Your Guide to Rock Waterfalls

Many homeowners look to their backyard for privacy, enjoyment, and a relaxing paradise. As the years have passed, more and more design opportunities have presented themselves to help homeowners reach this from waterfalls and ponds to plant life and rock sculptures. Incorporating a waterfall into your backyard landscaping design is incredibly simple, and there are many resources available on the market today to provide you with inspiration and direction. Whether you’ve moved into a new home or looking for ways to update your current landscaping, consider these tips and benefits when creating a rock waterfall for your backyard, thus creating the oasis you’ve always wanted.

Benefits of an Outdoor Waterfall

Creating an outdoor waterfall for your property is an excellent way to add a water feature to your landscaping and character to your backyard. If you have a large backyard, it can be challenging to think of ways to add gathering areas, gardens, water features, and other design elements to make good use of the space. Installing a waterfall with a pond is an excellent landscaping option to consider if you have space. There are many benefits homeowners have found in incorporating an outdoor waterfall into their landscaping.

  • Adds to overall property aesthetic
  • Help aerate pond water
  • Simplify and disguise filtration systems
  • Soothing sound

Be Conscious of Stone Selection

While you may have a waterfall incorporated into your landscape, adding a pond at the base of a waterfall has continued to grow in popularity with many homeowners. The drop of your waterfall is the distance from which the water exits the waterfall spillway to where it hits the pond. Many of the primary rocks in the design of your waterfall must be several inches larger than the waterfall drop.

Make the Waterfall Fit In

Accounting for the terrain of your backyard is critical as you’ll have to create a waterfall design that is of the correct scale and fits in with the surrounding landscape. It’s encouraged to build a berm around the chosen waterfall area as this will help better incorporate it into your landscaping design without having to make extensive changes or alterations. You can create several smaller drops to help blend your waterfall appropriately, thus adding to your property’s overall aesthetic.

Create a Frame With Larger Rocks

This allows you to create a waterfall that truly performs like those in nature. When designing your waterfall, frame it with the largest rocks out of the materials you’ve chosen. After creating your frame, rocks with a flat surface can be placed in between, and small stones and gravel can be used to fill any gaps. Water will hit the larger rocks and find its path through the spaces between, thus creating the natural look you’ve been drawn to. Keep in mind, a waterfall is the focal point of your water feature, so take your time in the design and rock selection process; be creative.

The Fewer Rocks, the Better

Use your resources sparingly and don’t get carried away with trying to add a lot of different rocks. When building a waterfall, fewer stones are better because it creates more of a natural appearance and allows the water to create a path of its own rather than being directed. If you need inspiration or are unsure of where to begin, take a walk in nature and observe how those waterfalls have occurred; rock placement and all.

Create a Twisting Path

Natural waterfalls rarely follow a completely straight path. It’s encouraged to incorporate twists and turns into your design, depending on the size of your property and space you’re working with. This will create pleasing views from all directions as well as a unique landscaping piece rather than a waterfall that doesn’t resemble many observed in nature.

Enjoy the View

When considering the placement of your waterfall, you should plan for it to be viewed easily from different areas of your backyard, as well as your home. This allows household members and guests to enjoy the breathtaking view throughout the day continually. Make sure your waterfall is placed in a location visible from regularly used windows or patio doors and various seating areas in your backyard.

Use Plant Life to Your Favor

After designing your waterfall, incorporate plant material around the falls and stream or pond. This will soften the hard edges of the stone and add a natural, forest-like touch to your landscaping. Adding shrubbery and other plant materials around your waterfall will help create the impression that the structure has always been there and flows well with the rest of your backyard landscaping design.

Explore and Study Nature

As mentioned previously, when looking for inspiration for your waterfall, take advantage of the outdoors and the world around you. Go on hikes and visit parks that have natural waterfalls and streams. When visiting these locations, take pictures and notes of any structures that you’re drawn to. You can easily use these materials for inspiration once you begin designing your waterfall. Observing natural waterfalls and streams will also allow you to study how these structures are formed so you can create a design that lasts and replicates natural occurrences well.

Begin Designing Your Waterfall

Incorporating a waterfall into your backyard landscaping design may seem like a daunting task, but it adds a unique, natural feel that many homeowners dream of. Waterfalls and other water features are continuing to grow in popularity for many property owners, especially if there’s a lot of space to work with. Many benefits come with including a waterfall in your landscaping design from improved property aesthetic and a soothing sound to pond aeration and disguised filtration systems. There are many tips and tricks available today to help you start designing your waterfall. If you’re unsure of where to start, it’s encouraged to contact a waterscaping professional today.