hi - if i weren't past my bedtime i might be able to make some semi-intelligent comment about about what shrubs where but since i am the only thing i'm going to say is before you plant anything check your soil and improve it. can't tell from the pics but it looks a little packed and the fact that not much is growing including weeds makes me wonder. you have a great opportunity to add lots of compost, sand, peat - whatever your soil needs NOW. good soil will make your gardening infinitely easier. if you're an experienced gardener forgive me for giving you newbie advice but i learned the hard way how important good dirt is. ;)
viv

Vivian,
Thanks for the advice (and for posting so late!), and don't worry about insulting me - - I am not an experienced gardener, so I appreciate it. I am having a load of topsoil delivered to spread around this area. it's quite low right now, especially by the foundation. I was thinking I should first loosen up what is already there using my ground-hog tool, then rake it and add the topsoil.

The thing I'm having the most trouble with is how much space to allow for these plants. For example, the Chamaecyparis pisifera 'Golden Mop' - - I read in some places that it won't get bigger than 3x3 feet, and in others I read that it will get to 5 or 7 feet. And I read that it grows slowly, but what exactly does that mean? I don't want to make the newbie mistake of putting too much in and overcrowding it, but I don't want it to look bare and spotty, either, kwim?

Couple of thoughts...you still should get your soil tested, what is the light direction and hours (NSEW site, not everyone agrees adding topsoil is all that great an idea, rather add organic material.

As a starter, the first thing that hits me is that you need something on the right to balance the large window on the left.....perhaps something on the corner of the right side of the house but out toward the corner of the fence. The Chamaecyparis are slow growers - it could take 10 years to get to 5 feet depending on the hours/direction of light. Do give your plants room to reach their full potential and fill the rest in with annuals, boulders, etc. It is sometimes a nightmare 4-5 years down the road to move something when it is too crowded, unless you are good about pruning annually to keep shrubs small. But the fun of gardening is no two years are ever the same.....

By the way, nice house!

WAIT! Don't remove the pachysandra on the right side of the house just now...maybe not at all. You may want to leave most or all of it. It seems to be doing nicely and it looks good too.

You have a small house and small yard, don't visually overcrowd things with huge shrubs. Step back a bit and really look at your front yard. It's sweet and sort of cottagy with that stone path and the ground cover. Since the pachysandra is doing so well there, I'm guessing shade.

The juniper, arborvitae and cypress all need sun and might not work well where you envision them. I think they are nice hardy plants (don't know enough about them, actually) but check out their light needs. The azalea can take shade though, and would look nice, say off the left hand corner. I think your "unknown" shrub is a scotch broom, which definitely needs light and is a wild looking, free form plant that will certainly not work as a "foundation plant".

Re. topsoil. You need to add organic matter, such as compost, as well. Think of the topsoil as the flour in bread. To really grow things, you need to add "yeast".

Step back a bit. Go slowly. Your front yard has great potential. Check out the Shrub forum and the Cottage Garden Forum, as well as the Landscape Design forum,for more information.

Patty

Your home is charming. And...I agree with the above. Slow down! Add compost/leaf mold/organic matter, not top soil. Top soil can be pretty empty of plant nutrients...and can also be pretty full of stones, as I learned the hard way. (That's how most of us learn, isn't it? LOL)
Another caveat: after 5 years of work, your interior must be really lovely. Why not allow the garden some time too? Also...a garden is never finished...unlike a kitchen! I once imagined that after a few years of hard work, I'd be done. I now know the folly of my ways...but I also now LOVE gardening!
I fear that the shrubs you have may require more light than you have, and at least the Juniper may ultimately be too large for your site?
Read A. Bloom's 'Gardening with Conifers' to get a sense of how to mix your shrubs to make a beautiful blend.
Good luck.
O -- last comment -- the ultimate size of your shrubs depends on your site conditions: soil, sun, moisture, etc.
Enjoy!
ML

