

• How to take the mystery out of pruning shrubs
• What to know about using cardboard in your garden
• Brilliant method to create new garden beds, lasagna gardening
• The Importance of Native Plants
• How to Create a Productive Small Vegetable Garden
• How to Create a Monarch Butterfly Garden