Yard design program. Free online garden plot designer

With the acquisition or receipt of a plot of land, a person dreams of immediately picking up a shovel and starting to use and improve the hard-earned acres. But it would be much more correct to initially evaluate and correctly plan the site in order to use it as efficiently as possible. After all, such preparatory work will allow construction to be completed faster and significantly reduce costs. The essence of the preparatory work is to evaluate according to a number of criteria and, depending on the data obtained, to draw up a plan of the territory and the main work.

The most important natural factors influencing land planning are:

Soil type

The type of soil determines the possibility of growing certain crops, and some soils even present difficulties during construction. Therefore, you need to familiarize yourself in advance with the type of soil on the site; for this you can use detailed soil maps, which should be available at the local land management and cadastre department or even the village council. If they are not there, then you can independently determine the type of soil; for this you need to take samples in several parts of the garden plot to a depth of about 10 centimeters. These piles of soil need to be moistened with water and rolled into a ball; if the lump falls apart, then the soil is sandy. Next, you need to roll the ball into a roller; if this does not work, then the soil is sandy loam. If the roller is successful, then you need to twist it into a ring, the loamy soil will crack, and the clay will keep its ideal shape. Sometimes, after determining the type of soil, you have to think about adding imported fertile soil to the soil.

It is also important to determine the acidity of the soil; for this, you can again contact the local authorities with the question or again act independently. To do this, you need to pour a handful of soil into a container, fill it with water and mix, lower litmus paper into the settled water and, based on the resulting color of the strip, draw a conclusion about the need to add lime or other substances that change the acidity level; perhaps you will need a whole program for changing the acidity of the soil.

This factor is very important not only for growing plants, especially fruit trees with a deep root system, but also for extending the service life of building foundations. In addition, when groundwater is close to the ground during periods of spring and summer floods, basements, lower floors and land areas can be flooded, which threatens dampness in buildings and loss of crops. Therefore, you need to determine in advance the groundwater level and the need.

Groundwater level at the lache

To do this, two-meter wells are drilled in the garden plot during dry summers, in which the water level is monitored using a regular tape measure. If it is less than 1 meter, then drainage of the area is simply necessary, and it is better to design and construct it before the construction of buildings.

Orientation to cardinal directions

It is recommended to orient the house according to the cardinal directions. It is also very important to determine the illumination of the garden area in order to correctly plant light-loving and shade-loving plants. To do this, you need to mark the shadows cast by fences and buildings at 9, 12 and 18 o'clock. The triple-shaded areas are deeply shaded and are suitable for planting exclusively shade-loving crops, while the unshaded areas are suitable for planting light-loving flowers, shrubs and trees.

Direction of prevailing winds

The local hydrometeorological service office can help you find out about prevailing winds. It is not good if northern winds blow most often on the site, because they reduce the growth activity of crops and contribute to their winter freezing. In this case, you will have to take care of protecting the area from the winds with the help of high, dense fences.

Relief

The site may have a different type of relief from absolutely flat to mountainous or hilly; a ravine, swamp, lake or other small forms of irregularities may fall on the land plot. This has a great impact, since all buildings, garden and vegetable corners must be placed in accordance with the individual characteristics of the uneven surface of the earth. also affects the planning style, for example, the classic symmetrical option is suitable only for flat areas, which can be divided into square and rectangular zones, decorated with smooth straight paths and green spaces. But on sloping and complex terrain, landscape style is more suitable, which is characterized by smooth lines that follow all the curves of the earth's surface.

Diagram of the summer cottage plot plan

Shape of the plot and its area

The plots can have various shapes from classic square to narrow rectangular, sector, L-shaped or triangular, examples of which can be seen in the photo. And the style and principles of site planning depend on this. The size of the plot is also important; the more acres, the wider the possibilities for design. At the same time, a huge number of acres is much more expensive to develop and more difficult to maintain, so owners of small plots should not be discouraged.

As a rule, they have 6, 9, 12, 15 and more than 20 acres. If there are 6-10 acres on the site, then every piece is worth its weight in gold, so you will have to abandon unnecessary buildings to avoid the feeling of bulkiness. And on large areas you can use options with large lawns, artificial or natural ponds, rock gardens and even garden areas.

Site layout is the key to construction success

Of course, most owners of land plots figure out the desired layout in their minds ahead of time, but for the success of the business, all thoughts need to be transferred to paper or a layout; for this, a plan diagram is better suited.

Basic principles of its compilation:

• first you need to determine the scale in which the scheme will be carried out, 1:100 is best suited, that is, with a square plot of 9 acres, the side will be equal to 30 m, which on the plan will be equal to 30 centimeters, this is very convenient for perception and further calculations;
• further, the paper can be drawn into centimeter squares, which will allow you to better imagine the site, and plan buildings and plantings with an accuracy of up to a meter;
• Then you should cut out the desired buildings and plantings from thick paper and move them until you get the ideal layout.

Program for computer land planning

You can also significantly simplify the stage by leaving all the complex and painstaking work to the computer. For this, there are special programs that allow you to quickly and easily arrange and move elements of a site and even convert the plan into a three-dimensional picture. To do this, you need to enter the shape of the plot, the number of acres, and the desired objects.

Program for computer land planning

Let's consider the main programs for computer land planning:

1. – the program uses the latest 3D technologies that allow you to design a site even in the absence of special knowledge. Even a beginner can handle it. Examples of site design in this program can be seen in the photo.
2. FloorPlan 3D Deluxe - the program allows you to visualize the design of buildings and landscapes in three-dimensional mode, has good graphics and advanced capabilities.
3. Sierra Land Designer 3D - this program allows you to plan a summer cottage in two-dimensional and three-dimensional mode and even change the camera angle to see the future garden and plot from different angles, at different times of the day and year. Examples of site design in this program can be seen in the photo.
4. PUNCH! – this program allows you to easily move buildings and plantings according to the plan, add and remove them. But it can only work with standard objects, and it is also impossible to convert the project into 3D format.

Also, some sites offer special planners that allow you to plan online, without installing a program on your computer, which saves time. To ensure that the site is comfortable, functional and beautiful, it is better to spend time and effort on preliminary planning than to later lament the mistakes made and try to correct them. In addition, with the advent of computer technology, this activity has become simple, fast and even enjoyable; you just need to load the initial data into the program and enjoy the three-dimensional layout of the future site.

When a person has a dacha or just a plot of land, he is faced with the important question of how to properly manage the territory. You shouldn’t dig up everything, build, mark out everything at once. It’s better to start by reading the relevant literature and asking experienced gardeners for advice. When designing, you will need to take into account many different nuances, for example, how to correlate the site with the cardinal points (this is necessary in order to correctly position all future buildings). Generally, The planning process is a rather complex and costly process.

You will need to delimit a space for buildings, a recreation area, and a parking lot. All this is decided before the house is built. The fact is that from the first days you will need somewhere to sleep, relax, and have lunch. You can first build a temporary shed, and later move it to the utility block.

In general, there is a lot of work to be done. It is important not to make a mistake anywhere and plan everything in advance. Landscape design programs will help you with this. On the Internet you can find a huge number of ready-made layout options, but how nice it is to create and implement your own project based on your preferences and tastes.

Today there is more than a hundred different landscape editors that offer different functionality. It can be quite difficult to figure out which program is best suited. We will help you with this.

How to choose

First you need to determine your level of preparedness. For example, if you are not particularly good with technology and have only mastered basic computer knowledge, then it is better to give preference to simple home programs.

You will be required just enter the parameters of your land plot and choose from ready-made models presented in the database (there are quite a lot of projects, there will be plenty to choose from).

But, if you are serious, you need to create a drawing or layout with your own hands, then you will need a graphic editor with extensive functionality. Unfortunately, utilities for detailed model creation are not officially distributed free of charge. To work, you will have to purchase a licensed product (download a pirated version) offered by the developer.

