here's a photo from a little further back...

we're going to plant the larger right side too...maybe some evergreen bushes under the window, and flowers for some color too.

I like the idea of river rocks and planters on the porch. That will give you variety and versatility as the seasons change. Fun spot, thanks for asking!

Look into Upright Japanese Plum Yew. They are heat and shade tolerant, evergreen. Very pretty and would fit into the narrow space. I also like the river rock idea mixed in as well along with annuals for color like zinnia or impatiens. Columbine are shade loving perennials that are narrow but they do spread.

Personally I wouldn't do an evergreen in that thin strip because as it spreads it is going to intrude on the walkway space and the porch space. I would opt for an upright ornamental grass that has a max height around 2.5-3 ft tall (or shorter). I would use the other bed for evergreen against the house ( a clipped yew or similar- maintained below bottom of window) with the front of that bed reserved as a place for annual flowers as your spot of color.

The upright Japanese Plum Yew don't spread. The ones I had stayed about the same size for years. Don't get one with multiple stems.

Giant Liriope, would be nice, low maint, assuming this area gets sun.

If boxwood veriaty is available that would be my suggestion u can buy the small varieties

Thank you for these wonderful suggestions! I see I have my research cut out for me!!

kaywestmaas - thanks for your detailed comment - you have some good ideas!

dvpwinters - I do love the way the horsetails look! Are they easy to care for?

sandyvale and kivi - I don't think I want ornamental grasses - won't it look messy falling onto the sidewalk - are there any varieties that grow straight up?

beth - i like your idea too! but is the Japanese Plum Yew small enough? will i be able to trim it to stay within the garden space - which is only 1 foot deep/wide?

drae65- i just googled feather reed grass and i think that might work too! But will it be easy to maintain a neat look? or will they be wild and messy?

I live in the PNW and and have spent a good deal of time over the past five years trying to get rid of horsetail. It is incredibly invasive (at least here) with a root system that is very deep. I heard once after Mt. St. Helens blew 20 years ago, horsetail was the first plant to reappear. You will have a wide range of plants to choose from that are prettier and won't invade your space.

What about adding a black railing around the porch to define it.

longbranchstitch - thanks for the warning!

carolyn - my thoughts exactly! future plans include a railing around the patio and a roof above...

You can definitely get grasses with upright growth habits. I am not familiar with the horsetail ( not hardy where I am) but I love the look.

Calamagrostis 'Karl Foerster' is very easy to grow (I have some in my yard and am also in zone 7), but like someone else said, it gets wide fairly quickly (I think about 3 feet or so). You might just be able to keep it trimmed, though. It is a great variety of ornamental grass. Here are some other grasses to consider: 17 Top Ornamental Grasses and some take up less space than Karl Foerster... good luck!

I like the rock idea but I would put some small leafed ground cover in with it. In fact I would put it on both sides of the sidewalk. No maintenance. Then add the color on the porch with some big pots of flowering plants. I am landscaping an old 1940s house and I love the miniature shrubs I am finding. I have a small hydranga and mini butterfly bush

That's a small tight space surrounded by heat-collecting concrete. If the space gets a good amount of sun, it will act like a micro-climate: drier and hotter than the rest of your property. I'd consider a shorter grass, such as Festuca glauca 'Elijah Blue' which is tolerant of shallow-rocky soils, dry soil and drought (once established). I'd add a planter or cluster of planters of larger colorful plants on the patio that will bring the attention up towards the house. You could consider a long planter across the driveway end of the patio — it will also add some screening of the driveway which may increase your enjoy when sitting on the bench.

Since the space is surrounded by concrete I'd go with bamboo which will grow anywhere. It's invasive nature will be contained by the hard scape.

That's a very narrow space and any shrub or tall grass will grow to be too wide and encroach on your walkway. My choices would be to either cover the space with attractive rounded stones (most sensible) or plant an evergreen ground cover since you will be viewing it all year. It depends on how much sun you are getting but the Elijah Blue fescue mentioned above is a good choice. Also Mondo Grass, Liriope, a small leafed ivy, Vinca Minor (although you will have to trim it). Even Pachysandra might do if it's constantly shaded. You will need to add good soil (topsoil plus compost plus fertilizer). You will also have to be vigilant about making sure it's watered if necessary. Some large pots with flowers at the corner of you front porch would really help soften the feel of the concrete.

Do dwarf Mondo grass on either side of the walkway and get your plant punch somewhere else. Mondo is indestructible, stays green, requires no maintenance, and doesn't mind the acidic nature of the concrete around it. Good luck!!

Going to address the right side first since you are new to gardening.

Bring in good soil and compost and create a natural looking mounded area. This looks so much better than a flat space and shows off plants more.