Assuming we are not looking at the north side of your home, I would nix the idea of planting a lot of grass given the small size of the area and use it for other plants. That fence is just begging for a climbing rose to run the length of it. One mistake that I think you are making is planting too many different types of plants. It is widely considered to be most aesthetically pleasing to have groupings of plants. The typical New England look would have some broadleaf evergreens along the foundation. Historically, this would be boxwoods or yews but personally I use the meserve hollies as much as possible that are now typically available at most garden centers. Examples would be Blue Prince or Blue Princess. Not only would they contrast your house but they would provide a dark background to highlight your yellow and lighter-colored shrubs (perennials, etc). Hollies are also amenable to pruning so you can keep them the size and shape that you want. I would plant a holly on either side of the bay window. The one on the left would help hide the downspout. In between you could plant some other types of broadleaf evergreens or even more hollies. On either side of the front steps, I would plant some Pink Knockout roses. The regular Knockouts have a loud enough cherry red color that I don't think they would clash with the red steps but just to make sure I would plant the Pink or Blushing Knockouts instead. I would also plant another holly at the right corner of the house. I cannot tell how deep those steps are but if you have room, I would plant another evergreen behind the Knockouts. I would make a bed coming out from the bay window and even with the house next to the front steps if not the front steps themselves.

Thanks for all of the quick feedback, and the compliments on my house - - it's small, but it's perfect for DS and I. And actually, the interior is far from finished because I do all of the work myself with occasional help from my dad, but it is at a stalling point for awhile.

Point well taken on the soil. I will get a small amount and mix in organic matter.

So I forgot to tell you the most important info! Sorry about that. The exposure is East-Southeast, and the area to the left of the steps gets lots of sun until late afternoon. In winter, it gets sun even longer. So I think the plants I got will do fine there. The area to the right of the steps gets a fair amount of sun, but is shaded a slight bit by my red maple in summer. That might be a bit more iffy.

I should also clarify that I want to use the fenced off area to the left as a sort of patio area. I don't want to put in an actual patio, because, well, it's the front yard. But I do entertain a fair bit and I would like to put a table and chairs for 4 or 6 there in the summer. Can't use the backyard for a variety of reasons, and the kids all play out front so we end up there anyway. It will be squishy, but so is the inside of my house so we're used to it. :-)

Sooo, that's why I really only want a bed along the house/steps, and I would prefer an "L" shape rather than to make it as deep as the front of the steps.

I will have to look into hollies. I did see some while out, but I was attracted to the everyellows more than the evergreens. I know yews are typical, but I guess I tend to be atypical. :-) What I was really going for was a well-tended area of small shrubs of varying sizes and colors, some evergreen, some flowering, with some annuals tossed in here and there. I was hoping that I could keep the Juniper and False Cypress under some amount of control with pruning. Ten years on the False Cypress is a long time - - if it can be pruned to stay smaller, I will do that. Faster growing shrubs scare me a bit.

I can find another spot for the scotch pine, perhaps around the left side of the house (which also needs work!) where it is super sunny a good part of the day.

I am more than happy to take a step back and slow it down. I do think I will put the arbor vitae in the corner to the right of the bay window - - I think that corner cries out for something tall and narrow. And I really, really like the False Cypress and would like to incorporate that somewhere. The juniper is nice, but I don't have to use it.

Any other suggestions, with the new info added? I will check out the cottage gardening forum as well - - thanks all!

Oh, and I should add I'm not too good with roses, but I would love suggestions for other vining plants that are lower maintenance. Clematis, maybe? I may not add anything like that this year, as I want to focus on the evergreens as my "base," but it will be good to keep in mind!

Oh, and Treeskate, what do you think I should add over to the right of the hose? Right now, that corner is occupied by a spattering of perennials - - coneflower in the little sunny spot, coreopsis that does beautifully at the border, and astilbe up against the foundation (wrapping around to a shade bed on the north side of the house along the drive, with bleeding heart, creeping jenny, a nikkei blue hydrangea and some annuals). It looks nice as you're coming up the driveway to either the front entrance or the side door. But maybe you're right, and I should transplant these somewhere and add something taller?

Oops, that unknown shrub is likely to be a scotch broom (cytisus), not scotch pine.

