Refreshing your patio with new furniture, decor or color automatically brightens the space and draws you into it. The good news is that giving your existing patio an upgrade doesn’t need to take a whole lot of time or money. Instead, you can tackle many updates in a day or a weekend, and most apply to patios of all styles. 

Change Things Up With Color

Give your patio more color with painted walls or colorful mounted or freestanding panels. 

Painting projects can usually be finished in a day or two, depending on the size of the space and the amount of prep needed. A simple but colorful panel or screen will take even less time. Look for landscape screens made of weatherproof materials such as metal, wood, glass, fiberglass, resin or concrete to perk up the space.

You can also add color with smaller decorative pieces such as pillows, throws or outdoor serving ware that will brighten the space now and can also transition with the seasons.

Add Art

Create immediate impact with a large-scale art piece. Look for art created expressly for outdoor use to be sure it will work. Wood, metal, glass, fiberglass and resin can handle the elements. Canvas can be treated to make it more weather-resistant.

For the best long-term results, keep art out of direct sunlight and rain as much as possible. Consider bringing it inside during the winter months. Another option is to get something temporary and enjoy it while it lasts.

Tuck In a Daybed

Find a corner for a daybed that will give you a place to relax and maybe even catch an afternoon nap. While a traditional chaise lounge or outdoor sofa can fit the bill, there’s something particularly inviting about a daybed’s extra lounging depth. Add plenty of cushions and maybe a light throw to help you nest.

Choose a daybed designed for outdoor use and furnish it with weather-resistant cushions and pillows or plan to cover the piece when rain threatens. You can set it under an overhang or add a nearby umbrella or shade cloth to keep you from getting too hot.

Create Shade

Give yourself some protection from the hot afternoon, or visually divide your patio into “rooms” with a shade structure. A simple umbrella will provide direct shade; larger versions will cover more area, and a tilt feature lets you adapt to the sun’s arc. A shade cloth strung between three or four points is another easy way to gain some shade.

A fabric gazebo does double duty, providing sun protection during the day and then becoming a relaxing outdoor living room at night. You can get them with or without sides. Most fabric gazebos have metal supports and fabric made from canvas, polyester or outdoor acrylic fabric. They’re easy to install; just be sure to anchor them securely, especially in windy areas.

Fill In With Potted Plants

Use your patio to show off your favorite plants or landscape style — from a tropical-themed vibe to an homage to succulents or a cheerful collection of favorite annuals and perennials. You’ll gain additional gardening space, soften the hardscape and enjoy favorite plants up close.

Group similar plants in different size planters to fill a corner or line a row of matching plants and planters to outline the edge of the patio. You can also add interest and dimension with a living wall or other vertical garden. Consider installing one large frame designed to hold a mix of plants or mount wall planters at various heights for a similar look. If you don’t have a nearby wall, you might be able to add small patio trees in containers to give you a lush feel.

Plants in containers, especially hanging plants, will dry out more quickly than those in the ground. Be prepared to water more often.

Screen for Privacy

A landscape screen provides a sense of enclosure and privacy. Even the simplest screen will turn your open patio into a defined and separate space. Screens come in an amazing variety of sizes and materials — everything from wood and wood composites to metal, fiberglass, resin, glass and even concrete.

Upgrade Your Lighting

Hang lanterns or pendants from an overhead beam to add flair to your patio’s lighting. Battery-operated lighting means you don’t have to deal with wiring and outlets.

If overhead lighting isn’t viable for your space, scatter lanterns or outdoor lamps around the patio. You can place them on tables, tuck them into planters or set them on the patio floor to create a welcoming atmosphere during the evening hours.

If your lights have an open flame, place them in a safe spot where they won’t be easily brushed against or tipped over and where the flame can’t ignite your decor or furnishings. Be sure to extinguish any candles before you leave the patio.

Install a Focal Point

Consider installing a permanent feature center stage in your space. You can place it over the existing paving or remove part of the surface to create a base.

An oversize planter set into the middle of a patio makes a bold statement that will draw people into the space. Set it where you want on a level surface. The weight of the soil and plant will help keep it in place.

