Front yard landscaping for Melbourne homes.

The front yard is the bit everyone sees, and the bit with the most rules. Ideas that work in Melbourne, and what to check before you dig.

Updated 9 October 2026

A freshly mown, striped lawn in front of a home (stock photo)

The short answer: decide what the front yard has to do first: parking, bins, the path to the door, privacy and street appeal. Then choose tough plants, pick lawn, artificial grass or no grass, and finish beds with edging and mulch. Before you dig, check the rules at the boundary: the nature strip, street trees, any heritage overlay and access to your water meter.

Start with what the front yard has to do

A mown nature strip and lawn beside a Melbourne home

A front yard works hard. Before choosing plants or surfaces, list what it needs to handle:

Cars and bins. Room to park, and a firm path wide enough to wheel bins to the kerb.
Getting to the door. A clear, even path for visitors, deliveries and the letterbox.
Privacy and street appeal. A low hedge or screen planting, or an open lawn that shows off the house.
Things that must stay reachable. Water meters usually sit at the front of the property, often near the garden tap.

Then watch the light for a day. A front yard on the south side of the house sits in its shadow for much of a Melbourne winter, which rules out some grasses and plants. Once you know the must-haves and the sun, the rest of the space can go to planting, lawn or both.

Low-upkeep planting that suits Melbourne

Gloved hands planting seedlings in a garden bed (stock photo)

The front garden gets looked at more than it gets used, so it should look tidy without much work.

Start with local plants. Indigenous plants suit the local soil and climate. Many councils publish a list. Hume’s Gardens for Wildlife list gives each plant’s height and width and notes the conditions it suits, such as wet or dry ground.
Keep it low near the driveway and footpath, so you can see kids, bikes and traffic when you back out.
Use hedges for privacy. See the best hedge plants for Melbourne before you buy.
Cover the soil. Mulched beds need less weeding than bare ones.

For more ideas, read our low-maintenance garden guide, or see what our landscaping across Melbourne covers.

Prefer to talk? Call or text 0415 386 399. We reply within 12 business hours.

Lawn, artificial grass or no grass?

Restored courtyard with stepping stones and gravel

Inside your property boundary, the choice is generally yours, subject to any owners corporation rules or planning permit conditions on your property.

Natural lawn suits a sunny front yard. Our guide to the best grass for Melbourne compares the options, and we lay new lawns and natural turf.
Artificial grass stays green with no mowing or watering, which suits shady or hard-to-reach front yards. See our artificial grass installation.
No grass at all. Mulched beds of low plants, with gravel or paving for paths, can be the easiest front yard of all.

The nature strip is a separate question. Most councils in Melbourne’s north don’t allow artificial grass there. Our guide to artificial grass on nature strips sets out each council’s rules, with links.

Paths, edges and mulch

These are the details that keep a front yard looking finished.

Paths. Gravel needs a firm, compacted base and a solid edge, or it creeps into beds. Plan to sweep rather than hose: Victoria’s water rules don’t allow drinking water to be used to clean paths and driveways, apart from hazards, staining or construction.
Edges. Gardening Australia lists wood, steel, stone and brick edging, and shows how a mowing strip of pavers or bricks saves trimming along the beds.
Mulch. Choose a type with our guide to the best mulch for Melbourne gardens, work out how much mulch you need, or book our mulch installation.
Keep beds off the house. Victoria’s building regulator advises against building up garden beds and mulch against walls, because termites can get in without being noticed.

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Rules to check before you start

Each council has its own rules, so treat these as a checklist and confirm with yours.

The nature strip

It’s part of the road reserve, not your block. Hume, for example, needs a permit under the Road Management Act 2004 before anyone landscapes a nature strip, and lists synthetic turf as not permitted.

Street trees

Council looks after street trees. Merri-bek says it’s responsible for trees in streets and on nature strips. Only its authorised arborists or contractors may prune them, and it investigates unauthorised removal, poisoning or vandalism of public trees. Hume doesn’t let residents plant trees on nature strips.

Heritage overlays and front fences

Merri-bek’s heritage guideline says you need a planning permit to build, alter or demolish a fence under a heritage overlay. It also notes front fences in heritage areas were traditionally about 1.2 metres high and see-through. A planning property report from VicPlan shows the zone and overlays for your address.

Large trees on your own land

Some councils protect bigger trees on private land too. Darebin’s local law covers trees above a set trunk size, and planning rules can protect others. Check before removing a large tree.

Your water meter

Greater Western Water, for example, asks owners to keep meters accessible: cut plants back and dig the meter out if it’s buried. Don’t cover it with beds, pebbles or turf, and check your own water corporation’s advice.

Trimming a hedge with a hedge trimmer (stock photo)

Keeping it tidy

A front yard needs a little care to stay sharp. Trim hedges at the right time of year (see when to trim hedges in Melbourne), top up mulch as it breaks down, and keep edges crisp. Councils such as Hume expect the household to mow, weed and edge the nature strip too. If you’d rather not do it yourself, we offer hedge trimming and pruning and regular garden maintenance.

Getting it done

We do front yard landscaping across Melbourne: clearing, new beds and edging, mulch, and new lawn or artificial grass. The owner is on site from the first dig to handover. Typically, old lawn and soil removal is included in the quote whenever base preparation is needed, and a mid-size job takes 2 to 4 days.

Text a few photos of your front yard and nature strip, plus your suburb, to 0415 386 399 for a free measure and quote.

From EKO Gardening Solutions. Sources checked on 9 October 2026.

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A few useful answers.

Have a question about your own space?
Tell us what you have in mind.

Can I put artificial grass in my front yard in Melbourne?

Inside your property boundary it’s generally your call, subject to any owners corporation rules or planning permit conditions that apply to your property. The nature strip is different: it’s part of the road reserve, and most councils in Melbourne’s north don’t allow artificial grass on it.

Do I need a permit to landscape my front yard?

Usually not for planting, but check first if you’re changing a front fence in a heritage overlay, removing a large tree or touching the nature strip. Merri-bek’s heritage guideline, for example, says a permit is needed to build, alter or demolish a fence under a heritage overlay. A planning property report shows which overlays apply.

What are good low-maintenance plants for a Melbourne front garden?

Local indigenous plants that suit your soil and sun, kept low beside the driveway and footpath. Your council’s indigenous plant list is the best starting point, and a local indigenous nursery can help you choose. Avoid anything your council lists as an environmental weed.

Who looks after the nature strip?

Usually the household next to it does the mowing, weeding and edging, but it’s part of the road reserve and council looks after the street trees. Hume, for example, expects residents to maintain the nature strip and needs a permit before anyone landscapes it.

Sources

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