Also, I hate to harp on this, but all those shrubs, while lovely, need full sun (6 plus hours a day during their growing period). Please check your sunshine throughout the day (once it stops raining!). I think it is highly unlikely that pachysandra would be thriving as it is if that area is truly full sun.

Patty

Here is a link that might be useful: Scotch broom

Oh, one more thing. I grow my scotch broom in the same bed as my peonies and I must say they compliment each other beautifully.

Patty

Patty, I just looked up scotch broom - - ouch! Terms like "weed" and "infestation" and "noxious" cropped up all over the place! Maybe I'll return that one to my neighbor?!

The area to the left of the steps definitely gets at least 6-7 hours of sun, from early morning until mid-afternoon with a very small period of shade as the sun crosses over a tree. I tracked it last summer while I was thinking about what to do with this space. To the right, I would say maybe 4 hours, and some of it filtered slightly (but likely to be moreso as the red maple tree grows).

Here is a better picture of the area to the left of the steps:

{{gwi:255357}}

So I was thinking while I was getting ready for work. How about using Tree Oracle's idea of a holly on either side of the bay window, with maybe the false cypress between? I could forget about the juniper, and the emerald arborvitae. Or would the height of the arborvitae be a good thing in the corner on the right side of the picture?

Hi, and welcome! That's an adorable house-- I agree with Patty, a cottage-y type front would go really well with it.

I think a small flagstone patio in the front yard wouldn't necessarily look out of place, if you edged it with some perennials to blend it all in. I just hate scraping a chair across grass or having to move indoors because it rained in the morning and the grass still isn't dry enough to walk through. Plus, if you really use it a lot, it will be very hard to keep the grass in good shape, and a big bare spot in the front yard won't look so great. I'm strongly biased in favor of hardscaping for entertainment areas.

I really hope you keep us updated with how you proceed!

greening,
I would consider doing a flagstone patio one day, but I'm afraid it's not in the cards this year. It's much cheaper to put down grass seed. My new roof ate up a big chunk of my improvement budget!

I returned the scotch broom and the juniper. I investigated hollies, but I fear they will also get too big. I'm heading over to shrubs and conifers for advice on smaller shrubs. Thanks!

Love your house! It's really charming.

Sorry if I missed this, I read through all the posts but didn't see it. Please remember to leave plenty of space behind the shrubs. If the mature width of a shrub is 4 feet, plant it with the center at least 5 feet from the foundation, which will leave 3 feet of space behind it. The 3 feet along the foundation should be kept clear for improved air circulation - important for both the house and the plants - and for ease of maintenance.

This looks like a very small house, you are right to look at small shrubs for the space. I think others have mentioned this, but I'll repeat it - limit your plant choices to a few different things, and avoid planting one of each of many different things.

While you don't have to make the plantings symetrical, you might use similar or the same plants, for the most part, on each side of the entrance.

I'd stick to old-fashioned shrubs if you can, perhaps a lilac at one of the corners? The house certainly has a straightforward charm, and does not need thick evergreens in front of it. Azaleas would also be lovely here - understated most of the year, and wild for a few weeks.

I also like the pachysandra - looks very good in front of your house.

You'll get much more "bang for your buck" by planting along the fence and keeping any shrubs next to the foundation to an absolute minimum. For one thing, you can enjoy flowers that are out along the fence from inside your house - you can't actually see your foundation plants from indoors.

I second the vote not to lose all of the pachasandra. I removed a bunch of it from my yard last year and I missed the evergreen leaves last winter.

diggingthedirt,
Thanks for the compliment on the house. It is tiny - - only 1300 sq. ft. But that's all we need!

I am convinced that I only need a few types of plants for the foundation. I just don't know which types. I hate looking at that cement foundation. That's why I was thinking evergreens, but you think that would be too heavy? I thought it might be good for consistency.

Funny you should mention lilacs - - I already have one that isn't shown in the picture.

