AI Landscape Design

Deck Landscaping Ideas, Tried on a Photo of Your Yard

Upload a photo of your deck below and describe the plants or borders you want around it. Our AI returns the same view with them added, so you can see the look before you plant.

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Deck landscaping ties a deck into the yard with beds, borders and pots around its edges. Below: three before and after examples, what to plant, how to try it on your own photo, and what the AI cannot tell you.

More renders come with a paid plan (see pricing).

Still planning the deck itself? See our deck design ideas page. This page stays with the planting around it.

Before and after examples

In each pair, the left image was generated by AI as a stand-in for a yard, and the right image is that same picture edited by AI from a written instruction. You can read the exact instructions further down the page. These are not photos of real customer homes.

AI-generated stand-in, before: a low wooden deck with white lattice skirting against a beige sided house, with bare soil and no plants around it

Before

AI-edited version of the same image: a mulched bed of round green shrubs, purple hydrangeas and ornamental grasses along the bottom of the deck, hiding most of the lattice skirt

After

A planting bed along the skirt of a raised deck (first instruction below). The before image is an AI-drawn stand-in, not a customer photo. Followed: round green shrubs, purple hydrangeas and ornamental grasses at mixed heights in dark bark mulch; most of the lattice is hidden. Not followed: a strip of lattice still shows in the middle. Changed unasked: none we could see.
AI-generated stand-in, before: a ground-level wooden deck beside a white house, edged only by grass, with a wooden fence behind

Before

AI-edited version of the same image: a band of pale grey gravel along the front of a low deck with lavender, hostas and small grasses, and a small solar light

After

A gravel and plant border round a ground-level deck (second instruction below). The before image is an AI-drawn stand-in, not a customer photo. Followed: pale grey gravel, low lavender, hostas and small ornamental grasses along the deck edge. Not followed: the border runs along the front edge only, and we could see one solar light, not three. Changed unasked: none we could see.
AI-generated stand-in, before: wooden stairs down from a raised deck beside a gray house, with bare soil on both sides of the steps

Before

AI-edited version of the same image: a small red Japanese maple and round boxwood shrubs beside wooden deck steps, with two blue glazed pots of flowers on the bottom step

After

Planting and pots beside deck steps (third instruction below). The before image is an AI-drawn stand-in, not a customer photo. Followed: a small Japanese maple on one side, round boxwood shrubs, two large blue glazed pots with flowers on the bottom step. Not followed: the right side of the steps got one small shrub, and we could not see flowering perennials on either side. Changed unasked: none we could see.

What deck landscaping covers

Deck landscaping is the planting and ground cover around a deck, not the deck itself. It softens the hard edge where the boards meet the yard: a bed of shrubs and grasses along a raised deck to hide the space underneath, a low border of gravel and small plants round a ground-level deck, plants and pots beside the steps, an evergreen screen for privacy, and lights at the base of the plants.

The three examples show those ideas: a bed along a lattice skirt, a gravel border round a low deck, and planting by the steps.

Choosing plants for around a deck

Under and beside a raised deck it is often shady and dry, so pick plants that suit that spot and leave space for air to move under the boards. Keep tall shrubs away from the railing views you want, and leave room to reach the deck for repairs. Fragrant plants near the seating area and a few planters on the steps bring the garden up to the deck. Group plants with the same sun and water needs; hydrangeas and hostas want moist shade, lavender wants full sun and dry soil.

How to try a deck landscaping idea on your own photo

The tool above is in Custom mode, which has a Custom Design Requirements box. Describe the plants, beds, gravel, pots or lights around the deck, and where they go.

  1. Take the photo in daylight from where you usually see that part of the yard, with the deck, steps or railing in frame.
  2. Describe the change in the Custom Design Requirements box: what to add, where it goes, and what must stay, such as the deck, steps or railing.
  3. Upload your photo under Upload Your Garden Image and click Generate Custom Design. You sign in with an email code or Google when you generate.
  4. Compare the result with your photo. If something is in the wrong place or too big, name the spot and the size, and try again.

What the AI can and cannot do

The AI shows the look: which plants, beds and pots could go round your deck and how they look against the boards and the house. It does not check sun and shade under the deck, drainage, how big the plants grow or whether they suit your climate. In the examples above it left a strip of lattice showing, drew one light instead of three and planted one side of the steps more than the other, so check each result against your plan.

Deck landscaping instructions to paste into Custom mode

These are the exact instructions we used for the three examples above, in the same order. In the tool above, Custom mode is selected: paste one into the Custom Design Requirements box, then upload your photo.

  • Edit the image: ADD ONLY a planting bed along the bottom of the deck: a strip of dark bark mulch with round green shrubs, purple hydrangeas and ornamental grasses at mixed heights, hiding most of the lattice skirt. Keep the house, the deck, the railing, the lawn and the camera angle exactly the same.
  • Edit the image: ADD ONLY a border around the deck: a band of pale grey gravel along the deck edges with low mounds of lavender, hostas and small ornamental grasses, and three solar path lights. Keep the house, the deck, the fence, the rest of the lawn and the camera angle exactly the same.
  • Edit the image: ADD ONLY planting by the steps: a small Japanese maple on one side, round boxwood shrubs and flowering perennials on both sides in mulch, and two large blue glazed pots with flowers on the bottom step. Keep the steps, the deck, the railing, the house, the lawn and the camera angle exactly the same.
Try it on my yard photo

Frequently asked questions

Can I see plants around my own deck before I buy them?

Yes. Upload a photo of your deck from the yard and describe the plants and where they go in Custom mode. The first example shows a bed of shrubs, hydrangeas and grasses added along a deck skirt.

Does this page help me design the deck itself?

No, this page is about the yard around the deck. For deck shapes, levels and materials, see our deck design ideas page.

Is the AI landscape tool free?

Yes, to start: 1 free render with a free account, and free renders carry a watermark. Upgrading to a paid plan gives you more renders and no watermark.

More yard ideas

Want to see any of these on your own yard? Open our AI yard design tool, upload a photo and describe the change, or browse all AI design tools.

Deck pages: which one fits?

This page is about the plants and beds around a deck. For a neighbouring question, these pages cover it:

Planning the house as well? The AI exterior design tool works on a photo of the front of the house, and the AI paint visualizer tries wall colors. You can read more about who builds these tools on our about page.

For more, browse all of our landscaping ideas, sorted into front yards, backyards, patios, gardens, pools, styles and regions.