Fountains are more complicated to install. Depending on the type of fountain, you may have to plan for a water reservoir below the fountain itself and an electrical outlet nearby.

If that’s more involved than you want, consider moving the fountain to a corner of the patio. Set the reservoir on the surface of the patio, surround it with a mix of container plants to hide the sides and place the fountain in the center. Add pebbles on top of the reservoir and run the cord behind the fountain and along a wall to an outlet.

Choose a Decorative Accent

Add a decorative note to floors, tables and counters or posts and beams with outdoor tile. If tiling isn’t possible for your patio, consider adding decorative contrast with paint.

Do a Deep Clean

Sometimes, the simplest approach is also the most rewarding. Patio surfaces are designed to take a lot of wear and tear, so you may not notice when they’re not looking quite as pristine as they once were.

To keep patios looking their best, take a day to give the space a good cleaning. Clear off the moveable furnishings, sweep the floor well and then wash or treat the surface with the appropriate cleanser. Often, a mix of warm water and dish detergent, plus a sturdy broom, is sufficient. Let it dry, then put everything back in place.

While you’re at it, clean any cushions and patio furnishings that have become a bit grungy or stained. Usually scrubbing items with a solution of warm water and dish detergent, then rinsing them and letting them dry, is all that’s needed. You may have to work a bit to get off stubborn stains, but the clean look will be worth it.

As with any large-scale renovation, the costs of a landscape remodel can quickly add up. With the right design moves and decisions to stretch your budget, you can pull off the look and feel of your dream garden without letting the budget get out of hand. But where it can make sense to save — without compromising quality or style — may not always be where you’d expect.

Here are some of the best places to save money on a landscape redesign.

Simplify Your Wish List

It’s easy to get carried away when it comes to creating your dream landscape wish list, with elements from patios to outdoor kitchens and pools to fire pits, but costs quickly add up. Focus on the elements you really want and will use often. To save money, scale things back or take out a few features that you could add over time.

Tip: Having a professionally drawn site plan in place will help ensure that you won’t have to disturb an improved area when installing new features at a later stage.

Choose Hardworking, Less Expensive Materials

Hardscape — hard surfaces such as pathways, pavers and patios — is often one of the biggest “budget eaters” in a landscape remodel, as the materials and installation can both be expensive. If you’re looking for ways to help rein in your budget, resilient but less expensive hardscape materials can fill in, either temporarily or permanently.

For example use a mix of gravel and pavers instead of cut stone for a front patio and walkway as a cost-saving measure. Gravel can be an excellent permanent low-cost alternative to cut stone. Use a mix of gravel and concrete or precast pavers to create pads for furniture. Regardless of the material you choose, it pays off to invest in proper professional installation.

Tip: If you need to be able to roll a wheelchair, walker or stroller over your main path, consider gravel as a cost-saving material for secondary paths or patios instead.

Use What You Already Have

While it’s tempting to want to rip out everything and start with a clean slate, it’s better to pause and take stock of what you have. Repurposing existing plants and materials — especially long-lasting, high-quality ones — can help save your budget and enhance your design.

Use existing pavers, relocating established plants or painting a dated item is worth the investment for a relatively low cost.

Select Local and Salvaged Materials

If you don’t have existing elements that can be repurposed, chances are someone in your community might. Check with local salvage yards and material warehouses. You may be able to score a pallet of bricks for a patio or redwood boards for a fence at a fraction of the price of purchasing them new.

If you’re purchasing new materials such as gravel, wood or cut stone, ask which ones come from your local region. They can often be more affordable than materials that have been transported from elsewhere, and can help your new garden fit in with the natural tones of the area. Ask the landscape designer or architect you’re working with if local materials could be prioritized.

Buy Plants Small

Sizing down plants to help with your budget. Plants can easily be purchased in smaller sizes, and they will grow to size over time. It’s smarter to invest in permanent elements like hardscape.

Even planted from small containers, many herbs, perennials, ground covers, ornamental grasses and vines will fill in quickly. Some shrubs, trees, cactuses and succulents can be slower to reach maturity, depending on the species. A few exceptions for which it can be worth the splurge on larger plants: one or two mature trees for dramatic impact and shrubs needed for screening.