Then be sure to not get suckered into planting something that will grow too large. All baby plants are small, but in five years.....

To dress up the walkway thru the middle of the lawn I would add boxwood (they show flowers here):

This is more what I would use in your yard. Boxwoods along the pathway and aim for a variety of green shades with your foliage and plantings.

To be truthful here, that new path front porch and path doesn't look too safe. That corner is sort of high off the ground. A small child, or someone stepping back, distracted. Anyway, long story short, I think there should be a small fence added.

That strip is so narrow, difficult to plant anything. Need room for roots, but then deep rooted plants a problem if you want to change down the road. And many plants will hang over the path.

So, I would just use that strip for adding a fence. Maybe create a more private sitting area out there at the same time. There are lots of styles of fence, and I can't quite find the photo I want, but this comes close:

Here is another example of fencing that could be attached to those two sides of the porch. Adds some safety while not cutting off view. Then I would fill in the strip with decorative stones.

The feather reed grass stays vertical and it looks nice,,I have it plus many other grasses. However, that space is tight and part of it looks pretty high up..I would be afraid to have a kid there or anyone who is distracted...one misstep and you can break a leg or worse. I would fill it up with soil and then plant..just a thought

The thing I see with your house/ porch/ walkway is all the horizontal & vertical lines. There isn't anything to soften them. Unless you want a more formal look to the front of your house, you need to add some visual round, curving and angled/ diagonal shapes that visually 'bisect' all the straight lines.
We have a couple of areas around our old Milwaukee bungalow that are just like this, here's what we did.
(Image 1)
Along the north side of our house (shaded) we added low-voltage lights and planted (perennial) everblooming bleeding hearts. These puppies bloom from early spring to frost, foliage is pretty too; the leaves are sort of 'acanthus' like. They cover the edge of the concrete walk by a couple of inches, get about 12-15" high. Perfect for that narrow spot, if you have shade.
(Image 2 & 3)
In the front of our house, we have a narrow spot planted with 'Dark Horse' wiegela. (Perennial) Very cool looking dark bronze/black foliage, blooms in spring, stays tidy all season, can be trimmed to keep its height/ width. The wiegela in the photo has only been in for 1 season, so it looks wimpy here but I have another Dark Horse wiegela elsewhere that after 4 years is approximately 2' x 2'. Full sun, will tolerate some shade. (We are zone 5)
Your house has such great potential and I wish I had that beautiful big front porch of yours!

Level the dirt so it is as high as the first step. Plant Iris (bearded not dutch). They are hardy plants, will give you a nice vertical accent and you'll get nice blooms every year.

Dwarf Mondo grass would be good addition and needs very little TLC...except harsh winters can burn it badly. The past winter in Raleigh, NC, provided harsh winter comment. Dwarf is the size you want for that place I'd say. Liriope comes in various forms--some of which are quite invasive. A reliable nursery should have the type that's not invasive. It's the dickens to get out if the wrong kind.

Another choice would be Dwarf English Boxwood. It grows 1'-2'...and takes occasional pruning to keep nicely shaped. It could look most attractive 'peeking' over the edge of your patio/porch--with or without the addition of a railing.

A small, rounded shrub that forms tufts of growth resembling a cloud if unsheared. Slow growing, dwarf habit makes this ideal for edging and borders along pathways or around flower beds.

There are lots of options! Enjoy your decision.

Wow! I'm thrilled with all the comments... and this even became a "featured" discussion - cool!

so it seems my 2 main options are

1. some sort of ornamental grass that grows upright - I like these - they look a little wild and fun!

2. a boxwood shrub that can be trimmed neater. Not sure if it'll be too square and boxy.

By the way, we have future plans for a railing and roof above the front porch... one day.. when our budget allows....!!

As far as the 'danger' of stepping off and getting hurt - I think I'll put some heavy planters along the steep side, and maybe a few in front.

bettybaconbutt - thanks for the link, I'm going to explore it when i get a chance.

Gwendolyn Johnson Design, LLC - the Festuca glauca 'Elijah Blue' looks like a really cool plant - but won't it spill over onto the walkway too much?

pcmom- i love your idea about extending the plants/garden all the way down the front walkway... I just don't think it'll work with my kids and their friends playing on the grass... at this stage of the game we need easy and kid friendly! I don't want to be the type of mom that yells at everyone to stay off her lawn!!

Why not fill the narrow strip between your porch and walk with river rock and landscape lighting. I'd add some dirt on the other side of the walk to make it safer, and either add small shrubs or flowers there.

Festuca is about 12" wide, so if planted in the center of the area, 6" will be towards the walk and 6" towards the wall. I don't know the actual width of the planting area, but perhaps only 3-4" will overlap the walk edge. It will soften the edge while easily moving aside if brushed against.

