backyard

Natural barrier

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Create a focal point

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small backyard continued: 9. Enclose the space. This may sound counterintuitive to making a small space feel larger, but it’s something that might work for your space. “When you enclose a small space even more, you play up its coziness and make it intimate, something that’s hard to achieve with large spaces,” Arthur says. “This also takes it to the next level of feeling like an outdoor room.” Pergolas are great for creating an intimate feel, but you can get the same effect with plantings. Architect Gary Beyerl’s backyard (shown here) is 10 feet by 20 feet. Because he has apartment units attached to his home, he wanted to do something that would afford him privacy. He used vertical plantings like humongous trumpet vines and a redbud tree to create an envelope of plant material. “By extending the plant zone up the vertical surfaces of an urban space, you can make a lot of visual greenery work to your advantage,” he says. “I’ve got a verdant environment even though it’s tiny.”

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Smallbackyard continued 3. Extend an indoor space. Architect Carson Arthur likes to ask his clients which indoor room they feel is too small, then establish more of that space in the backyard. “Is your kitchen too small? Do you need a bigger family room? Why not do that outside?” he says. “With the development of outdoor technology, anything inside can now be done outside.” Here an outdoor rug helps establish an extra living space on a small deck in Detroit.

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Small backyard: 1. Break it into multiple rooms or zones. Create multiple functions by strategically using built-ins and arranging furniture to establish different “rooms” for lounging, dining, mingling and cooking. This backyard space in Brooklyn, New York, has all four zones. 2. Implement a smart lighting design. This space also has a multifaceted lighting scheme. Sconces serve multiple purposes of task lighting by the grill, landscaping lighting by the plantings and overall ambient lighting. Meanwhile, an arm pendant hangs over the dining area.

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Another built-in bench also contains storage space beneath the seat, providing a place for gardening tools.

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In the northeast corner, a custom-size daybed illuminated with LED lights offers a spot for working or lounging. Haiman incorporated smart storage into the daybed. A roomy space beneath the seat stows cushions. The side of the daybed has a pullout drawer that contains a hose for cleaning off the deck. And a door in the backrest conceals the controls for the drip irrigation.

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The 2-foot-high aluminum planters, from Ore, have a rusted finish. Rather than placing them atop the pavers, thereby adding more weight in one spot, Haiman sunk them slightly and had the pavers abut them. Concealing the edge where paver meets planter, blue river stones add a textural detail.

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Rooftop terrace

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Atop an urban roofgarden: Switch grass (Panicum virgatum ‘Shenandoah’) lines the western edge of the garden. Haiman likes the way its red coloring adds winter interest to the landscape and softens the view. “The skyline is very static,” he says. “This adds movement.”

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