Choose Perennials Over Annuals

If you’re looking for color in planting beds, perennials — plants that come back year after year — are a much better investment than annuals that need to be bought and replanted each season. Nurseries will often have end-of-season sales well-stocked with perennials in fall, which is a perfect time to plant.

Tip: Another way to score plants for less is at a plant swap. Communities will sometimes host plant swaps, generally in spring and summer, where you can bring plants of your own or cash to trade for or buy other potted plants.

Professionals can help you save money on plants: The retail nursery cost of a plant can often be one-third to double the cost of a plant purchased by a landscaper at a wholesale growing ground. This can also be true for soil amendments, fertilizers, gravel and mulch.

Depending on your plant knowledge, a professional may have a better understanding of plant spacing and depth, resulting in a better overall planting job.

Use High-Impact, Low-Cost Garden Accents

For permanent and high-use elements, it makes sense to choose the highest-quality materials and craftsmanship you can afford. For smaller decorative accents, this isn’t always the case.

Cute little garden details, like the obelisks, can make a big impact. Other low-investment, high-payoff exterior accents to try: chic house numbers or a standout mailbox.

Buy Containers at End-of-Season Sales

Picking up containers for potted plants at fall nursery sales, is something to look for. Stores will often cut prices by 50 percent or more to clear inventory at the end of the growing season. Stock up on large pots and planters for spring planting.

Design With Maintenance Costs in Mind

Once hardscape is installed and plants are in the ground, your costs going forward will be associated with maintenance. Some hardscape materials require more maintenance than others to continue to look good over time. Plants all require different levels of water and maintenance throughout the year to continue to thrive. It’s best to consider this now, when you’re just beginning your project, to design your plan accordingly.

In general, high-quality natural materials such as cut stone and flagstone for patios and walkways require minimal care when properly installed. Gravel and decomposed granite, on the other hand, need to be topped up every so often. Synthetic decking can save the cost of needing to seal a natural wood deck every few years.

For plants, your best bet for cutting down on water costs is to use native plants or those that grow well in your climate. Gardens composed of easy-care shrubs, ground covers and perennials require less care than those designed with high-maintenance annual flower beds or clipped topiary. Choose a style you have the time and budget to care for going forward. Skipping a traditional lawn can also offer major savings in terms of both water and maintenance.

Consider Phasing Your Project

For major landscape overhauls, installing the design in several phases can help in terms of budgeting. For phased projects, bring in a professional at the beginning to draw a complete site plan that will outline the overall design and how phases should be divided according to construction access. Think through everything that one might want to bury in the ground that will be useful or desired in the future. It is no fun to dig trenches or drill holes in finished surfaces.

Having a complete site plan guiding the construction process is likely to bring costs down and prevent work being done twice. For example, with proper planning between phases, a contractor could lay a foundation beneath a patio for a shade structure intended for later installation. 

For gardeners, drought or near-drought conditions are a special challenge. What can you do when starting a new garden during a drought? How can you add plantings while saving water. Even better, no matter what the weather conditions, these ideas will ensure that your garden stays healthy for years to come.

Although some times of year might be better for planting, the time to start a garden is when you’re ready. The decision to forgo water-intensive features and thirsty planting will have a much greater long-term impact.

If you do wait until later in the year to remodel an existing garden, consider keeping what you have in place rather than tearing it out. This will help keep the ground covered, keep the dust down and keep the area more weed-free when you are able to seed or plant new plants.

Start With Your Soil

Try to create soil that’s as healthy as possible for your plants. The first step is understanding your native soil and what it needs. Your soil is a living thing, and it needs updating and ongoing care. Choosing organic fertilizers and using compost and compost teas will help keep your soil active with microbes.

Organic soil amendments also will improve soil conditions, but whether to use them or not will depend on the plants you’re adding. While some plants might welcome the boost, amendments might not work as well for others.

Lengthen Your Planting Schedule

Install your garden in stages over a couple of seasons or even years. Focus first on your top ornamental priorities for foundation plants, perennials and shrubs and trees. Choose what you feel is necessary to add now and what can wait until later in the year or even a year or two down the road.

