With a bit of creativity (and enthusiasm!), you can transform the corners of your yard into breathtaking garden spaces.
Corner gardens are perfect to create curb appeal and help show off your backyard. Additionally, they can act as functional spaces whereby you can grow vegetables and herbs for cooking or place seats for an abundant oasis to sit, relax, and enjoy the outdoors.
We’ve compiled a list of some of the best corner garden ideas that will transform the unused corners in your landscape into eye-catching spots, whether your space is small or huge.
Take a look!
1. Build an Arbor
An arbor is an excellent addition to shady garden corner ideas for a serene escape on a hot afternoon. Here, Weeping Alaskan Cedar trees provide a lovely backdrop for the beautiful heartwood arbor and complement the black Adirondack bench.
The arbor has lattice sides waiting to be adorned by a polka climbing rose on one side and a Clematis ‘Josephine’ on the other. Peonies, roses, catmint, and lavender add more color to this newfound oasis.
2. Make it Stand Out
@southern_garden_lover dean.stokes.395
Bring a treasured piece from the Victorian era to your corner garden. This garden urn on a pedestal not only evokes glamor and charm but can also be placed in any corner of your yard.
A wall trellis and a modicum of plants further depict how this joyous DIY project is perfect for a small space.
3. Create a Lattice Wall
Use a lattice wall to partition your backyard and outline your garden space for a corner packed with lush foliage and color. Here, roses, lavender, petunias, and irises bring plenty of cheer to the corner garden, while boxwood and ornamental grasses add a dreamy backdrop along the lattice wall.
Small pots with hydrangeas, echeveria, and sedum on a nearby round table pull in the colors from the corner garden for a unified look.
4. Create Contrast
This neutral corner garden showcases a wonderful collection of green foliage. The garden is set against a black fence, creating a lovely contrast, and includes some interesting plants such as agave, bromeliad, cycad, and spiral aloe.
A wine bottle feeder, moai statue, and several other garden ornaments help further customize the area. A patio deck with a seating area designates a place to sit and enjoy the beauty and color of the corner garden.
5. Build a Patio Retreat
If you have a larger space in your backyard that needs to be filled, a corner garden can be the perfect idea. Vining plants spruce up the lattice fences here, while the corner garden sets off the small patio.
The patio has a couple of seats and a chiminea fire pit that turns the space into a personal retreat where you can gather, relax, and enjoy nature.
6. Go for Container Planters
No matter how massive or small your space is, you can always create a corner garden with pots and planters. Here, terracotta pots of various colors, sizes, and shapes were used, creating an intriguing, texture-rich corner garden.
The potted plants lie on a pebble foundation bordered by a neat lawn and a well-manicured privet hedge, giving the corner garden a natural yet formal feel.
7. Add some Stony Elegance
This corner garden doesn’t occupy much space but still packs a punch. The garden starts out with small yellow coreopsis flowers in the front, red coneflowers and white Mandevilla in the middle, while some white hydrangeas sit slightly behind, all framed by large evergreen trees.
The statues, plant stands, and other garden ornaments at the center of the arrangement make the layers of plants in the corner garden really unique, with a mulch bed adding a lovely feel to the entire space.
8. Tuck it Away
A corner vegetable garden that goes up? I see no better way to utilize a small space along your property line! The layout here provides ample space to plant your favorite vegetables and herbs.
The corner garden is slightly terraced with decorative edging and bricks, with a wire fence keeping any invasive animals away. A recycled pallet creates a vertical garden at the corner that not only saves space but also incorporates a lot of interest in the area.
9. Bring Interest with a Tree
Here, a small rock border was used to cleverly tuck away a garden in a corner formed by the house. You can add plants, trees, and flowers, such as impatiens, hostas, Eastern hemlock, boxwood used here, or even vegetables, whether in-ground or planters.
A layer of black mulch contrasts with the facade and keeps the weeds at bay, while several garden ornaments complete the look.
10. Build a Raised Bed
Take your corner garden off the ground with a raised bed. Here, stacked concrete bricks create a rustic raised bed, making it easier to grow and tend to plants and flowers.
Small rocks form the flower bed and complement the gray rocky theme for a continuous look, with bee balms, sedum, and heuchera ensuring the space doesn’t feel drab.
11. Curate a Wonderful Display with Trees
The Thuja occidentalis lining up the wall in this idea create a delightful sense of movement and add height to the corner garden.
The garden itself features a Pyrus calleryana tree surrounded by hydrangeas, peonies, spirea, Japanese maple, and hostas for an attractive display. A birdhouse welcomes feathery friends, while a garden sign personalizes the space.
12. Unwind in Peace
A corner garden with two seats and a side table is the perfect place to spend a quiet afternoon relaxing, whether alone or with a friend. Bonus points if you have a chic privacy screen like the one used here!
A tile and concrete platform defines the borders of the corner garden, with flowers and ornamental grasses filling the space with texture.
13. Take Inspiration from the East
Promote meditation and contemplation in your backyard with a Japanese corner rock garden. This corner rock garden idea takes the design a notch higher by incorporating a natural gazebo for a private sanctuary away from the outside world.