Five best programs for home use

The advantage of home editors is that they have a very simple and understandable interface for everyone, they are distributed free of charge, allowing almost everyone to create their own site layout and change already available projects to suit their needs. This is really convenient; sometimes it is very difficult to understand what an idea will look like when implemented in life. We'll tell you about the five most convenient and functional landscape design programs.

X-Designer – garden plot planning

This is perhaps one of the simplest programs for designing landscape design. It does not require the user to have any knowledge or skills in operation. It's very easy to understand.

The program is easy to download and install (we downloaded it), but the utility can be easily found using a search engine).

It’s not difficult to figure it out, it will take the average user no more than 10-15 minutes. First, you just need to enter the type of your plot, indicate its dimensions, set the date and other parameters. For example, let’s call our plot “my plot” and choose dimensions 60x80. Next, select the month, date and time of day.

Then all that remains is to fully plan the structure and select decorations from the library (quite a large selection of models). As an example, let’s take our site and display a house (the dimensions of each object can be changed, for example, specify the slope, dimensions, etc.).

Each plant is accompanied by a voluminous card, which describes how to care for, water and its characteristics. You can also monitor in real time the changes in the flower bed in the coming years, taking into account the characteristics of the growth and development of the selected landscaping.

The program is convenient in its simplicity. Like X-Designer, it is very easy to understand (it will take no more than 20 minutes to learn the basics and get into the process). You can download it using a search engine (we used the program).

After opening, you will need to choose - create a new design, open a plan from a computer, or edit a template design.

A new design means planning a project from scratch. For example, let's create a small area measuring 5x10.

It is much easier to change a ready-made plan than to create a completely new one. However, your own design will help take into account all the details of the site and your wishes.

As in the previous program, here is presented a huge selection of objects and tools for working with the site. All of them are divided into categories to make it easier for the user to find the right model.

Tools are needed to create a site. With their help, you can mark out the territory and create the necessary areas. A distinctive feature of the program is its simplicity, it is easy to learn and it makes it possible to schematically evaluate the layout of your site.

SketchUp

Functional utility for creating projects. It allows you to develop a full-scale landscape design and carry out preliminary preparation and territory planning.

There are two versions of the software - free and paid. The first is suitable for home use, allowing the user to take advantage of all the necessary functions. The second is needed for commercial purposes of companies and ordinary designers.

The easiest way to download the program is through a torrent client or the official website (you will be provided with a temporary free license).

One of the most significant advantages of the utility is its collaboration with third-party Google products. For example, the service allows you to automatically exchange data with Google Earth. This is truly convenient, because you don’t need to create a three-dimensional model of the site manually, but you can simply take a ready-made one from the globe, which will fully correspond to the real parameters. This material is easier to work with.

However the average user will find it difficult to cope with this program. It is complex, because it allows you to work out each element in detail. SketchUp is more suitable for experienced designers; if you need such a detailed design, then it is better to turn to a professional.

Our Garden Rubin 9.0

This program is a kind of Russian version of Sierra (an excellent design program, but it is not translated into Russian). All the possibilities are similar, and the implementation methods are similar. The program is divided into several blocks, each of which is designed to solve a specific problem. If you use the entire range of functions at once, you can get a completely finished landscape design project for the territory.

One of the main advantages of the utility is that the interface is translated into Russian. It is distributed free of charge, which means it does not offer huge functions and is designed for the average user.

Yet again, the program is good because of its simplicity. An ordinary summer resident does not need complex and detailed plans, and he is unlikely to be able to create something similar on his own (it is better to contact a designer).

The program is quite simple, so even an inexperienced user can handle it (about 10-15 minutes is enough). When launched, the main screen opens with a ready-made site template.

Let's create a new plan. The program provides a large selection of models and template options that can be changed at your discretion.

First you need to mark the territory, then install objects in place as desired. For example, let's build our house with a bench, a lantern and trees.

After creating a two-dimensional plan, you can view the result in 3D. By the way, a whole assistant is provided for caring for plants.

Our Garden 6.0 Omega

Another version from the “Our Garden” series. It allows the user to create their own projects for planning or designing areas based on a digital photo.

The main advantage is the possibility integration of the plan with regular photographs. The program provides information about 7.7 thousand plants available for work. The selection of soil, flowering time, zone, timing, etc. is also provided. With the program you can easily create your own flower garden, which will continuously please the eye.

The layout you create can be viewed in 3D at any time (saved). You can specify different times based on which the plants will change in shape and size. Large amounts of information are provided regarding the care of flower beds of various types and the fight against harmful diseases. Our Garden 6.0 Omega can be an excellent option for those who want to create a cozy place in their dacha, decorated with amazing flowers and plants.

The functionality and process of creating an object is the same as in Our Garden Rubin 9.0.

There are not only computer versions of garden design software. If you don’t want to deal with the interface of conventional utilities, then you can use online options. They are very easy to learn (simpler than all those mentioned above), but the working methods are also simplified. The bottom line is that online versions do not have even a fraction of the capabilities that full-scale programs provide. But with their help you can get a schematic sketch of the layout of the territory.

Which video lessons should I choose?

For those who don’t like to learn at random, here are training videos. The material below is the first video in a whole series of lessons. This is not to say that this is a high-quality educational material, but in general it is more detailed and lively than other lessons presented on Youtube, and can be a good help for intuitive learning.

A landscape design sketch can be drawn by hand in front of the customer or in the office, at home, but this can be done either with a regular pencil or by adding paints. If we move on to more complex stages (general plan, layout and planting drawings), then in the modern world we simply cannot do without computer technology.

Programs for site design will satisfy both a novice designer and a professional - everyone chooses a program according to their level and capabilities.

Our Garden Ruby

If you want to work with the best programs, then contact Our Garden Rubin. This is a special landscape planner that will help you design a garden plot at any level of complexity.

Our Garden Crystal

This program combines a unique plant encyclopedia with the latest landscape design capabilities. Whether you are a beginner, an amateur gardener, or have been designing a landscape for years, this software will help you in any case.

Using it you can not only learn yourself, but also teach others, which is why “Our Garden Crystal” can be found more than once as a teaching aid for teachers and students of design schools, colleges, and institutes.

Realtime Landscaping Architect

If you want not just to arrange elements around your site, but to turn your landscape into a dream, then turn your attention to this program. It uses new 3D technologies that even a beginner can master. Dream, fantasize, and make your visions come true!

FloorPlan 3D Deluxe

The program helps to visualize the design of landscapes, houses and apartments in 3D space. It is simple and reliable. Will help you simulate a landscape area.

This program is distinguished by high quality graphics, the presence of various and convenient tools, and great opportunities for creating 3D projects.

PUNCH!

This program is good because it allows you to add various landscape elements, buildings, and even work in three-dimensional mode to your site. However, it has significant drawbacks - in PUNCH you will not be able to add your own objects (only standard ones), and you will also not be able to export your work to any 3D format.

Sierra Land Designer 3D

This program is also very attractive to users due to its versatility. It allows you not only to design your future landscape (not only in 2D, but also in 3D visualization), but also change the position of the camera to see your garden from different angles. It is also possible to see how your garden will look in different seasons and at different times of the day, which is especially important when designing lighting.

Google SketchUp

There are programs for site design that were not originally intended for this. Google SketchUp is just one of them. However, it can be safely used for this task, for example, to check the effects of shadow from the sun at any time of the day.

If you do not have the time and energy to independently implement all the ideas for the design of your site, then professional agronomists and designers of our company "Lawn Zone" will help you with this, develop a landscape design for the site, and provide free consultations and advice.

What and where to place on your 6 acres, 10 acres...?