In areas with warm-winter climates that get little to no summer rain, hold off planting trees until later in the year. Gardeners can also plant trees in late winter or early spring.

Choose The Right Plants

Native plants should be your first choice. These plants already are adapted to the local conditions, are usually very hardy and are able to handle local climate conditions, including a lack of summer rain. An added benefit is that they attract local wildlife. So many birds and butterflies are attracted to native-plant gardens.

Natives can be hard to find and are often in very small sizes. The smaller plants will take more time to grow to their final size, but their small size can be an advantage. A large native can have a hard time adjusting.

Also look for drought-tolerant plants that are well-adapted to your climate. They’ll often be marked as low-water-use plants, but check before you purchase. Some plants that look drought-tolerant may have higher water needs.

If you want to add a vegetable garden, consider varieties that don’t require as much water, such as herbs and vegetables that thrive in Mediterranean climates. Also prioritize bushy, lower-growing vegetables, such as bush beans and varieties that have been bred for lower-water use.

Plant Strategically

Group plants that share water requirements, an approach often called hydrozoning. Separate shade plants from sun plants; and higher-water plants, such as vegetable gardens, from lower-water plants.

Take the same approach with a vegetable garden. You also can plant vegetables closer together than typically recommended so they can share water and crowd out weeds.

Find A Lawn Substitute

One of the most water-saving things you can do in your yard is not add a lawn. Most lawns are true water guzzlers. It also makes sense to put limited water resources toward plants like existing trees and large shrubs, which are hard to replace.

For a lawn substitute, seed with a native grass blend. The grass can be mowed or not mowed, depending on the look desired. 

Fine-Tune Your Watering

Take the time to create a watering system that will deliver the most water to your plants and won’t be lost to evaporation, hard surfaces or unplanted areas. Drip irrigation systems are the best choice for most plants. These systems concentrate water at the roots of the plantings, so you’ll need to water less. Watering basins and mounds also direct water to the roots.

Very often, gardens are overwatered. Rather than just checking the soil’s surface, dig down and see if the soil is dry 2 to 3 inches beneath the surface before watering, especially if you have clay soil. If it’s not dry there, the water will just run off rather than sinking in.

Mornings and evenings are the best times to water plants, as less water is lost to evaporation. Also watch the weather conditions and shut down an automated watering system if rain is likely.

Mulch Generously and Weed Often

Adding a thick layer of organic mulch around your plants will help the soil retain moisture and help suppress weeds. Mulching is key. Do not remove all the fallen leaves, they help condition the soil. Replenish your mulch throughout the growing season to keep it fresh.

Don’t use gravel as a mulch, as it absorbs too much heat. The goal is to keep things cool. Plants low-water ground covers; they keep the soil cooler, provide organic matter for the surrounding soil, and also help suppress weeds.

Even with mulch, you’ll need to be diligent about weeding. One approach: Stroll through your garden with a digger and a bucket every day or so to pull out weeds when you see them, rather than waiting to do a marathon session. The bonus is that you’ll be able to relax and enjoy your garden.

Capture Water

Find ways to reuse water from both your yard and your home. Rain barrels are a classic approach to gathering water, so install one or more under downspouts. They’re readily available, and many are quite attractive.

Tip: Before you purchase or install a rain barrel, be sure to check local bylaws. 

A more advanced approach is to create swales, streambeds and rain gardens. These take some time to set up but can help you capture and use more water. They also will direct rainfall into your soil rather than out to the street, helping the underground water table. A variation on this is underground cache areas, which some municipalities in drought-prone areas are requiring for landscape projects.

If you want to step up your use of captured water, check locally for sources that provide recycled water for your garden. These businesses are becoming more common in dry-summer locations.

Check out these outdoor projects the whole family can enjoy, ranging from easy projects like starting seeds or creating a mini fairy garden, to more involved ones such as turning a stock tank into a raised bed.

Grow An Herb Box

It’s not too late in the season to start a pot of kitchen and have kids help pick leaves to add to your favorite dishes. Young children can help with all steps of the process: scooping potting soil into an empty pot, patting down soil to settle it, spacing plant starts (with some help from an adult) and then watering them in. A few easy-to-grow herbs to consider are basil, parsley, thyme, tarragon, sage, oregano, and chives. All thrive with full sun and consistent water.