Japanese maples, arborvitaes, and evergreens add color and texture to the yard. Stepping stones create a pathway through the lawn to the garden, with a lantern in the gazebo completing the visually appealing theme.
14. Chill Out in Your Backyard
Take this modern corner garden idea and make it a reality in your own backyard. This contemporary space hosts a small garden of flowers and evergreens, as well as some raised planter boxes.
There are even some couches and a privacy fence for a secluded place to relax and enjoy all your hard work.
15. Go for a Rock Garden
This corner garden separates itself from the rest of the backyard with a gravel bed. The natural-looking garden includes hydrangeas, salvias, trees, and a small rock garden.
Stepping stones create a path that leads to bench seating, where you can enjoy the beautiful garden.
16. Make it Prominent
If you have a large backyard, a raised bed is an excellent way to create a lush corner garden that all your neighbors will be envious of. The raised beds here are filled to the brim with flowers, bushes, and a couple of trees, with a large pot creating a subtle focal point in the space.
17. Keep it Cohesive
A raised corner garden transforms this backyard into an intimate space.
The lavender beds add plenty of texture and a contrasting color to the white theme, with a palette table, an in-built bench, and an in-built fireplace completing the space.
18. Let it Grow
Take a cue from this corner garden idea and forego the typical formal and thoroughly planned corner gardens for a wilder look where everything feels organic. The giant bean bag chair on the small concrete patio is what makes this corner garden stand out from the rest.
Flowering bushes, evergreen hedges, and shrubs create natural garden borders in the backyard. The rustic brick wall includes a privacy fence at the top that acts as a garden trellis, allowing vining plants to climb up the rustic wall and soften the hardscape.
19. Divide your Space
A small raised corner garden, flanked by a wooden privacy fence, petite lawn, and garden beds, shows off a lush display of blooms and foliage.
The corner garden is filled with hydrangeas, lobelia, impatiens, and boxwood, with the privacy fence providing support for the creeping plants.
20. Go for a Farmhouse Feel
This corner garden fits in perfectly with the rest of the space. The wood planks for the raised bed match the wooden fence, with the pair complementing the concrete patio.
A small tree right at the corner draws the eyes toward the garden.
21. Add a Large Planter
If you’re lucky enough to have tons of space in your backyard, consider this landscaping idea to give your backyard a complete makeover.
Here, a massive planter creates a focal point and defines the corner garden. The planter showcases the tropical Bird of paradise, which adds more height to the space. A pair of pergolas, planters, a patio, a lawn, and a bench are there, too, making the backyard the perfect spot to relax in the hot summer sun.
22. Cater for the Wild
A small birdhouse that virtually blends in with the white wooden fence is the highlight of this corner garden. The birdhouse is surrounded by beautiful white, yellow, and purple blooms from daisies, daylilies, and coneflowers.
A layer of black mulch makes the plants stand out and gives the corner garden a unique feel.
23. Live Outside
Use corner garden ideas to expand your living area to the outdoors. Here, a beautiful built-in bench provides a place to lounge and doubles up as a raised bed for the corner garden.
Vining plants, ornamental grasses, and potted plants bring some life and color to the area. The bench has plenty of space and pillows for the ultimate spot you won’t feel like leaving.
24. Add a Rug
Corner gardens don’t have to be limited to swathes of vibrant blooms. Here, the corner garden enhances curb appeal by introducing a seating area.
Evergreen topiaries frame the area, while a greenery fence acts as a natural backdrop for the setup. A gray rug defines the space and pairs with the gray cushions and accents to contrast the wooden finishes.
25. Get to Work
If you have a garden shed in your backyard, filling one side with potted plants and adding a sectional will create a corner garden that makes your yard more attractive, as seen in this idea.
The garden shed matches the pink cushions for a clean look, while roses, hydrangeas, lavender, and alliums offer complementary hues that further enhance the space’s beauty. A hanging wreath and a small birdhouse complete the design in style.
26. Make it Rustic
Add charm to your outdoor space with a natural-looking corner garden. Here, aged brick and stone walls form a rustic backdrop for the wild corner garden.
The natural stone color of the walls and raised bed offers a lovely contrast against the colorful flowers and green foliage, while garden ornaments such as a trellis, bird cage, and planter stands make for an awe-inspiring corner garden.
27. Inspire with a Contemporary Look
@Tom Howard Garden Design Landscaping
If you’re looking for a large yet modest corner garden, this idea might just do the trick. Raised beds have been used to create a contemporary corner garden.
The backyard also features a multi-level deck, bench seating, and a bowl fire pit, making the space more attractive and functional. Lush evergreens, textural ornamental grasses, tall trees, and verdant blooms in the raised beds line the perimeter of the patio to define the space.
28. Keep it Minimal
If you’re looking for something special, take cues from this corner garden idea. A custom concrete and reclaimed wood planter houses perennials and grasses and acts as a subtle focal point.
The gray wooden privacy fence gives the space a streamlined look, while the synthetic turf offers a classy touch. String lights top off this calm, visually appealing masterpiece.
