2. Do a site analysis to get an understanding of your property conditions. This includes testing your soil content to check its fertility, determining how much sun you get in all areas, the normal wind directions, and the general views from all angles of the property.

3. Determine your family's needs. Do you need space for sports, barbecuing or a playground? Do you have a shed, driveway, dog house, garbage cans or clothesline? Where do you need pathways, lighting and parking spaces?

4. Decide which major features you want to include in your outdoor landscaping. Will you build a patio? If so, you need to consider patio landscaping, in terms of materials needed, shape, size and function. Will you install a swimming pool? There is then swimming pool landscaping to plan, with fencing, trees, pathways and lighting.

5. Additional features to consider come after the essentials are in place. You can decide if you have room for water features, walls or garden design plans. You can add landscaping rocks as focal points, or use river rock landscaping to incorporate moss covered, polished rocks in your garden. You can fill in your extra areas with flowers, trees, rocks or garden furniture like benches or gazebos.

6. Calculate your slopes. If you have steep hillsides in the back or front, consider putting in landscaping retaining walls to level it out. These are popular front yard landscaping ideas because they make for an appealing entranceway, but these landscape design plans can be used wherever it is necessary.

To get additional backyard landscaping ideas or sample plans for residential landscape architecture, you can look online for free landscaping ideas. There are many pictures and explanations of plans to achieve a variety of themes and spatial designs, so with your own creativity and influence from those sites, you can easily get the residential landscape design that best suits your space. Residential landscaping is largely about planning and research, so take the necessary steps to get the perfect result.