You could consider tucking a few ever-bearing strawberries, which generally produce spring, summer and fall crops, around the edges to give little ones a treat to discover later.

Start Seeds

There’s nothing quite like the magic of seeing little leaves pop up from the ground as if by magic. Big seeds — like those of squash, melons, peas and beans — are the easiest to handle and can be a good place to start for your youngest or most beginner gardeners. Now is a good time in most climates to sow seeds for pumpkins to have them ready by Halloween. You can begin to sow crops like snow peas and fava beans now in cool-summer climates. In other climates, wait until fall for these cool-season crops.

Make Handprint Stepping Stones

Creating stepping stones with family handprints or footprints can be a fun afternoon project, and it’s a way to make your garden feel more personal. It’s easiest to use a handprint stepping stone kit, but you can also make them without a kit using fast-setting concrete and a mold. Have children or any family member whose handprint you want to commemorate imprint their hands or feet and arrange any treasures they wish — like polished stones, marbles or shells — into the concrete. Adults can help sign the names of young children with a stick or wooden pencil. Once the concrete sets, find a spot to display them in your garden.

Pick Your Own

If there’s one garden “chore” that kids of any age can get behind, it’s harvesting — particularly if it’s something sweet like berries, tomatoes, sugar snap peas or tree fruits like cherries, peaches and plums. Picking fruit from your garden or a nearby pick-your-own farm makes for a fun family activity and is a good way to teach small ones where their favorite fruit come from.

For slightly older children, you can make harvesting from the garden a daily or weekly responsibility. Asking children to pick tomatoes for the family meal can give them a sense of accomplishment and lend you a hand.

Open a Bug Hotel

The concept is as simple as hanging a bird house, except bug hotels resemble collections of items such as hollow bamboo canes and seedpods that aim to mimic habitats like tree cavities that are increasingly rare in urban and suburban environments. The little holes and bug-size crevices are designed to attract insects, such as solitary native bees, that look for such spaces to rest for the night.

You can purchase kits for DIY bug hotels or build your own. Just be sure to include some type of roof or cover to keep the gathered materials dry. Family members of all ages can help collect materials to use, such as dried seedpods, twigs, small pine cones and bark. Older kids and teens can help with building the frame for the hotel. Everyone can learn or be reminded of the vital role beneficial insects play in ecosystems and the challenges they face.

Create A Fairy Garden

Little kids, teens or really anyone with a whimsical side may enjoy creating a miniature fairy garden in a pot. Start with an empty vessel of your choosing and fill it with potting soil. Then have children choose small plants at the nursery, such as succulents, creeping wire vine or mossy-looking ground covers like baby’s tears or woolly thyme. Use indoor plants if you’d like to keep the garden inside.

Encourage children to arrange a scene from their imagination on the surface of smooth potting soil, tucking in plants as they go. Fine gravel can become fairy pathways or streams, rocks can be seats or stepping stones. You can purchase or make, if you’re feeling extra crafty accents such as miniature houses, benches, gates, animal or fairy figurines and toadstools. 

Plant Up Recycled And Repurposed Containers

You can repurpose almost any vessel as a container for plants, and kids can have fun scouting for unused vessels around the house or yard to repurpose into planters. Some vessels to consider: old teapots and cups, small wooden boxes, old hiking boots, helmets, urns and more.

For containers that don’t have drainage holes, either plan on drilling a few at the bottom or keeping plants in their plastic nursery pots set inside the vessel. Or, if you decide to plant directly in the vessel without drainage holes, be sure to water plants very lightly, as excess water will have nowhere to go.

Propagate Succulents

Succulents are a great place to start with plant propagation, as most of them root easily from cuttings or offshoots. Kids can help with all steps of the process, from splitting off baby succulent “pups” from rosette-forming types, to laying them out on a gravel bed or a paper plate to harden or potting up the new little succulent plants once rooted. Teens can own the whole process and, if they’re hooked, quickly multiply your succulent collection or create one of their own.