So you finally have your own piece of land. And it doesn’t matter what its area is - 6 acres or 10 acres. Do not immediately rush to dig it, build it and fence it. Read specialized literature, think, consult with experienced summer residents and gardeners. Create a plan for the future site, correlating it with the cardinal points. This will help you correctly orient all your future buildings and plantings. Planning your own plot is not an easy task, and our advice will help you with this.

You will need to determine places for a house, a utility block, a recreation area, and parking a car. But keep in mind, first of all, it is necessary to solve the housing problem before the construction of the house is completed. After all, from the first days of your stay at the dacha, you will need to somehow spend the night, rest, cook food, etc. Therefore, plan to immediately build a temporary shed, which will later turn into a utility block, a warehouse for storing building materials, work equipment, etc.

Determine the sides on which the windows of the future house will face. It is advisable that these be west and east, otherwise the rooms on the south side may be hot all the time, and the rooms on the north side may be cold all the time. On the south side you can place a veranda or terrace; it will act as a kind of thermal insulator, preventing the house from overheating in the summer and cooling in the winter.

The house is usually located 5 m from the road along the “red line”. On the shady northern side, you can plan to plant currants and other shade-tolerant ornamental shrubs and trees. On the south side of the house, it is advisable to plant apple trees and other fruit trees - then they will receive the sunlight and warmth they need, and at the same time form shade, which will save you from the heat on hot days. Currants are planted at the western border of the site, and raspberries at the southern border. The layout of a summer cottage implies immediately defining a recreation area and a children's playground. However, they should not be in the open sun. The recreation area is made, if possible, secluded, inaccessible to prying eyes.

If you plan to create a pond on your site, then you need to provide a place for it that is not exposed to constant sunlight. The remaining free space is allocated for a lawn, or... Behind the house, if desired, we have a vegetable garden and strawberries, and behind them we plant currants.

It is important to correctly place your plants, trees and shrubs so that their shadow does not disturb you or, especially, your neighbors. Currant and gooseberry bushes are planted at a distance of about 1.5 m from the border of the site. Apple trees, pears, plums, and cherries are planted even deeper in the garden. If the area is small, it is better to plant trees on a dwarf rootstock.

Programs for creating a DIY landscape design project

On the Internet you can find a large number of ready-made projects for summer cottages. But you can create a project yourself, based on your preferences and the location of your summer cottage. There are various landscape design programs for this purpose. Let's look at some of the simplest and most accessible of them. The presented programs are posted in Russian and they can download for free!

⊕ Self-instruction manual. Landscape design

For those who are trying to work with programs for designing a summer cottage for the first time and want to master and use all their convenient functions, we offer a tutorial on landscape design. Interactive video instructions, voiced and commented in Russian by a professional speaker, with the opportunity to participate in the learning process, will help you quickly master all the functionality of the programs.
This video instruction covers several of the programs listed below (Garden Planner, Garden Planner, 3D Home Architect Design Suite Delux).
Download Self-instruction manual. Landscape design (124 Mb)

1. X-Designer. Garden plot planner 3D

In this program, you can not only competently model a site using a fairly extensive library of garden plants and other landscape objects, but also see your site in all its glory at different times of the year and even at different times of the day!
After the project is formed, you can see the result from all sides and photograph the result for further reproduction of the project on the site.
Download X-Designer program (202 Mb)

2. Our garden. Ruby 9.0

This powerful program allows you to create a landscape design project using existing digital photos. This will be appreciated by both users who create landscape design with existing objects (trees, buildings, etc.), and those who are planning a site from scratch. The program also provides a huge number of different plants, garden elements and garden objects.
Download the program Our Garden Rubin (4.3 Gb)

3. Our garden 6.0 Omega

A powerful program from the Our Garden series allows you to create a landscape design project or design plans based on digital photographs. Integrate the plan you create with real photos. Detailed information about more than 7,700 plants contained in the program, with the ability to select soil, flowering time, place of growth, life span and much more. etc. will help you assemble and create the perfect flower garden - a flower bed of continuous flowering.
You can view the created plan in a 3-dimensional image at different times of the day or year. Depending on the specified year, the plants will be adjusted in growth form and growth. Contains a huge amount of information on caring for outdoor and indoor plants and controlling diseases and weeds. The program will be a real find for people who create a cozy corner on their site, decorated and decorated with beautiful flower beds.
Download the program Our Garden Omega (690 Mb)

4.

One of the simplest programs that allows you to create a garden layout by dragging all the necessary and desired elements onto the plan and arranging them as you wish. Also, for convenience and clarity, you can change the foliage color and scale.
Download Garden Planner 3 (3.5 Mb)

5. 3D Home Architect Design Suite Deluxe

This interesting program allows you to create a design project for a summer cottage or other interior from scratch. A rich selection of design elements (plants, lighting, fences, trellises and even playgrounds) with the ability to adjust their sizes will help you create an easy and effective site design in 2D format, and with the help of the built-in functionality you can view it in 3D (in all perspectives, angles and at different distances).
Download the program 3D Home Architect Design Suite Delux (222 Mb)

For professionals who are familiar with design programs first-hand, we can recommend using the following programs.

In this age of computer technology, it is much easier to perform some tasks with the help of machines rather than manually. Architectural and landscape design are not left out either. Now any non-professional user can create a simple project in a few minutes. In this article we will look at the main programs for planning the site of a country house - paid and free, with an interface in Russian and English.

Simple programs for site planning and design

Let's first look at a list of simple programs that are often free. Even a beginner without experience will be able to make a plot plan in them.

Garden Planner

Garden Planner is an easy-to-learn program from Artifact Interactive for designing a site in 2D format. Its advantages are that you can plan your site in literally 5 minutes. The only downside is that the interface is in English. But it is simple and intuitive.

Design Interface

In the program you can specify the dimensions and create a plan in just 5 minutes! The base of objects will be sufficient for the average summer cottage.

Example plan created in 5 minutes

There is also an online version of this application. It is practically no different from the desktop one.

FloorPlan 3D

FloorPlan 3D (TurboFloorPlan Home and Landscape Deluxe 2017) is a multifunctional complex for designing buildings, houses, offices and plots. Suitable for both professionals and beginners.

Interface screenshot

The interface is quite simple, so you'll get the hang of the program pretty quickly.

2D plan view

In FloorPlan 3D you can customize the sizes, colors and materials of objects. There is also a Vedomosti service where you can calculate estimates and costs of materials. Thus, the program is perfect for creating a plan of objects on the site, as well as a plan of your house with the arrangement of furniture and an estimate for construction.

X-designer

X-designer - garden plot planner in 3D format. This product of the Russian developer “IDDK” allows you to design your site without special skills. In the program, you can choose a plan view from above or 3D display. The interface is entirely in Russian.

Also in X-designer you can control the terrain of the site, seasons and days. The library contains more than 500 objects.

Professional Design Products

The next line of products is designed for professional graphics processing and drawing up high-quality plans by specialists.

Our Garden Crystal

Our Garden Crystal version 10 (previous version Our Garden Rubin 9.0) is a program of the domestic developer JSC DiComp. It is not only a design tool, but also a real encyclopedia of gardening. The database contains information about more than 17,000 plant species, including about 2,000 roses. It is possible to select plants according to more than 20 parameters: soil, life span, growth rate, etc...

It is noteworthy that there is a built-in photo editor into which you can insert real photographs of objects, then process them and insert them into your summer cottage project.

The program designer has a 2D and 3D view and allows you to design the terrain, paths, ponds on the site, decorative elements and construction objects.

Sierra LandDesigner 3D

Sierra LandDesigner 3D is a design application for landscape design in 2D and 3D format. The developer of the program is Sierra, a company known to many video game fans. Unfortunately, the program is old (2000) and cannot be found on the developer’s official website. However, you can download it on the Internet. There is a Russified version of the program.

Punch Home Design

Punch Home Design is a package of products for visualizing the interiors and appearance of a house and a summer cottage.

