• Shade trees such as oaks provide a natural canopy in the landscape.autumn canopy image by Stormy Ward from Fotolia.com
  
  Canopies help to shade a specific area of the landscape so that you can enjoy being outdoors in spite of the hot sun. They are ideal for outdoor living and dining or simply relaxing with a favorite book. Options for creating your own outdoor canopy include homemade versions that are cost-effective, as well as natural and prefabricated versions. Canopies work well in both large and small spaces and in formal and informal gardens.
  
  

Cloth Canopy

• Create a cool respite for outdoor living and dining with a cloth canopy. Cloth canopies are often portable, to use throughout the garden or wherever shade is needed. A polyethylene canopy is a type of cloth canopy that is typically fastened to the house and to steel poles and stretched over the desired space. An inexpensive alternative to a store-bought cloth canopy is a drop cloth. Drop cloths can be stitched together to create the size and shape of canopy you need, and dyed to the desired color. If you make a drop-cloth canopy, you'll also need fasteners, cords and poles to raise the canopy and attach it to a wall or fence.
  
  

Tree Canopy

• Oversized shade trees such as oak create a natural canopy in the landscape. When choosing a tree, select those that grow well in the local climate. The time that the tree takes to grow and establish itself is an important factor. Some trees are slow-growing, so take this into account when making your choice. The fast-growing Coliseum maple has a spreading form, making it an ideal canopy tree. It grows up to 30 feet in height and has a maximum width of 25 feet. Other trees such as elms, poplars and birches make good canopy trees. To jump-start the tree canopy, purchase as mature a tree as you can afford.
  
  

Wood Canopy

• Wood canopies work well in an area where you have an outdoor patio that you wish to shade during the warmer months or use as an outdoor living space. They are not portable, but rather are fixed in the ground--a pergola is an example. Wood canopies have four or more posts that hold up a set of rafters or wood slats. Adorned with a climbing vine like a trumpet vine or creeping fig, the wood canopy creates a shady area that is lush and colorful. Alternatively, you can hang outdoor curtains mounted from the top edges of the wood canopy to create a private and shaded area to enjoy year-round.