Add dollars (and style) to your home with easy hardscaping projects

Outdoor projects are fun in themselves – but if they can add value to your home? That’s a bonus! Whether you’re selling or just being smart for the future, it pays to love your backyard.

Alongside putting your green thumb to work, hardscaping with JACK is a smart and easy way to add thousands of dollars to the price of your property.

Before we dig in and show you how, let’s start with a quick hardscaping definition.

Basically, hardscaping is the ‘hard’ or non-living elements used in our backyards and outdoor spaces to define, design and beautify them – while making them more practical and less work. Double win!

Hardscaping projects include everything from paving and paths to retaining walls, decks, steps and driveways, along with features like pergolas, fences, raised garden beds, built-in seating, fire pits, water features and outdoor lighting.

The flip side is softscaping – the natural beauty or living elements like native plants, blooms, shrubs and trees that soften your outdoor living spaces.

Clever backyard hardscaping doesn’t start with materials – it starts with a plan. Think of it as laying the groundwork! Begin by figuring out how you want to use your space, then section it into ‘zones’ or outdoor rooms.
Here are some key zones you might want to include:

• Entryway/front yard – The first impression of your home
• Entertaining areas – Decks, patios, outdoor kitchen/dining, BBQs
• Planting zones – Gardens, flower beds, shrubs, trees
• Pool area – Poolside space, loungers, safety zones
• Kids’ play area – Swings, sandpits, grass space
• Utility spaces – Sheds, storage, tools, equipment
• Quiet/relaxation corners – Hammocks, reading nooks, meditation spots
• Pet areas – Dog runs, fenced sections, play space
• Pathways/circulation – Paths connecting zones for easy flow

When you zone it well, your backyard will feel spacious, organised, ‘designed’ and downright inviting – the key ingredients in adding value. Planning done? Time to make it happen!

Explore the range: Landscaping & Garden Design

Be inspired: Simple backyard landscaping designs for Spring entertaining

Once your zones are set, hardscaping is what takes your plan from paper to reality!

Garden Edging is a fantastic hardscaping product that can help you define your ‘rooms’, create transitions and enjoy a clean border to (garden) boot!

From a tidy front path and garden beds that don’t sprawl or spill mulch to entertaining areas that look sharp and guest-ready, it’s where an intentional, designer look begins!

When it comes to Garden Edging, think beyond just straight lines:

• Curved edges can guide the eye and soften hard angles (Lawn Edge)
• Trellis-style edging can double up as a plant trainer (Classic Garden Edging)
• Decorative borders can add design flair or enhance a theme (Matrix Edging – our recycled, eco-friendly option)
• Landscapers steel delivers a premium, out-of-a-magazine feel (Oxy-Shield® Edge Trim)

Explore the full range: Garden Edging

Outdoor spaces that add value to your home need both structure and function – and garden beds help you nail this!

They give your outdoor spaces instant structure – carving out zones, making every inch count in small yards and courtyards, and keeping plants and blooms neat and organised.

At the same time, they add serious function, including easier planting, less bending (goodbye sore backs and knees!), and an easy-to-look-after garden.

Raised garden beds come in heaps of different shapes and sizes to suit your vibe and yard space.

Here are some of our top raised bed picks – check them out:

• Square Raised Garden Bed
• Rectangular Raised Garden Bed
• Raised Garden Bed – Squared End
• Raised Garden Bed – Curved End

Explore the range: Raised Garden Beds

Another way to hardscape your backyard and boost your home’s value is by getting busy with garden screens.

Our Jack Garden & Privacy Screens are budget-friendly, super easy to install and are the perfect way to carve out separate spaces. Plus, they need minimal ongoing maintenance. Simply set them up next to your entertaining area, vegie patch, or kids’ play area, and boom – instant definition and house dollars!

Not only do garden screens define ‘rooms’, but they also add privacy. Whether you’re dodging neighbours – or your own family (we get it!) – pop behind one of these and enjoy your own little hideaway. Shade structures add bonus cover from prying eyes and the sun!

Plain screens do the job, but decorative screens turn your backyard from basic to boujee, adding some extra aesthetic appeal and style points.

Want our pick? Check out the Matrix Coolabah Decor Screen with Frame. Its gum tree leaf-inspired design makes your pool area feel luxe (without eating up floor space) – and can turn your bin area into a feature, not an eyesore!

Explore the range: Garden & Privacy Screens
Be inspired: 14 garden screening ideas: add privacy, style & function!

Creating zones and sprucing up your outdoor spaces with Garden Edging, Raised Beds, and Garden Screens can all help boost your home’s value – without emptying your wallet. Plus, they’re all easy projects you can tackle over a weekend.

But before you kick back and admire your DIY handiwork, make sure everything’s looking as neat as a perfectly pruned hedge with a few ‘quick win’ finishing touches.

Secure your edges, stabilise borders and sharpen those lines – these little details can make a big difference. Grab the right tools and accessories, including Edging Pegs and Landscaper’s Stakes, to lock everything in place and keep your garden adding value for years to come.

Explore the range: Landscaping Accessories

One thing that instantly makes a small or large backyard look intentional and designer? Making sure all your hardscaping works together.

Here’s how to keep it smart and simple:

• Stick to a palette – Choose 2–3 colours or materials and repeat them across your garden zones – for example, charcoal, green and rusty ‘oxidised’ steel.
• Match your styles – If your edging is clean and modern, carry that vibe through raised beds and screens. The same goes if it’s more decorative. Our matching Jack ranges help you do this easily!
• Repeat elements – Using the same shapes or textures across zones ties everything together – for example, if you have a curved edging, choose curved raised beds and screens with sweeping designs.
• Think flow – Make sure paths, borders and features lead the eye naturally from one zone to the next.

Explore the range: Landscaping & Garden Design

Despite having ‘hard’ in the name, hardscaping is an easy and budget-friendly way to add value to outdoor areas and home – when you do it with Jack!

With just a few products – Garden Edging, Raised Garden Beds and Garden & Privacy Screens – you can create gorgeous outdoor spaces, while ensuring a better asset or sale price.

Keen to get started? Simply pick your Landscaping & Garden Design products and head to your local Jack supplier to grab them. Just be sure to check the stock before you hop in the car!

Hardscaped a beautiful space that adds dollars to your home? Why not share some snaps on socials, tagging @meetdiyjack? You might just get a shout-out!

See also: Garden landscaping ideas to beautify your backyard
Blooming brilliant garden design ideas and hacks