Festuca won't spill over,,,I have it and it looks beautiful. In this photo its the blue-ish green around the circle..I will look for another photo that has it later in the season

Here is one that has the grass during summer

planting area is 12" - so Festuca should work - about how tall do they grow?

It can get 2 feet tall, but it's usually under that. In fall, I clip the 'blooms' and I leave just the blue part of the plant, which is about 10-12 inches tall

There are many varieties of festuca. The one I recommend is Festuca glauca 'Elijah Blue'. In the Mid-atlantic region, Festuca glauca 'Elijah Blue' grows to about 12" x 12" in full sun (6+ hours per day). Here's a link to the Missouri Botanical Garden Plant Finder website. It has great plant info. http://www.missouribotanicalgarden.org/PlantFinder/PlantFinderDetails.aspx?taxonid=245730&isprofile=1&basic=festuca

That is the one that I have. I live in DE. It gets sun at least 6 hours a day if not more

I live in a Zone 2 area and have been an avid gardener for years.

I recommend pretty colored river rock stones preceded by a fabric
weed control layer. A pre-fabbed privacy barrier can be installed
before the rock base goes down. There are some lovely ones available
with a single unit 5 tall x 4 wide in a kit (Walmart) already painted
(usually white). From that you could hang flower planters with annuals
like summer ivies, wave petunias, trailing geraniums. If you are not
interested in a barrier then display potted plants in tall ceramic pots
on the main concrete patio.

I don't recommend plants in that narrow area for several reasons. Anything planted there will be difficult to keep free of weeds most notably quack grass. There is a higher incidence of roots drying out because concrete holds heat and cold and the area will not allow the plant to spread out normally. Watering once a day in hot weather and twice a week in cooler weather. Clean up of leaves and stems will be needed regularly. If a plant or shrub dies it is not easy to remove it in that tight space without damaging the root structure of the plants next to it and replanting anew.

Good luck.

I don't think plucking the weeds will be a problem...it's a small area and there will barely be any weeds once the plants mature. Actually, the rocks can be a problem..My in-laws have them thinking that the maintenance will be easier,,seeds fly and so do leaves..it's a pain to clean.

Maybe we can kill two birds with one stone. Safety and beauty thru the addition of tall and narrow planters around both sides of porch. I think we could widen them some by extending one side a few inches onto the front porch. Plant with some beautiful grasses.

That would make a beautiful "fence" for safety and give some privacy for sitting out front. Something like this. Narrow but twice as tall.

Here is how it might work. Plenty of room for plantings and roots. Pretty sitting area also. Wouldn't need the upper section, only the planters around the edges.

If there is an ivy that will grow well in your area, preferably one that will stay green most if not all year, you might consider a couple of posts with lattice and have the ivy climb the lattice between the walkway and stoop. That lattice "fence" could also give you a bit of privacy on the stoop and, perhaps, even prevent a stumble or sprained ankle.

Edit to add: You could make this lattice fence 4' but use 8' posts leaving nearly 7' above ground. Another plus for this idea is that there are solar lights that fit atop posts that could light your sidewalk and/or the posts, left tall enough and with hangers affixed parallel to the sidewalk, could give you a place for hanging baskets and/or flowers and/or wind chimes and/or bird feeders.

Anything goes between the sidewalk and road; however, you should consider if the amount of sun the plant will get will let the plant grow in an even and attractive way and will you need to keep cutting it back in an unattractive way to keep it from sticking you as you walk by on the sidewalk.

You might also need to take steps to ensure the soil between the stoop and walk doesn't wash away before your plants take root and can help hold it.

Hey again...I read an article about sedum...think they might work here? I like the purple emperor or the frosty morn variety.

I agree that you want to add topsoil/garden soil and mix in. I think a fence like division would break up the large slab patio, and add some privacy. I think a lattice type is easy and economical, and you could have ivy or other climbing plants, too. The strip next to the patio is definitely too narrow for bushes, but ground cover or tall narrow flowers or thin stem plants could work. If you want to add bushes, I think just one statement one near the second level/step of the walkway going into the yard would also break up the horizontal lines and the cement color. Another fencing option is the sectional metal made to look like old wrought iron, or another painted aluminum fencing which comes in differing heights and weights. On the far left of the patio, you could have a couple of planters or one long planter; these could be evergreen, or mixed with some seasonal plants. Lots of great ideas here, you can start small and add more later. Good luck - anything is probably an improvement over the current state. Happy Gardening!

Lillys would be beautiful or Liriope.

Anything with height planted there would quickly outgrow the space. I would plant a variety of sedums, with some different sized rocks and stones.

Bamboo or horsetail for the skinny area, if that works with your zone. We went to our local landscape store (local, not big box), and paid $45 for the landscaper to design our front yard.