A Gardeners Forum Forums General Discussion Landscape trials and triumphs Help please

This is my nieces house. She'd like to know what to plant in the front beds. She's going to take all that stuff out. I've tried to take her into moving the cement blocks on one side and expanding it but she won't.

I'm not sure how wide those beds are but I'm thinking a few dwarf gardenias on the side opposite driveway and maybe a hydrangea on the driveway side. Not sure what else.

This is where I'm useless. I love the idea of those plants but they would fry here in full sun. My gardenias and hydrangeas are in part shade off and on all day. I love scented plants for a porch to entice you out there and to greet visitors. And color is good too.

I'd really like to move those cement blocks and bring one side out into the yard a bit but she says no.

I've got gardenias at my front and back door and they smell so good.

Hmmm...perhaps some jasmine, dwarf plumbago, dwarf cannas, clematis on a trellis....pentas...ruellia...ixora...coneflowers...it depends on what she has in mind and how much time she has to spend in caring for the plants. She has a beautiful home, and lots of potential for a number of things there.

Non of my business, but I think the blocks are the wrong shape for the staight lines of the house.. Everything is staight an blocks arent . Makes the area look smaller than it is .

I agree if she took them to the side an made a cute shape there.

Very nice house, Sheri!

What kind of exposure does it get? I was thinking maybe hostas on the garage side?

I think she should fit the blocks to the space---then it would be really nice looking

I would get rid of the block altogether. Assuming she's in your area, it doesn't exactly look North Carolinian with the block. I agree that the left bed needs to be pulled out at least to the same edge as the right bed. And as I look, I think the sidewalk should be go through the bed. If I have a minute I'll draw out what I think and post it.

As to plantings, nothing quite like dwarf gardinia.

So, since you asked-- here’s what I’d think about doing. It could all very very low maintenance, and there should be some interest throughout the season.

First, I’d get rid of the blocks. As I said before, they look out of place to me and are disproportionate to the facade of the house.

Then I’d expand on both sides. The solid red line is one idea, but I think-- over in the left corner-- the dotted red line would be a nice touch (where a crepe myrtle would balance out the height of the porch). Of course, this is just a sketch. I’d use spray paint & a riding lawn mover to get the curves right & make it easy to cut the grass.

Now going across the house from left to right, here’s what I’d plant. As a foundation planting across the left side, dwarf gardinias would be nice, but nandia would also look nice on the left side. In front of those, I’d plant 3-5 azaleas (the small kind) in a swish or clump. I mentioned the crepe myrtle it could have hosta or another ground cover sort of surrounding it. There may be room for some of that very low growing yew (or whatever it is) in the space behind the crepe myrtle and to the left of the azaleas. I’d pop a clump of day lilies right by the steps, and another clump at the edge of the dirveway/sidewalk. Gardinias also go in the space that’s now the right planter. I would reserve the space that’s in front ( to the left of the sidewalk if you are walking on it) for annuals. That way she can change the color scheme each year and match it to what she wants in the hanging baskets.

I don’t think this would be tto much work to do, and I think once it’s going, it’d be very low upkeep.

Hope this helps!

So all of the experts say move or remove the blocks. But your niece wants to keep them and it is her yard. I will say I like them because they add a little curve to all of the squared off angles.
So I'm going with the blocks 'in place'. I like the gardenias and hydrangea idea if they will grow there. I like especially a gardenia right in that rounded front planter nearest the door on the left. I would go for something a little taller between the windows and that can be kept narrow enough to not block the view. Maybe a sweet olive? Tuck in some mums for late season interest.
I also love annuals. Quick, easy, changeable color.

Just to clarify-- my comments were based on the assumption that this home is somewhere near where Sherri lives-- in the Piedmont of NC. So the look & plants I suggested are what I think are more in line with "local" custom. Not that she shouldn't do something different, but these are tried and true things in that area.

And an additional thought from me. She won't want anything in that planter by the sidewalk that is going to reach out and snag anyone. Just soft growth there.

She lives in Charlotte, NC, which is only 30 miles from me. Unfortunately, she will not move those cement blocks. That's the first thing I said and she just won't do it. They are ugly!!!!