Here is a pic of the house from the sidewalk, to show the maple (which I hate but don't want to remove) and the lilac:

{{gwi:255356}}

The lilac is about 10-15 feet in front of the fence. It will be pruned/thinned this weekend.

gfult, you can come over to my house to pick up some replacement pachysandra. :-) I really have a bias against it. I suppose it is doing its job, but I see it as being unimaginative. But on the advice of so many, I will wait before replacing it.

I did some more reading about landscape design for the front yard. One resource said that for my style house, it would be good to put larger shrubs on either corner of the house, with a downward height progression from both corners toward the front door. That draws the eye to the entryway, which is what you want. I realize that in the pic above, the lilac and the red maple accomplish this "framing", but that's only from the sidewalk, and only when you happen to be standing in the exact place the photo was taken. Closer up, there is nothing framing the corners of the house.

So I'm thinking maybe a bigger/taller evergreen than originally planned over to the left of the patio area, in front of the downspout. Something not too narrow, so it will soften the vertical lines, and no taller than 8-10 feet. Think that's a good starting point?

Hi,
My 2 cents?

You don't need to fork over a lot of cash for pavers for a hardscape. We used one of those concrete forms and did our own.. There are dyes to tint the cement too. Sand can be found locally and if you have 5 gallon pails can even be gotten free. We chose a stone form which looks more rustic, but there are formal forms too. Home depot is where we purchased ours.. We laid down weed barrier the kind that allows water to drain off, and a layer of sand about 2 inches deep and built the patio on to them filled the cracks with a mix of sand and portland cement, neat

Just a couple of more thoughts after reviewing the new photo....I'd like to see a small (4-5') pyramid shaped evergreen (hinoki cypress - feathery, very slow growing) in the right corner up near the fence. It would repeat the window dormer and door overhange that is triangle shape. You also have to think of what will look good in the winter - hence the recommendations for traditional evergreens. Outside the fence, right corner, I would like to see a flowering tree of some kind. I think what bothers me is that the left side of the house is tall and heavy and the right needs something of substance to balance it.

Since $ is a problem for now, see if you can find some of the flag stone like your outside walk way is and put them in a sitting area. Set them around, then take a knife and cut an outline, dig down the depth of the stone plus 1 inch, put 1 inch of sand, put stone back in, grass seed the remainder area (makes it easy to run a lawnmower over the stones. That area looks rather small, so I would opt for just a few evergreens to 'ground' the perimeter, then use containers of difference sizes/shapes in between the evergreens. Consider items to put outside the fence area but closer than your lilac. Just a few items that will 'extend' the view of your yard. I can't see from the photo but it looks like the left side out beyond the fence could have a nice gentle curve of shrubs making the lawn area where the chairs are and the inside of the fenced area appear as if one large circle. The curve (or line if you prefer) would feel like gathering arms enclosing the whole area, create a boundry, so as people come in the driveway they have a sense of direction.

As for under the small lump out window, get some cinder blocks with holes, stack them up, and plant some annuals for now. (Or build a bench like used at a picnic table.) They are easy to move around and you will get a better feel for height, shape, etc. this year. As others have stated, you want to be able to see things from inside your house as well as the outside. Go for blocks of color but keep colors to just 2-3. Too much variety and color becomes busy and confusing to the eye. While you may appreciate the variety up close, from a distance it can look muddied and bland. But you may like the cottage look......IMHO, I think the house calls for firm shapes and colors and simplicity. Brightly painted chairs could provide the accent color you need to give it punch (like the chairs by the maple tree, but painted a bright yellow, and placed on your new 'patio/sitting area.'

Finally, just take your time. Remember it all takes maintenance!

smitty, that's a good idea for the patio. Hmmm. I will price that out at HD today. You and Greening have got me convinced, I think. I just need to convince my bank account!

treeskate, thanks for all of the great suggestions! I never thought about the fact that the left side of the house seems more prominent. So obvious, I guess I'm pretty clueless when it comes to the big picture design stuff! Here's the situation with the right corner of the house, though. I have a small grouping of perennials at the corner and then along the other side of the house up to the side door. They get the perfect amount of sun currently, but if I add something right there it will change the sun conditions.