Turn A Stock Tank Into A Raised Planter

Turning a galvanized-metal livestock tank into a planter is easier than building a raised bed — and it’s a pretty stylish container too. Choose a stock tank based on how much space you have, what you’d like to grow and how much you’d like to spend.

Stock tanks range from $30 for a small, shallow one that could be used to grow herbs, succulents or strawberries to $300 and up for a large model where you could grow anything from tomatoes to dwarf fruit trees. They will all need drainage holes drilled at the bottom and enough potting soil to fill them to the brim before planting.

Plant A Living Wall

While professional living wall systems are fairly complicated projects best left to professionals, simpler models that use felt planting pockets are no more effort than planting a container and mounting it to the wall. Young kids will need help along the way with this project, but teens could do it nearly start to finish on their own but may need help attaching it to the wall.

Living walls made from kits generally look best with plenty of billowing and trailing plants that, once they fill in, can help cover the felt pockets holding the soil. A few to consider for hanging gardens that receive four to six hours of sun: bacopa, trailing fuchsia, sweet potato vine (Ipomoea batatas), lobelia and nasturtium. For shadier gardens, check out ajuga, variegated ivy, campanula, heuchera and ferns.

Remember that living walls, particularly those in sun, dry out very quickly; stay on top of the watering or set up a drip irrigation system.

It’s time to get out into the garden, take a look at your garden and decide ir there are any improvements you want to make. These can be as simple as adding new touches to existing spaces or as involved as building a new outdoor kitchen.

Here are some ideas for refreshing your yard and garden for outdoor living.

Update Your Furnishings

Evaluate the outdoor furniture you have. It sets the tone for your outdoor space, so it may be time to replace furnishings that are worn or perhaps upgrade to a new look. Conversely, if you have no outdoor furniture yet, it’s a good time to start planning for the upcoming spring, summer and fall months.

Spring is a great time for discovering fresh looks. You’ll also have a larger selection to choose from during the start of the outdoor season. 

If you like your current furniture, it might be time to add some finishing touches. New cushions and pillows will revive older chairs, sofas and benches. A new umbrella or shade cloth can turn a too-hot patio or deck into an all-day retreat. Small side tables placed by outdoor chairs and sofas provide a good spot for drinks and snacks.

Other possibilities? A chaise lounge or two provides a spot for napping or relaxing. An outdoor rug will ground a seating area. A setup for serving and a bar cart make outdoor entertaining easier.

Start a Plant Nursery

Give seedlings a head start before setting them out in the garden. A small area where you can group plants and provide protection if nighttime temperatures turn frosty can help smaller plants establish themselves before transplanting. You may want to add cloches that will cover several plants, especially taller ones, or look for covers that will fit over pots without actually touching the plants themselves.

Having a hose nearby will make watering them easier — plants in pots dry out far faster than those in the ground, and you want to encourage growth. A potting bench or similar setup is handy for transplanting to larger containers.

Create a Vegetable Garden

Jump-start healthier eating by adding a dedicated vegetable garden. Summer is the height of edible gardening season. Be sure to start your seeds or seedlings soon to enjoy delicious fresh produce from your own yard next season.

Add Built-In Seating

Built-in seating adds a finishing touch to a patio or deck. It anchors the space and provides more seating for when family and friends gather.

Permanent seating allows you to customize it to an exact fit. You can also add features such as a planter or lighting above or below to highlight the space.

A bench can also do double duty as storage for everything from extra pillows and cushions to yard toys, gardening tools and grilling supplies.

Spruce Up Your Storage

Whether your garden is your retreat, your hobby or your play space, you’re bound to have tools, supplies or equipment you want to tuck away from time to time. Adding an off-the-shelf shed is one solution, but why not turn your storage spot into an attractive garden feature? 

Turn a basic shed into something more interesting with plants. Adding small garden beds on either side of the entrance or installing a window box will add color and greenery. Pair either choice with a garden path, steppingstones or a small landing, and the utilitarian shed becomes a destination. You can even add color to the shed itself, whether via a new paint job or some colorful decorations.

For a shed that’s even more integrated with your space, consider a custom-built design that plays off the design style of the rest of the landscape.

