I didn't look at your climate zone but a burgundy foliaged small growing Japanese maple would look amazing with your gray house.

I agree that that tree needed to go BTW :)

Wow, I didn't realize how close the tree was to the house! That's good that you got rid of that.

What's on the inside of that window that the tree was formerly blocking? Is it a room where you would like to look out at a view, or is it a room where you need privacy?

I ask because the genius who built this house put our master bathroom on the front of the house, with a big floor-to-ceiling window in front of the jacuzzi tub. Nice. It has been a challenge to figure out how to plant this for a view and privacy. The previous owner's solution was to put opaque window film on both the bathroom windows, but I would like to lose it eventually.

Wow, you didn't waste any time taking down that tree, did you?! Kind of sad to see a mature planting taken down, but it was not good in that spot and now you have a nice clean slate to start with.

I'm terrible at designing, so I won't suggest anything. I'll wait for others to suggest things and then say what great ideas they have, lol. (But I WILL be reading to learn and get ideas for myself too!)

Good luck! What fun!
:)
Dee

P.S. Connie, I have the same problem. My house is an old cape, and not only is my bedroom on the front of the house, first floor, but it's on the side between the driveway and the front door, so the front walk is feet away from my window. You'd think they'd at least put the bedroom on the other side of the house! We've had these quite nice but horribly overgrown shrubs in front of the house (great shrubs, wrong spot) that I've been debating about for years (continue to whack back, or remove?). Have decided to remove them, but no $$$ in the budget for replacements, so for now I will just whack them back. Haven't been whacked back in a few years, so I'm doing the one in front of the window in stages so we can get used to feeling "exposed" a little at a time, lol. Of course, any replacements will still be lower than the window, so we need to permanently get used to being exposed, I guess...

Yep, master bedroom on the top floor it is. The dining room is on the main floor. Loved having that tree for privacy. Since I doubt I'll go with anything that tall, even if I move it out to the other side of the walkway, I'll have to give up the privicy in the bedroom. I would still like something to give some privacy to the dining room. That tree was almost sculpture/art outside that window. Now I need to consider window treatments because it looks so bare!

My goodness, what an improvement! I love trees, but that one was truly a case of a plant in wrong place. My first move would be to move all the shrubs that are right against the house out at least three feet. That will give them room to grow and give you room to do maintenance behind them. Otherwise, in five years you will be in a similar spot of having plants that are rubbing against the building and need to be removed. I also think I would think about moving those rugosas, just for practical reasons. They tend to send out suckers and grow vigorously and have vicious thorns, and are planted right next to the main walk to the front door. Not a very welcoming plant! Do you have another sunny spot for them? Wrapping them well before removal will help protect you.

How nice that the bed defined by the walkway is so deep. That will give you room to have a couple more layers of plants in front of and around the shrubs.

I think your instinct to put another small tree in the area where the roses are is a good one. Be sure to plant it as far from the drive and walk as possible so that as it grows you won't need to be pruning it to keep it from being in the way.

Before folks can give you specific suggestions, we need to know whether you have sun, shade or a mix and/or what direction the house faces (Google maps has north up on your screen, so if you put in your address, you can figure out if you don't know.) For instance some plants will do better with morning sun than with really hot afternoon sun. Also, a bit about your soil. Are rhododendrons common around you (acid soil) or do you have more alkaline soil? Is it average texture, or particularly clay-y or sandy? What will grow well depends on those factors. For instance, what likes my conditions in zone 5 NH isn't what will be happy in zone 5 Utah, in general.

Also, here is a link to the first post which has some suggestions of long-blooming plants and some other general suggestions beyond the removal that you have done so those who didn't see it before can find it easily.

Here is a link that might be useful: Link to the first post

The front of the house faces southeast. The area where the tree was gets sun all morning and some of the afternoon. The area by the front porch fence gets morning sun, somewhat dappled by the birch tree in front of it.
The soil is clay based. We do have rhododendrons that seem to do ok around the neighborhood.

Thanks for creating the link to the previous post.

Hope this helps.

wow.. really you could declare yourself done...

but NOT!!!!

its hard to believe that that tree was basically swallowing the front of your house ...

for me ... i would go buy one of everything.. and use this season to see what grows well.. what you like ... and then plan for next year ...

ken

Pick me! Pick me! I love how much prettier the house looks without that big tree. That's a MAJOR improvement.

My suggestion is a stolen one from the original thread because I think it was that good. You mentioned earlier that you don't like how large the lilacs get by the front steps. Flank your dining room window with them. That will give you a bit of privacy as they get larger, but they won't grow 20'. They have a beautiful full shape for lilacs, and I think they belong in a prominent spot.

What to plant where the lilacs are? Endless Summer Hydrangea. Anytime someone has a garden that faces east, I think hydrangea because they LOVE morning sun. Because you're zone 5, and because ES likes a little more sun, the south sun will be a bonus.

In front of the porch? I don't know. I have a hard time with middle-low growers. I love Easy Elegance Roses. Sunrise Sunset is gorgeous and stays relatively low. It takes a few years in our zone, but it gets nice and wide. It blooms all season for me, but in my area, the beetles nail it. If you can grow rugosa without beetle problems, you're golden.

And I'm sorry, but I don't like those little balls. They're too fussy for little payoff.