The simplest product “Punch! Landscape, Deck & Patio v19" allows you to design a landscape using a library, the import and export of which is possible from other AutoCad and Sketchup programs!

It is as well suited for professional design as Realtime Landscaping Architect, and its integration with other 3D objects makes it indispensable.

SketchUp

SketchUp is a free software package for 3D modeling not only of summer cottages, but of any object or object in general. Suitable for beginners who want to plan their garden in three-dimensional form. For corporate clients, you will need to purchase a license.

The program has its own database of objects, which is updated by users. You can add them to your plan.

Example of searching for a 3D object “spruce”

Despite the fact that SketchUp allows you to create a site plan, its main purpose is 3D modeling. Therefore, it is most likely suitable for landscape design.

One more example

Realtime Landscaping Architect

Realtime Landscaping Architect is a program for site planning in 2D and 3D format for the Windows operating system. This product is distinguished by a more professional approach to design and is suitable for advanced users, as well as landscape designers.

Interface screenshot

The program is also distinguished by more detailed drawing of objects. The Plus package database contains 10,400 models, of which 5,100 are plants; the Architect package contains 16,400 objects, of which 7,200 are plants.

Detailed drawing of plants

This software package allows you to create presentations, view the dynamics of plant growth, how they will receive shade during the day, and much more. In general, a complete product for professional design.

Other professional products:

In this material we do not consider such professional products as Autodesk 3DS Max and ArchiCad. They are universal of their kind and are recognized as the best in the world for constructing any three-dimensional objects. Including for site planning.

Instead of a resume

The choice of program largely depends on what you want:

To easily create a plan in two dimensions, the Garden Planner program is suitable.

For more detailed development and viewing of your plan in 3D format, beginners will benefit from: FloorPlan 3D or X-Designer.

If you are thinking about higher quality products and want to work out your plan in more detail, we advise you to take a closer look at the Russian program Our Garden Crystal or the English-language Punch Home Design and Sierra LandDesigner 3D.

Among commercial products for professional landscape design and beyond, we recommend Realtime Landscaping Architect, SketchUp, as well as the Autodesk 3DS Max and ArchiCad product lines.

* For corporate use version price is $695

Read about the stages of construction:

The landscape design program is an indispensable assistant when modeling a summer cottage. To think through every detail to the smallest detail, similar programs were created. These programs allow a designer or a novice gardener to design a complete look for their future site. If you don’t have experience working in a landscape design program, you can start by watching a video of an online training course. Designing a summer cottage can be done in any suitable program; there are a large number of them. There are also programs for site design that can be downloaded for free on an iPad. There are programs for developing garden designs online without downloading. You can create a project for your own site with your own hands.

Landscape design software

The necessary materials for landscape design can also be selected in a special program. The program will also help a lot with choosing vegetation for the garden. With the advent of such programs, you can forever forget about projects that are done on a piece of paper, because computer programs provide unlimited possibilities; you can change a landscape option you don’t like in a few minutes. For both computer and iPad, you can download a free program for modeling a summer cottage via torrent. Such programs exist not only for professional designers, but also for beginners. Anyone can master a simple program, and if you want to master serious programs for landscape design, then you can download a special video for training. And for more in-depth training, you can use the services of a specialized circle. Attending a training course will give you more opportunities to create landscape design projects.

Any elements of landscape design can be simulated in the program, such as:

• site lighting;
• reservoir, pond;
• fencing;
• paths;
• necessary vegetation;
• shrubs;
• trees;
• benches;
• gazebos and much more.

Landscape design software

Consider a list of programs for landscape design:

1. Our Garden Crystal 10.0
2. Complete Landscape Designer 3.0
3. Series of programs “Landscape Art”
4. Garden Design Pro
5. Realtime Landscaping Plus 4

Our Garden Crystal 10.0

This landscape design program can be called a complete encyclopedia. It has all the latest DIY design features. This program is quite easy to use and therefore does not require prior training. This program can also be used by teachers to conduct a landscape design course. This program can be downloaded for free using a torrent link.

Our Garden Crystal 10.0 program has:

• high-quality visualization;
• updated library of various objects:
• complete encyclopedia of plants;
• drawing elements;
• video as a presentation;
• fences;
• shadows.

Reviews about this application for landscape design are only positive. Changes after months, years, seasons can be observed in this program. To do this, you need to create your own project and use the monitoring function at different times of the year. If you use a view that will show the appearance of the site after years, you can see how the plants will grow after planting in certain places, this makes it possible to evaluate the correctness of planting. New features in this program offer realistic appearance of objects, such as the porous appearance of stones, the shine of grass, the shadows of garden elements and much more. An estimate calculator has been added to the new version of the program. Calculating prices for all the necessary objects is not difficult. Price catalogs can be updated in the program. More than 15 thousand specimens of plants are in the program's encyclopedia; descriptions and names of plants are accompanied by clear and bright photographs. To evaluate all its advantages after creating your own project, you can use the program’s walk through the garden function. The library of railings and stairs is rich in a variety of elements. You can choose the desired objects for every taste.

Creation of landscape design

Complete Landscape Designer 3.0

Complete Landscape Designer 3.0 is a medium complexity program for landscape design modeling. A video tutorial can be viewed before using the program. Two versions are available for creating landscape design projects, one version is English, the other is Russian. The program does not have any problems during installation, but it cannot be downloaded for free. This is a paid program, the full version can only be purchased on the website or in the store on disk. You can transform your own summer cottage with your own hands. A photograph of an existing plot is loaded into the program, and then all the necessary elements that are needed to decorate the garden are added to this picture. The program's library contains a huge number of plants, ponds, architectural elements, paths and much more. Titles and descriptions are provided for each item.

A full-fledged site can be created in the program with all the necessary elements and objects. It is possible to scan photographs of plants and enter them into the program database. The view of the site looks realistic thanks to the panoramic view. There will be no difficulties in designing if you carefully study the use of the program from the video course. The interface of this program is quite easy to use. Replenishing the program database is a great advantage of the program. Only the two-dimensional view of the object can be called a slight drawback of this program, but this will not negatively affect the creation of landscape design with your own hands.

Landscape art

The Landscape Art series of programs is designed for creating your own landscape design. You can create a garden project that includes ponds, various flower beds, lawns, trees and much more. For some designers, the disadvantage of this program may seem to be that it cannot be downloaded, but can only be purchased in the store on disk. Material for learning how to use the program can also be found on the disk; various descriptions and pictures are presented there. You can also use another similar program for creating landscape design from VIEM.

3D-max program

You can download the trial version or use it online. For full operation, you need to buy the full version of this program. The design of a summer cottage in this program is rich in various possibilities. You can create hedges, various garden paths, front gardens and other landscape elements in it. For training, the program has theoretical material with pictures that will be understandable to any user. Therefore, by first viewing the training material, you can create a unique design for your garden.

Garden Design Pro

Garden Design Pro is an excellent program for creating landscape designs on the iPad. This application is available for all iPad users. The simple interface and ease of operation will not cause any difficulties even for beginners. No additional training is required to use this program. A boring summer cottage plot can be transformed with the help of this program; 3D animations allow you to see the plot in its full form after it is finally designed. If the desired result is obtained, then you can proceed directly to arranging your site according to the developed project. The application is free and contains tips.

Realtime Landscaping Plus 4

Realtime Landscaping Plus 4 - the program can be difficult for beginners, so a training course is indispensable. The functionality of the program in the free version is limited; to buy the full version, you must visit the developer's website. For professional landscape design developers, this program is an excellent assistant; beginners can also master the use of the program. Just like other programs, Realtime Landscaping Plus 4 allows you to take a photograph of the planned site as a basis, or you can start modeling the garden from scratch. When viewing the finished project in three-dimensional form, you can observe the realism of the site, the plants swaying in the wind.