Just Add Water

 A water feature is a welcome addition to even the smallest yard. Water instantly creates a sense of peace and tranquility. A fountain, garden pool or pond attracts birds and other wildlife, and can cool the air around it on a hot day.

Water features are available in an array of styles. Choose one that goes with the rest of your outdoor style. 

If you’re looking for a peaceful reflecting pool, all you need to do is add water. If you want a fountain, you’ll also have to install a pump and an energy source, which is generally electric or solar. You might also want to add lights for a nighttime reflections.

Beautiful as they are, water features require some considerations. Even a shallow pool can pose a danger to small children and pets. You might also need to look into ways to mitigate the presence of bugs, such as mosquitoes.

Play With Fire

 If your family likes to gather around an open fire, make a fire feature a permanent part of your landscape. A fire pit is more low-profile and also can be used as a grill. A fireplace makes a statement in the landscape. Both also can be adapted with grills and ovens.

Like water features, fire features run a gamut of styles to fit beautifully into most outdoor spaces. Traditional finishes include stone, brick and stucco, while metal and concrete add a more modern vibe.

 Your choices for fuel are wood, gas or ethanol. Wood is a classic and easy option that doesn’t require additional gas lines or a special installation. It also gives you the classic campfire or fireplace flames. It can be a drawback, though, when our “no fire” regulations kick in during summer.

For gas, you can use propane tanks, although for a permanent installation, having a plumber connect the fire feature into your gas line will be less obtrusive and less costly to use in the long run. In the short term, though, the installation will affect the surrounding hardscape and landscape as trenches are dug for the line.

Ethanol, which produces true flames, is gaining in popularity as a fire source. It does not burn as hot as other heat sources, so it’s a good choice for hotter days. It’s also a clean-burning source for true flames. You’ll want a professional to install the firebox and set it up.

Take the Plunge

 Looking for a refreshing place where you can take a dip on a hot summer’s day, but don’t have the room? Want a spot for relaxing in the water without a pool’s upkeep? Add a spa, hot tub or plunge pool.

A classic wood hottub — which also can be left unheated and used as a cool spot for chilling out — or a spa tub can be set in its own private zone or incorporated into a deck or patio. You can even lower it to ground or deck level for easy access. Add heat, some lights and a nearby hangout area for maximum enjoyment.

Plunge pools are the babies of in-ground pools. They’re smaller, ranging from slightly larger than a decorative pool or pond to large enough for someone to swim a few strokes in. They’re generally not as deep as standard pools.

As with any water feature, safety is paramount, especially for children. You’ll also need to check local regulations for requirements and restrictions.

Encourage Gatherings

If outdoor entertaining is a favorite activity, it may be time to expand your gathering spot. Building a new patio or deck, or increasing the size and functionality of existing features, will give you even more reasons to go outside to enjoy — and show off — your yard.

 In either case, evaluate your setup and how you want to use it. You might want more room for relaxing, a dining table that can seat your extended family, a fire or water feature, or an outdoor kitchen. Calculate the amount of room you’ll need to accommodate the items on your wish list.

The next step is assessing location. Is your entertaining zone in the right spot? Do you want easy access from the house? Or do you want an area that’s farther away, possibly taking advantage of a view, serving as a buffer from neighbors or a street, or creating a destination within your yard?

Patio flooring options can range from gravel and pavers to stone, tile and brick. Wood is the classic deck material, but don’t overlook some of the lower-maintenance possibilities that can give you the look you want. 

Install an Outdoor Kitchen

If cooking or barbecuing is a favorite pastime, then it may be time to splurge on an outdoor kitchen. Your ideal space might be as simple as a long serving counter that houses a grill and maybe some shelves and a dining table nearby. Add outdoor-friendly countertops and finishes, and you’ll be set for the summer.

You needn’t stop there. The options for an outdoor kitchen equal, or surpass, those for an indoor one. A smoker or pizza oven provides more ways to cook, a refrigerator keeps cold drinks handy, and a sink is an added convenience. Lights, an overhead roof for rainy days and amenities such as a bar setup can keep you cooking outside for a good portion of the year.