I just noticed something you may want to address. The down spout from the gutter pours right into a plant. Whatever you plant there will not like that. At some point, you'll want to extend that spout out to the driveway. Actually, as I think out loud here, a hydrangea might appreciate the extra water. Just a thought ...

Also, I noticed your builder did the same stupid thing ours did. They put the spigot to the hose right in the middle of your garden, so you have to walk through plants to turn on/off the hose. At some point, we're going to have a plumber move ours. It's on the list.

The transformation is incredible. Really shows off the nice windows and beefy trim.

After they grind the stump, pay attention to the grading. Currently, water will be directed to your foundation/basement and you obviously don't want that. Make sure everything slopes away from the house.

Because you'll be moving the 3 globes anyhow, you can regrade that entire area before replanting.

I like the idea of the 3 globes in front of the window (out 3-4 feet as mentioned) as the back "tall" plain background layer and you can have fun with color and smaller plants in front of it. daylilies, geraniums, coral bells, dwarf conifers, gazillion more choices.

I like the idea of a tall narrow plant anchoring the left end instead of that euyonmous.

Could you move the two lilacs to in front of the porch?

I find the geometry of the front of your house very attractive. If a tree is to be added I would hope it would be
a small one planted out from the house so that the view of the
house would not be blocked too fully. The wide beds in front of the house allow for a rich planting and if the rugosas are
removed there could even be a bed along the drive out to the
public sidewalk. I agree with Ken WOW!

Chris

actually, I take back the suggestion to move the lilacs in front of the porch. Although they would fit, they would obscure the pickets which are a real feature. You need shorter things that play with the fence nicely. Tulips early, then peonies and irises; later echinicea, then mums.

re: spigot and downspout ...

the downspout.. for that little roof.. should be reset to empty on the far side ...

as for the spigot...

lets be clear.. plants HIDE THE FOUNDATION.. they are NOT meant to be ON THE foundation ...

properly planted... no plant should be within 3 feet of the house ... giving you a more than ample walkway from your driveway ... to walk back there for the water.. to wash windows.. put up xmas lights.. etc .... NOTHING CLOSER THAN 3 FEET ..

as for the lilac... they should be done blooming.. cut them to 3 inches .... and let them regenerate ... though you might miss bloom next year...

they are TOO BIG FOR THE SPOT.. whether you love them or not ...

if you are having them grind out the tree stump.. have them grind out those lilacs... they are too cheap.. to spend 8 hours of backbreaking labor to move them ...

dont get me wrong.. i love lilac... when properly sited .. yours are not ...

check out the link ... lilac.. even dwarf.. have the POTENTIAL to get HUGE!!!!1 why fight them ... since you are at the job anyway ...
ken

Here is a link that might be useful: link

Ken, not sure why you're yelling, but the problem with the spigot in the center is that not everyone walks where they're suppose to to get to it no matter how many times you tell them to go behind. And even then, some overzealous person yanks on the hose a little too hard while watering and smashes it into the back of your shrubs breaking off a branch or two.

Builders: just put the spigot on the end of the bed please.

if its just a word or two.. its not yelling.. its being lazy in hitting the 'quote' marks.. which i have to look for on the keyboard ... UNDERSTAND??? .. lol

you can pay a builder to put anything anywhere you want ... or a plumber .... and of course.. a siding man to fix the hole in the siding ...

or if you are lucky.. a spouse who works for steak and beer ... lol

i put a spigot 250 feet from my house ... and i can still harm plants if i disrespectfully yank hoses around it ...

ken

PS .. THIS IS YELLING.. WHERE EVERYTHING IS IN CAPS.. AND MAKES YOUR EYES HURT ...LOL

In addition to the plants I suggested on the previous thread, I'll add Deutzia 'Charddonay Pearls', which is currently blooming in my yard, totally covered with small white flowers to the point of obscuring the foliage - lovely. However, the nicest thing about this Deutzia is that the foliage is chartreuse, and so it will contrast nicely with the dark green of your other plants all season long. It is a shrub, but stays small, in my garden topping out at about 2 1/2 feet and is extremely easy care (I do nothing to it other than planting it in a bed with good soil and mulching every couple of years.) It would be fine in front of other shrubs with your perennials, or very nice in front of your porch if you don't want to obscure the porch rail. Hostas (variegated foliage and white or lavender flowers in August in my area) would be quite happy on the end of the porch away from the door and the lighter leaves would help lighten a darker part of the garden. Astilbe (flowers white, pink or red and ferny leaves) would be happy at the shadier end as would Pulmonaria/lungwort which has white, pink or blue spring flowers, but also has variegated foliage. Variegated Solomon's seal is another pretty foliage plant that would be happy at the far end of the porch.

Wendy suggested something tall and narrow right next to the driveway where the euonymous is now. How about one of the smaller (6') clematis on a pretty obelisk? If you choose one that is a type 3 prune (hard prune over winter to a foot or so) the obelisk will be ornamental silhouetted against the wall when the clematis foliage is dead and pruned back. I'll also second her suggestion that you look at daylilies, perennial geraniums, and Heuchera/coral bells.

In addition to perennials, think about adding to your bulbs. I love the airiness of the larger ornamental alliums, and have seen them used effectively in groups behind a short evergreen hedge along a porch like yours. Most of my Aliums bloom in the weeks after the lilacs. Lilies bloom in the summer and come in a wide variety of colors and if you have several varieties, you will have some in bloom much of the summer (don't plant if you live in New England, however, since control of the red lily beetle can be a hassle.)