A friend just offered me a gorgeous mature hemlock cultivar that she has in front of her house. She wants it gone because she just put in something else that needs more room. It's a slow grower and is only about 5 feet tall. It's perfectly shaped like a Christmas tree. We're going to try to transplant it this weekend.

I figure I have two choices - - either put it at the right side directly in front of the corner of the fence, or at the left side, inside the fence in the left corner, in front of the downspout. It will tolerate sun or shade, apparently, so that's not an issue. I think it would look nice in either spot and it would repeat the peaked roof and dormer as Treeskate noted. If I put it in front of the fence on the right, however, I could add lights to it at Christmas and it would be very visible. Any opinions on where to put it?

Treeskate, I know you suggested a flowering tree there, but I don't really think I have the space, and I also don't want to add more shade. That's why I think the hemlock, which won't get much bigger (especially at top), could be perfect there to add some definition.

Going back to tree oracle's suggestion about roses on either side of the steps, does anyone have an opinion about adding climbing roses to the fence? I feel like the horizontal lines could use softening, and I would lean toward putting one on the left side in the left corner where it would get more sun, but would that, again, emphasize the left side of the yard too much?

I like the idea of the 'hemlock cultivar' on the right side outside the fence and great for Christmas lights! Great idea!

I also think climbing roses on the fence would be just lovely - surely someone can suggest material for the right fence for balance, softness, and meet your light and space requirements.

We all look at things differently but that is what I love about these forums - real people, real problems, and real help and no snobbiness.....

Some very prolific blooming and disease-resistant climbers for you fence include:

William Baffin - dark pink blooms
Parade - dark pink blooms
America - coral pink
Altissimo - red
Don Juan - red, very fragrant
Golden Showers - yellow
Westerland - orange
Red Eden - red

There are many other possibilities, too. If you decide to plant roses, take the time to properly prepare their planting area. I grow around 80 roses so I think I can give you some good advice for doing this if you want to email me. Roses are also very hungry and thirsty plants. They require fertilization and water throughout the growing season. You also need to prune them from time to time. In other words, they are not a plant it and forget about it type of plant.

On that note, one of the biggest mistakes that people make with trees and shrubs is not pruning them. The mature size of many shrubs is a measure of how big the plant will get if left to grow unchecked. It is irrelevant if you practice diligent pruning. In addition to shaping the plant, it also thickens it giving it a more attractive appearance. Most hollies for instance will grow quite easily into a 10 ft x 10 ft monster or larger. However, with pruning they can be easily kept to any shape and size that you want. I constantly read posts about overgrown yews, rhododendrons and other evergreens that did not have to end up that way if a proper pruning program had been observed.

Hemlock is a beautiful tree but if you plan to grow one in CT familiarize yourself with Wooly Adelgid disease. You will have to keep an eye on it and probably have to spray it regularly to keep it healthy. When we bought our house 11 years ago it was surrounded by Hemlocks-some as tall as 70 feet. I had to have them all removed a few years ago as they were all diseased and too big and far gone to treat. It's a shame really. Hemlock is one of the few screening evergreens that tolerates shade and when left unsheared develops a graceful form.

You've been getting some great advice here. Make sure you take pictures of your progress so we can all see how things turn out.

Sue

Here is a link that might be useful: Wooly Adelgid-GW FAQ

Sue, that is something to think about. And perhaps a good reason to head over to Conifers and ask if I've identified the tree correctly. I keyed it using a small branch and basically relying on the needles. But one thing doesn't add up - - and here's where my ignorance comes in! It has these long, dried, fleshy, seedy cone like things hanging off it. They are about 6-7 inches long and 1/4 inch thick. Hemlock cones are not that long. So maybe I've got something else.

Treeskate, I agree, this forum is great! I was too afraid to post in LD. :-)

Tree oracle, thanks for the list. I'm going to investigate if any of those are resistant to the %#%@* japanese beetles, which managed to eat all of my astilbe and coneflower the last two years. I love that the knockouts are resistant to them - - I picked up two of the red at HD today.

My friend is coming over today with a load of dirt in her truck. Our town has a composting program, so the dirt is pretty good quality (so I hear). I got some stuff to amend it with as well. So our project for the day is spreading the dirt and making the bed in front of the bay window and start planting a few things.