Do you want to start landscaping your own garden? No problem! And there is no need to run to a designer, whose work is very expensive. Of course, consulting with a professional never hurts, but this is not always possible (at least for financial reasons), and in any case, first you need to figure out what you want. Moreover, it is possible that you will not need a designer, for example, if your lifelong dream is to create a cozy Japanese-style garden with your own hands.

Obviously, before going to the nursery to buy planting material, it is advisable to design a virtual model of the garden, since this will help you decide which plants and landscape structures you need and in what quantity. And here two questions immediately arise: where to get ideas for design, since few non-professionals have a taste for design, coupled with the experience of growing numerous garden plants, and how to create such a virtual project?

As for the first question, the answer can be obtained by studying various design solutions for garden design, for which you will have to turn to the relevant literature or electronic encyclopedias. The latter option is preferable due to the presence of a conveniently designed search system in such encyclopedias, which will allow you to quickly navigate.

There are two options for solving the second question. You can take paper and start creating numerous plans and drawings, which will have to be redone more than once - and it is not at all a fact that the project implemented according to one of these plans will ultimately turn out to be the embodiment of your dreams, because it is difficult to imagine in volume the creation created on the plan. Or you can use a suitable software solution for visually designing a garden - many of them are quite easy to learn and will be within the capabilities of any computer user. With their help, you can quickly create a virtual garden project (taking into account the terrain): schematically depict a house on the plan and plant trees and shrubs around it, create lawns and plant flower beds, for which you just need to drag the necessary objects from the library and place them on plan and indicate the age of the plants. And also model other elements of garden decor: connect separate garden areas with paths, install a fence, place lanterns and lamps to illuminate the area at night, build a pond, etc.

As a rule, there are two technically possible ways to create landscape projects: from scratch or based on real photographs (Fig. 1). The latter is very convenient, because for most people the question of landscape design arises only when the house and other buildings have been built a long time ago and there are already some green spaces. When using this technology, a basic photo of the house is first loaded, and then new plants and various landscape structures are introduced into it, which allows you to fit new landscape elements into existing ones. Thus, for example, you can effectively decorate the driveway to your house with plants, place containers with flowers and lanterns, etc. If the project is developed from scratch, then it begins to be built by creating the terrain, that is, forming the hills and slopes available on the site - for this it is necessary to outline raised or lowered areas on the plan and apply appropriate transformations to them. Then large objects, that is, buildings, are added to the project - the fastest way is to simply load a standard building that suits the style, but if not a single type of building suits you, you can design it yourself. After this, they move on to introducing objects such as fences, gazebos, gates, etc. into the project - usually they are taken from the built-in library, but many solutions also offer the ability to load your own elements: three-dimensional models and/or objects cut out from photographs. When finished, textures are assigned to all elements. At the next stage of working with the project, paths are laid, a pond is created, decorative structures are placed, single plants are planted, a hedge is formed, climbing plants are placed on the walls of buildings, etc. Upon completion, adjust the lighting by placing decorative lanterns along the paths, on the wall at the front door of the house, at the gate of the house, etc.

Rice. 1. An example of a landscape project created from a photograph

It is easy to view the resulting project options (there may be several of them) in two-dimensional form, and then walk through them in volumetric viewing (Fig. 2), examine them from all sides and find out which one is preferable for you. If necessary, you can subsequently make changes to the project, and the final project can be printed from the required angles. You can also create an AVI presentation to demonstrate the created project (this feature is more interesting for professionals), which is done by installing and configuring several image viewing cameras on the plan, determining the sequence of their switching and the display time of each camera.

Rice. 2. Possible two-dimensional project plan and its three-dimensional representation

In addition to viewing the project at the current moment, it is usually possible to see the garden model after some time (Fig. 3): in a year, two, ten, etc. - this will help to understand whether the plants are located correctly, taking into account their characteristic growth force. Less often, it is possible to view the garden at different times of the year (Fig. 4), which will allow one to assess the level of attractiveness of the plantings not only in summer, but also in other periods. It is also worth noting that a number of visualization solutions provide for the display of shadows, thanks to which it is easy to adjust plantings taking into account their light-loving/shade-tolerant nature. These viewing options are very relevant for non-professionals, since they may not have such information (that is, data on the degree of growth of plants, their decorativeness in different periods and the level of light/shade tolerance). All this allows you to relatively quickly get a fairly professional (in terms of taking into account the biological characteristics of plants) landscape project without turning to specialists.

Rice. 3. View of the landscape over time

Rice. 4. View of the landscape at different times of the year

Landscape design CDs

The list of similar solutions offered on the market is more than impressive, but we will focus only on a few of the most interesting ones. In our opinion, aspiring landscape designers should familiarize themselves with the Landscape Art series of encyclopedias, which cover all the basic aspects of landscape design and contain comprehensive and beautifully illustrated materials. We also found the “Advice from Professionals” CDs very useful. Landscape design" and "Landscape design. Styles and directions". The first is interesting in terms of studying various options for designing a summer cottage, taking into account minimizing material costs and one’s own efforts, and the second highlights the basic principles and trends in garden design and provides many original style design ideas that will interest keen gardeners.

Series "Landscape Art"

Developer: Landscape art

Price: 119 rub. for one disc

Currently, six discs have been released in the series: “Landscape Art. Lawns. Landings. Flower beds”, “Landscape art. Ponds in the garden”, “Landscape art. Practical advice. Water in the garden" (Fig. 5), "Landscape art. Paving. Stairs. Retaining walls", "Landscape art. Practical advice. Paving. Stairs. Retaining walls" (Fig. 6) and "Landscape art. Practical advice. Stone in the garden" (Fig. 7). These discs describe in an accessible and concise form the technologies for creating lawns, planting plants and arranging flower beds, discuss different types of paving, build stairs and retaining walls, and provide detailed color diagrams of such structures. The technologies for constructing reservoirs and their design are covered, and it is described how to care for a reservoir (including the fish and plants living in it) at different times of the year. It also talks about the variety of stones and their use in landscape design. All theoretical material is accompanied by numerous illustrations that may be useful when designing and creating your own garden.

Rice. 5. An example of a pond in the garden (“Landscape art.
Practical advice. Water in the garden")

Rice. 6. Photo gallery with examples of garden paths
(software "Landscape art. Practical advice. Paving. Stairs.
Retaining walls")

Rice. 7. An example of using stones in group plantings
(PO "Landscape art. Practical advice. Stone in the garden")

Developer: VIEM

Price: 249 rub.

This CD highlights a variety of design projects and finds, designed with the idea that all the work can be done alone. Various aspects of the design of a summer cottage are considered here: the construction of spectacular ridges, the creation of hedges, front gardens and borders (Fig. 8), the arrangement of garden paths, the construction of stairs, benches, fountains and walkways, the use of supports, etc. Accompanying theoretical materials are detailed graphic diagrams, photo gallery and professional advice provide b O greater availability of information and will help to avoid mistakes and unnecessary costs when arranging a suburban area.

Rice. 8. Presentation of wooden front gardens and borders
(“Advice from professionals. Landscape design”)

Landscape design. Styles and directions

Developer: ID COMPANY

Price: 119 rub.

This encyclopedia covers the basic principles and trends in garden design and allows you to understand design styles - the description of styles is accompanied by colorful garden layout diagrams (Fig. 9) and useful comments. The program offers many original ideas: the laconicism of Japanese style, the charm of miniatures, monochrome graphics, a roof garden, a twilight garden, a garden with a stream, a bathhouse, a swimming pool and much more. There are even interesting solutions that allow you to combine business with pleasure: garden - vegetable garden, garden - playground, etc. As a result, the reader can choose the style design option he likes as a ready-made guide to action, or independently develop his own unique style based on existing ones.