The beds are about 2-1/2 feet wide. She said she's all for stuff trailing over the blocks. Maybe I can find something to hide them.

How about some grey santolina and green santolina in that right-hand bed? Evergreen, great flower color...that bed needs an emphasis on evergreens as it's so prominent.Then something for height. Sedum would also work well as a groundcover spilling over the blocks.
Myself, not suggesting it for snyone else, I picture a mass of tall, orange cannas taking up the middle 2/3 of the bed, brilliant orange against the neutral pallet of the drab siding. I take the Jackson Pollock approach when it comes to my own garden, controlled chaos. :)

One more thing...something in me insists that the 2 square corners aginst the sidewalk demand annual begonias, preferably pink flowering, as a 3 season planting to soften the square corners and the colorless blocks.

As I suggested earlier, large leafed hostas would soften up the right side area and in that 2 1/2 feet wide would also spill out over the bricks. Another plus is the flowers spikes which would add some interest, height and color and possibly hummingbirds to the area! There are many beautiful colors these days to the leaves also.

Just a thought...

Her house.However there is no need for the blocks when the walk way is there.
Unless she wanted to raise the beds up????

+1 on begonias.

I know there are types of hosta that can take sun but I think her front gets full sun. Do you think hosta can take that heat? I like the idea of the tall spikes adding interest.

The issue of a Southern exposure is often overemphasized. The slight overhang from the porch will shade that bed through the hottest hours most of the summer at her latitude, but the sidewalk will still be a heatsink. What's the harm in trying it for a season? Sunscorch is the critical issue, really, more than heat alone, and here it may not be a factor until August, if then. It will also depend on what else is interplanted and whether it helps shade the soil and foliage.

do you think the space between the window on the left is too narrow for a trellis?

Between the two windows? No it isn't too narrow for a trellis. And the coverage would depend on what is planted on that trellis.

a clematis? I wish I could find something that will stay green.

cup an saucer plant will be green lots .......and long

I don't know what that is dodge. Is it an ever green vine?

I am trying to come up with a vine that will stay evergreen without taking over the whole house. You don't want something that will grow under siding or those pretty shutters. Climbing roses come to mind. But I will think about others. Some jasmines will be easy to keep in control.

Not an evergreen .....flower that grows real thick an lots of green.

Have to hunt the photo of mine..
b

climbing roses are good. I might go looking this weekend.

Climbing roses here are evergreen but the leaves get pretty thin and far between in winter. But they can be fairly easily kept in check from growing wild and covering the windows. That being said, I don't much care for roses and rarely plant any if I can help it. Except lady banks roses, nearly thornless.

Funny you should mention lady banks. I've got 2 that I was looking at today and am thinking of cutting down.

If you cut them down dig them up too, or they will resprout.

ok thanks.

Ally and I went to the nursery yesterday and she had a few rules I didn't know about. Here is what she decided on. These are the same pictures although she has removed the stuff from the beds by now and has planted pansys.

The purple is where she has planted pansys. She is going to put annuals in these areas each season to keep color all the time.




the place marked with the orange is going to be a dwarf gardenia that will crawl a little bit and will be about 2-3 feet tall and will crawl 2-3 feet and hopefully will fall a little over the cement wall.


The middle black marked area is a dwarf gardenia that will be approximately 3 x 3 and will not crawl.

The green area will be a nandina that turns red in the winter months. It will get about 4-1/2 feet tall and and she's aware that she will have to pull up the seedlings that will sprout every where in the world form this plant.

as you can tell I don't know how to use the paint thing on my computer but hopefully you get the idea.




There were boxwoods all along this side and some of them had died. She wanted to keep the live ones and doesn't want anything growing too high in front of her windows.

So the pink is 2 more dwarf 3 x 3 gardenias and the red that is sort of in a corner is a Pieris Japonica that can get to 5-6 feet if she doesn't prune it.

She'll send pictures when she gets stuff planted.

You messed up the picture.

b

I liked the stepladder too.

It sounds like she has a plan. I will enjoy seeing the finished pictures too.

I have been reading along--I too am anxiously awaiting photos....