What is Hardscape: Typical small-scale hardscaping examples include brick patios and sidewalks.  Retaining walls are often used to create boundaries between hardscapes and earth landscaping features or softscapes.  Most artificial water features are technically hardscapes because they require a barrier to retain the water, instead of letting it drain into the surrounding soil. From an aesthetic perspective, hardscaping allows workers to erect landscaping features that would otherwise be impossible due to soil erosion, or that compensate for large amounts of human traffic that would cause wear on bare earth or grass.  For example, sheer vertical features are possible.