Rice. 9. One of the garden layout options (software “Landscape Design.
Styles and directions")

Landscape design software

There are many different software products on the market designed for designing and visualizing landscape projects. However, many of them are aimed at landscape designers, that is, they are more difficult to master and are not cheap. And those solutions that are intended for non-professionals, for the most part, leave much to be desired. At the same time, in both groups of software it is still possible to identify programs that are of interest to home users and provide them with all the necessary tools for landscape design. We settled on Realtime Landscaping Plus, Our Garden 9.0 Ruby, TurboFLOORPLAN Landscape and Deck and a group of solutions from Punch! Software. All of them can be successfully used to create a landscape design for your own garden.

The most attractive, in our opinion, are the Realtime Landscaping Plus and Our Garden 9.0 Rubin programs. The first is supported by a large number of three-dimensional plant models (see table) and a well-thought-out technology of use, thanks to which it is possible to prepare a project in it faster than in other solutions. In addition, this program seemed to us the easiest to learn, which is very important for home users. But, unfortunately, it does not allow adding water objects (for example, ponds) to projects. In turn, the undeniable advantage of the “Our Garden 9.0 Rubin” program is the Russian-language interface and the presence of a very detailed and high-quality encyclopedia containing background information on plant care, diseases and pests. But it does not display shadows in three-dimensional viewing, which will undoubtedly cause problems for many amateur gardeners who are unlikely to have a good understanding of the light/shade tolerance of plants. In addition, the list of plant objects available for use in the project is noticeably smaller than in other solutions, and the program is not cheap.

As for the other utilities discussed in the article, they are less attractive. The TurboFLOORPLAN Landscape and Deck program has wide functionality and allows you to implement any landscape designs into projects, but it is quite slow and more demanding of system resources. As for Punch! Software, then the greatest opportunities in terms of landscape design are presented in the Punch Master Landscape and Home Design program, but it is also inferior in functionality to the listed solutions from other developers.

Realtime Landscaping Plus 4

Developer: Idea Spectrum

3 GB

Work under control: Windows XP/Vista

Distribution method: shareware (functionally limited demo version - http://www.ideaspectrum.net/demos/plus/plus203.exe)

Price:$79.95

Realtime Landscaping Plus is one of the best solutions for designing and visualizing landscape projects (Fig. 10), which is perfect for both landscape designers and non-professionals. Its main module is the built-in scheduler; additional modules include the Realtime Landscaping Photo editor and the Realtime Picture Editor.

Rice. 10. Example of a project created in Realtime Landscaping Plus

Projects are created from scratch or based on real photographs (Fig. 11) - in both cases this can be done not only manually, but also using built-in wizards, which greatly simplifies the task. For example, when creating a project from scratch by a landscape master (Fig. 12), the user only needs to specify the size of the plot, select the style of the house and fence, and determine the location of the house relative to the fence on the plan - the result will be an editable standard garden project with a house, patio, fence and driveway to the house. As a result, you only need to manually modify the terrain and introduce plants and decorative elements. If the conceived project does not belong to the standard building plans, for example, it has fragments of walls of a curvilinear shape, then you will have to create the corresponding elements manually - this is also not difficult (since they are formed from editable basic objects: frames of walls with a roof, doors and windows), but it will require time. After this, if necessary, textures made from real photographs can be applied to the walls, gables and basement of the house - this will ensure a O greater credibility. Then a fence with a gate is installed and individual areas are paving; retaining walls, hedges, small architectural forms, lanterns adjustable in height, size and color of light rays, as well as single stones, borders made from them and plants taking into account their age can be added. Plants can be of two types: 3D models and 2D images cut out from photographs. The latter are correctly implemented into the project, automatically rotating when the scene view angle changes, and look more realistic than the models, but the latter, when viewed in 3D, fluctuate under the influence of the wind, which, of course, is not important for the result, but looks very impressive. All implemented objects are configured. By default, a shortened list of parameters opens for any of them (this is convenient for amateurs), but there is also an extended list that provides finer settings (Fig. 13). It is possible to create custom vegetation and save it in the database for future use. A toolkit for importing 3D models has been implemented, and to simplify this process (since many non-professionals simply have no idea where such models can be found), models can be downloaded from the Google 3D Warehouse free model database. But it will not be possible to add water features to the project (fountains, waterfalls, streams, ponds, swimming pools, reservoirs, etc.) - their implementation is not provided for in this solution.

Rice. 11. Creating a project based on a photograph in Realtime Landscaping Plus

Rice. 12. Creating a project using the landscape wizard
in Realtime Landscaping Plus

Rice. 13. Editing advanced hammock settings
in Realtime Landscaping Plus

The created plan can be viewed in perspective projection and as a three-dimensional image with quite realistic lighting and shadows. When viewing, plant objects (if these are 3D models) will sway under the influence of the wind, and birds or butterflies will sometimes fly through the air. You can see a three-dimensional landscape during the day and at night, and also after a specified number of years. When viewing, you can take screenshots - they are saved in BMP files and can then be printed. The project plan is also printed and it is easy to create an AVI presentation from it. There is an estimate function that can be printed and exported to a text file.

Our Garden 9.0 Ruby (Garden Composer)

Developer: JSC DiComp

Required amount of free hard disk space: 4 GB

Work under control: Windows XP/Vista

Distribution method: comercialware (demo version not available)

Price: 3800 rub.

The Our Garden 9.0 Rubin program is a solution for designing and visualizing landscape projects (Fig. 14), which is intended for both professional landscape designers and amateurs. It includes a built-in planner, a photo editor (allows you to work with a digital photograph of an object) and a resource editor (provides the ability to add 3D models and textures to the database). As well as an extensive illustrated encyclopedia containing detailed information about more than 15 thousand plants, including their diseases and pests (Fig. 15), which increases the attractiveness of this solution for non-professionals.

Rice. 14. An example of a project created in the program “Our Garden 9.0 Rubin”

Rice. 15. Encyclopedia page built into the “Our Garden 9.0 Rubin” program

Projects can be created on the basis of real photographs or from a blank sheet of paper (Fig. 16) - in the latter case, it is possible to use a drawing made by hand on paper as a substrate (it will first have to be scanned), which somewhat reduces design time. When creating projects from scratch, the terrain is taken into account. Adding buildings to the project is carried out with the help of a wizard - you can limit yourself to simple standard buildings or build from them, like from children's cubes, an object of the required type. For b O For added verisimilitude, it is possible to overlay the house with textures made from real photographs. The necessary shapes of fences, stairs and retaining walls are also created with the help of craftsmen (Fig. 17), and the paving of individual zones is formed in the same way. Small architectural forms and plants (including trimmed ones) are added from the library; it is possible to trim plants according to your own stencil with the help of a master. When planting plants, their age is taken into account. It is allowed to use your own objects in the project, obtained by extracting them from photographs or scanned illustrations. It is possible to lay paths along complex curvilinear trajectories, as well as construct complex-shaped flower beds, ponds, etc. To texture objects, textures from the library or arbitrary texture images available in the user’s collection are used. Tools are provided for lighting the garden with lamps and lanterns of different power and height.

Rice. 16. Creating a project from scratch in the program “Our Garden 9.0 Rubin”

Rice. 17. Adjustment of parameters of stairs, fences and cropped forms
in the program “Our Garden 9.0 Rubin”

The created plan is viewed as a three-dimensional image, but without displaying shadows (during the day and night, in any month of the year and after a specified number of years) and can be printed and sent to a specific email address. For a finished project, it’s easy to create and print an estimate, as well as create an AVI presentation.

