Landscaping trends widely considered outdated include dyed red mulch, plastic roll-out edging, shrubs sheared into tight balls along the foundation, and large lawns with nothing else going on. Lava rock beds over black plastic sheeting date a yard to the 1980s, and the plastic eventually surfaces and shreds.
Overly formal matched pairs (two identical urns or spiral topiaries flanking a door) have given way to looser, layered planting. All-gravel yards with a single agave, the early-2010s drought look, now read as bare rather than minimal; current xeriscapes mix native grasses and flowering perennials instead.
Dated does not always mean replace it. A sheared hedge can be let grow out, and red mulch is gone after one season of natural brown. To see your yard with a current look instead, try a few styles with AI landscape design.