I'll take a picture to show progress at the end of the day.

Thanks so much for all of the help!

OK, I just finished the essentials before the rain came! What a weekend. I've been popping prescription ibuprofen like crazy!

My friend and I went to the dump to get a truckload of dirt. While there I saw another friend's husband with his dump truck, so he took the dirt for me and dumped it in my driveway, which saved us lots of shoveling!

Before we brought any dirt into the beds in the patio area, I started loosening up the soil. Lo and behold, the entire area had a network of roots from an old tree, criscrossing everywhere. I spent most of yesterday tearing out roots (ouch!) until my ds came home and he and his friends went at them with the ax. We filled 4 giant construction trash bags!

Then we brought in dirt for the beds, and laid the drain tube in front of that. Here's a pic:

{{gwi:32754}}

The drainpipe connects to both downspouts and then goes out the side of the fence, and is easily screened by my black-eyed susans along the fence. I will get something to edge it with, then cover the drainpipe with mulch. This way it will be accessible if it ever fails or gets backed up.

That's a juniper in the corner, then two Sawara Cypress 'Cream Tops' and the red knockout rose ala tree oracle. In front of the shrubs are three lavendar plants (and some thyme in containers that will be planted in the walkway). I think I left plenty of room between shrubs, so long as I trim a bit now and then. I'm proud of myself, because I had wanted to squeeze a hydrangea between the two cypress' but I thought better of it and put it on the right side to the right of the hose container.

Here's a pic of the two knockouts on either side of the front steps:

Don't mind the messy steps - - the rain was coming in fast and furious as I cleaned up.

Over on the left side of the fence, where I had a hole from removing some dreaded hosta that I hated, I added two peonies and some annuals. I used the leftover dirt to spread in front of the fence where the ground was really rooty from my red maple, and added grass seed:

{{gwi:32753}}

Then I thinned out my lilac some while the rain blew in. I need a tree saw to get at those thick branches . . .

My arms are sore, my back is sore, but I'm pretty happy. I have to get more mulch for the new bed. Next weekend I will start on the patio. Then at some point I will work on the other side of the house, including adding my "Christmas tree" in front of the fence post on the right.

Thanks for all of your suggestions, many of which I incorporated. I will update you as we add more things.

Wow, you've been busy! That area framed by the shrubs and the fence is heaven-made for a patio. Just imagine a little bistro set or some wonderful lawn chairs and a big container of annuals. You will have a lovely spot for a morning cup of coffee, an afternoon lemonade or an end-of-the-day cocktail.

It also looks quite level and there's no turf there, so half the work is done. There is a thread over at the (not-so-very-frightening) Landscape Design forum about patio pavers. It might give you an idea or two.

Patty

Here is a link that might be useful: LD thread

Looking good! Grubbing out tree roots is SUCH a pain... I can't even imagine doing an area that size. Thank goodness you had willing helpers.

A small point, but another thing I like about your house is that nice wide top step in front of the door. Whoever originally did that thought things out-- our top step is so tiny you actually have to stand on the next lower step to get the door open. *rolls eyes*

Thanks Patty and Greening! I am sore and tired, but not as bad as I probably should be.

Patty, I did check out that thread, thanks. My plan is to use granite dust to a depth of about 3-4 inches below the fieldstone, but I have to figure out exactly how I'm going to execute this plan. For example, I raised the beds so that I wouldn't have to dig the patio on the bed side. This way it will be higher on that side and slope away from the house.

But I do still have to either dig around the fence, or use this plastic border stuff I found at Lowe's, which creates a 3 inch division. This would work on the fence sides, but it would not be a solution where the walkway meets the new patio, because it would be a tripping hazard. So I have to figure out how to grade it all to make this work, which is not something I'm naturally good at.

I also have to figure out whether to mix some other medium in with the fieldstone I already have to create a pattern, or spend the big $$ to get more matching fieldstone. I'm leaning toward mixing something in, but I'm not sure what. Will happily take any suggestions!