TurboFLOORPLAN Landscape and Deck 12

Developer: IMSI/Design

Required amount of free hard disk space: 750 MB

Work under control: Windows 2000(SP4)/XP(SP2)/Vista

Distribution method: shareware (15-day demo - http://www.imsidesign.com/Products/FreeTrials/tabid/437/Default.aspx)

Price:$39.95

TurboFLOORPLAN Landscape and Deck is a solution for the design and visualization of landscape projects (Fig. 18), aimed by developers at a wide audience. Includes a landscape project planner and an extensive illustrated encyclopedia containing brief information about more than 7.5 thousand plants and the rules for caring for them (Fig. 19), as well as background information on the main diseases and pests of garden crops. This solution has basic functionality for this type of application and allows you to create projects taking into account the terrain and the size of buildings and landscape structures, but it cannot be considered fast. In addition, many operations in it, in our opinion, are not implemented in the best way (you have to repeatedly click on buttons and open various windows), and there are no wizards provided - as a result, you will have to spend more time on mastering it, and the development of the project will be longer.

Rice. 18. Example of a project created in TurboFLOORPLAN Landscape and Deck

Rice. 19. Encyclopedia page built into the program
TurboFLOORPLAN Landscape and Deck

Projects are created from scratch (Fig. 20); it is possible to install scanned paper drawings as a backing. Work on the project begins with the formation of the relief. After this, buildings are added by choosing one of the standard house options or creating it manually - in this case, you will have to determine the contours of the foundation, build walls and create a roof (all this taking into account the length and height of the corresponding objects), and then build in windows and doors. Upon completion, all elements of the buildings are textured; it is possible to apply textures made from real photographs to the house. At the next stage, they begin the landscape design itself - paving and laying paths, constructing retaining walls for plant areas, planting plants in them and placing other elements: a terrace with stairs, a fence with a gate, small architectural forms, a swimming pool, a pond or a fountain, and also various kinds of lanterns and lamps (Fig. 21). When introducing plants, their age is taken into account. Embedded objects can be of two types: 3D models and two-dimensional images cut out from photographs, which can be taken not only from the built-in library, but also imported.

Rice. 20. Creating a project from scratch

Rice. 21. Adjusting the parameters of the retaining wall and lantern
in TurboFLOORPLAN Landscape and Deck

The created plan is viewed in a perspective projection, from any of the installed cameras, or as a three-dimensional image with realistic lighting and shadows - in the latter case, various visualization options are possible, including visualization with global illumination calculation. It is possible to view the landscape during the day and at night, in different months (including the country), as well as after a specified number of years. There is functionality for printing a project plan and generating an AVI presentation based on it. It is possible to draw up an estimate - it is easy to print and export to a text file.

Solutions from Punch! Software

Developer: Punch! Software

Required amount of free hard disk space: from 540 to 700 MB

Work under control: Windows (all versions)

Waydistribution: Punch Master Landscape and Home Design and 3D Home Architect Landscape Design Deluxe - comercialware (no demo versions); Punch! Super Home Suite - shareware (15-day demo version for 100 launches - ftp:// [email protected]/SuperDemoSetup.exe)

Price: Punch Master Landscape and Home Design 10 and Punch! Super Home Suite 3.5 - $49.99; 3D Home Architect Landscape Design Deluxe 9 - $39.99

Software solutions from Punch! exist in several modifications: the 3D Home Architect Landscape Design Deluxe 9, Punch Master Landscape and Home Design 10 and Punch! programs are aimed at a wide range of users. Super Home Suite 3.5. All of them belong to solutions designed for landscape design and have a similar interface. These programs allow you to develop the exterior of a house and (using the same 3D Landscape Design module) its landscape design (Fig. 22). As for the differences between the two, Punch! Super Home Suite also allows you to simulate the interior of a house, and Punch Master Landscape and Home Design has expanded tools for landscape work (more types of objects available and there is a Plantfinder module that ensures effective selection of the desired vegetation in the database - Fig. 23) and supports PhotoView technology, which allows create projects based on real photographs.

Rice. 22. Example of a project created in Punch Master Landscape and Home Design

Rice. 23. Vegetation selection options via Plantfinder

The creation of a project (Fig. 24) in all of the above solutions begins with the formation of the relief by drawing topographic curves or by loading a real topographic plan of the area. Then the walls are erected - either on the basis of one of the standard layout options, or manually, designing each of the walls separately (the length, thickness and height of the walls are easily adjusted, and their alignment is done automatically). After this, windows, doors and a roof are added to the house under construction, choosing the necessary elements from standard options, and, if necessary, an open veranda or patio is added to the house. If a real house has already been built, then you don’t have to create it, but immediately implement the corresponding photograph into the project (only in Punch Master Landscape and Home Design). Then they start landscape design - create paths, fences, mini-fences and supporting walls, form paved areas, etc., and then decorate all objects with textures from the library. You can also build mini-reservoirs, although there is no special tool for this purpose - the same Fill tool is used as for paving, but when texturing the reservoir, the texture of the water is set. At the last stage, flower beds are created and plants are planted - the age of any plant object can be indicated and the degree of light and moisture-loving properties of the object can be specified.

Rice. 24. Create a project from scratch in Punch! Super Home Suite

The created projects are viewed in two- and three-dimensional representation (in perspective and orthographic projection), you can also see what the landscape will look like in a few years. To make the project more natural during visualization, it is easy to adjust the lighting by determining the position of the sun and the intensity of its glow, and add shadows. The finished project is printed, its two-dimensional plan can be saved in a DXF file, and a three-dimensional representation of the project can be exported to a graphic file. There is also an automatic calculation of costs for the acquisition of materials necessary for the implementation of the project, the formation of an estimate and its printing.

On sale you can find the Russian-language edition of the 3D Home Architect Landscape Design Deluxe 9 program - “3D modeling: landscape design” (publisher “Russobit-M” http://www.russobit-m.ru/catalogue/item/3d_home_architect_landscape_design/), offered at a price of 207 rubles.

A beautiful and harmonious garden is the advantage and pride of any owner. But most owners of country houses have never created landscape design on their own, and they cannot afford the services of professionals. It is for such situations that there are free street design programs.

These applications allow you to recreate a garden of any size, in the desired style and place it on your site. We present to your attention 8 free programs for designing gardens and landscape design, which can be found freely available on the Internet.

Realtime Landscaping Pro

This is a professional landscaping program and is available for free download. Realtime Landscaping Pro offers good opportunities for visualizing the style of the backyard. Since the program uses 3D capabilities, your designs will look very realistic. As a result, you will be able to plan your garden down to the smallest detail. The application is used by both novice designers and professional craftsmen. Realtime Landscaping Pro works in English, it has the ability to save a project and edit it after a certain time.

Whether you are new to planning a landscape style or an experienced professional, SmartDraw helps everyone create their own backyard designs with ease by adding their desired decor items to the design. SmartDraw allows you to add barbecues and grills, paths, umbrellas, picnic tables, fountains and lamps to your visual building courtyard at your discretion. SmartDraw does not function online; it must be downloaded to your computer.

In addition to creating style content, SmartDraw allows users to animate graphics, create presentations using PowerPoint. With the photo software's built-in functionality, you can import images from digital cameras or smartphones, resize them, adjust brightness and color, and crop pictures. Interface language is English.

You can find the program website

Garden Visualizer

Garden Visualizer will allow you to put all your landscape design ideas into a beautiful 3D format and visualize it. The drawing can then be edited to achieve the best solution for your yard. The option to add your house to the image also within the tool is a special feature that you will find in this software.

Garden Visualizer allows you to add small objects to the project - fences, walls or hedges, paths, edgings, gazebos, walls. You will find the program

The created 3-D schematic plan is automatically saved to your online account as you work. There is no application in Russian, but a localizer has been developed for it, which is also freely downloadable.

Plan-a-Garden is a great free tool for creating a landscape style and is very easy to use. There are special buildings and shrubs, as well as trees that can be recreated in the picture to plan the beautiful plot of your dreams. Plan-a-Garden is designed to work online or can be installed on a PC. The program language is English.

Showoff Virtual Designer

The tool allows you to upload digital photos of your own garden and add the plants, pots, walkways and walls you need to virtually create your dream garden. You can change projects an unlimited number of times until you find a suitable option. Showoff Virtual Designer not only helps in planning the ideal garden plot, but also has a saving function, it is possible to share your work with others.

This is a professional program for landscape design in 3D format, which allows you to create a site with a patio, swimming pools, and other details. After you plan your site, the resulting image can be printed. TO My Garden A manual is provided on the Internet in Russian and Ukrainian.

Realtime Landscaping Architect

The program is paid, but you can also use the test version on the website. IN Realtime Landscaping Architect More than 1600 elements have been proposed to fulfill most user wishes. This is outdoor furniture: gazebos, pool accessories, lamps. The program includes a selection of new outdoor kitchen elements. Interface language is English.

We have only looked at a small number of free programs for creating landscape design, but this is enough to plan your future site.

Often, when building a house, the owner concentrates on the object, forgetting about the site. In the end, it turns out that the surrounding area remains undeveloped. Nevertheless, a long wait for the home of your dreams leads to “blurring your eyes”, and you no longer have the strength to restore order in front of the building. Sidewalks, lawns, recreation areas, and the remaining garbage fade into the background. You don't have to let this happen. Using landscape design programs, you can create projects without contacting specialists.

Product selection

Garden design programs are designed for both amateurs and professionals. You can group them together, representing opposing market offerings for different types of users and tasks:

1. landscape architecture. Contains professional products for drawing parkland.
2. Universal- CAD-type graphic applications intended for architects and designers in other industries. They can be used for site design, interiors and entire buildings.
3. Amateur rendering. Addressed to most summer residents and novice specialists. These offers are easy to use and work on a drag-and-drop basis. No knowledge or skills required. Two hours is enough to master their full service and functionality, even with an English interface.

The choice of program largely depends on the purpose of its use:

1. For drawing a simple drawing in two-dimensional graphics, the Garden Planner program is perfect.
2. More detailed arrangement and overview of the 3D plan for beginners: FloorPlan 3D or X-Designer.
3. If you are thinking about high-quality design of landscape details and its plan for the foreman, then experts advise taking a closer look at the domestic program Our Garden - Rubin or the English-language Punch Home Design 3D.
4. Creating stunning renderings requires the use of Realtime Landscaping Architect and SketchUp, as well as professional 3dsMax and ArchiCAD

Advice. There are many programs for home design on the market, but the vast majority of them are quite expensive. Free versions usually have limited functionality, but are sufficient for territory planning.

Before you start visualizing

When reflecting ideas on the monitor, you need to think carefully about the composition. To roughly decide:

Layout of the land plot of a country house

For many, this will be a pleasure, but the correct, harmonious arrangement of various elements can be tedious.

A specialized program is a great help. It allows you to see how individual plants will perform and what areas are beneficial for them, and even shows how the park will look at different times of the year or five years from now. Thanks to many products, you can walk around the site even before the first flowers are planted.

When developing projects, you need to take into account the principle of needs: the fewer there are, the simpler it is. There is no point in studying advanced high-level graphics when, in the context of a specific task, even the online version will satisfy your wishes.

Leaders overview

Designing, taking into account the intricacies of gardening, is not an easy task, especially for those who have no experience in this field. Of course, the more often a person does something, the better it will look. However, if the happy owner of a personal plot does not yet know which plants go well together, how long they grow, and when they bloom, then turning a picture from a magazine into reality will not help. Designing a park area is much more difficult than painting a few trees and flowers and then checking to see if they look good next to each other.

The following products will help you create not only a beautiful, but also a functional landscape without gardening knowledge or basic programming. Even the most advanced of them are available in test mode from five days to a month, as they serve a presentational purpose. And every estate owner can take advantage of this.

Garden Planner

This is an intuitive and, most importantly, free program in Russian for landscape design. The translation of the interface is done very efficiently using a special utility. But the English version won’t scare you either. Each button will tell you its function, and all objects are displayed in miniature. The program allows you to create a two-dimensional visualization of your dream site using simple drag and drop. It has a large database of plants, surfaces, gazebos and garden furniture.

The main advantage of the paid version is that, despite its accessible simplicity, it is possible to upload user images as the background of a future project. The existing templates will be sufficient for the average dacha. You can create a new sketch, download a plan from your personal library, or edit a template you like.

Very often, for a hired designer, the ideal result ends with the approval of the render (photorealistic 3D representation) by the client. What will happen to the garden in 5-10 years is of little interest to him. Software accounting of climatic features and minimum temperatures eliminates the risk of death of real plants in the flowerbed.

Do-it-yourself high-quality garden path for your dacha

Each flower and bush is accompanied by a card that comprehensively describes their characteristics and care conditions. For the finished project, you can create a report containing all the necessary information about the greenery that you plan to plant.

If you don’t want to deal with the interface of even such a simple product, then you can use online landscape design programs. They are greatly simplified, but do not provide much of the functionality that full-blown utilities provide. Although they are quite suitable for schematic sketches.

X-designer

This is already a garden planner in 3D format. The product developer, Moscow-based YDDK, allows you to design a site without special skills. Interface in Russian. Selectable top or 3D view. The library contains more than 500 objects, but it is not updated.

It is noteworthy that during visualization the machine itself prompts the user about the advisability of installing a particular object. This is very useful, especially for those who do not like to first plant trees and then cut them down.

The program does not have the same powerful library of plants as the Our Garden utility, but it can control the terrain no worse than its professional colleagues. Moreover, there is an option to predict the state of the park area depending on the seasons and time of day.

Our garden - Rubin, 9.0

This is also a program of a domestic manufacturer - JSC Dicomp. It is not so much a design tool as a real agricultural encyclopedia. The database contains information about more than 17,000 plant species, including about 2 thousand roses. There is a possibility to select them according to 20 parameters:

• climate;
• the soil;
• groundwater;
• viability;
• rates of growth;
• maximum size and width of trees;
• ecology and safety, etc.

There is a way to see the garden at different times of the day and season. The plant library is formed taking into account a specific climate zone.

It has an intuitive interface, convenient for a beginner computer project. The program allows you to plan planting, place houses, animals, living fences, artificial ponds and small architectural forms (gazebos, benches). It is possible to design in 2D and view 3D views.

Software developers have taken into account a lot of details for an effective result. But, in the opinion of experts, it does not reach the professional level. It is rather a variation of the popular computer game, a real life simulation - “The Sims”.

1. Thus, the creation of a realistic landscape is limited.
2. Working with a large area of ​​construction space poses some difficulties.
3. The design of size and binding to objects is very conditional.
4. There is an option to create your own models of small architectural forms, but in most cases you can insert ready-made options offered in the kit. That is, creating a specific gazebo or flower garden with the exact number of real plants is almost impossible.

Country house tricks: useful tips for DIY arrangement

In a more complete version, Our Garden - Ruby, 10.0 has many more objects, improved three-dimensional visualization and you can walk through your creation. An estimate calculator is provided. Another version - Our Garden - Omega. It allows you to create visualizations based on a personal digital photo.

Realtime Landscaping Architect

Universal landscape design program. You cannot download the Russian version for free. Download a sample or buy one of three options, depending on functionality. All of them make it possible to work on an area of ​​up to 40 hectares.

The most comprehensive option allows you to create completely acceptable drawings of a house, lawn, pool and terrace, and export them to paper in CAD format, make an estimate, which greatly facilitates construction. In addition to static images, you can also take video tours of the area.

Professional utilities

This review does not cover commercial landscape design software such as Autodesk, 3DS Max, and ArchiCAD. They are universal in their kind and are recognized as the best in the world for constructing any three-dimensional objects, including planning areas.

Their perfection is in every inch, all designers work with them. These are real monsters at creating photorealistic visualizations. The only problem is the price and compatibility with computers. Modeling in them is too labor-intensive. In addition, 3dsmax is not quite suitable for rendering vegetation.