Thanks gardengal48! This is just what I need to hear. I too don't like that in winter it looks bare. What do you recommend? I'm in Central Pennsylvania. And what are sweeps/drifts ? I don't mind moving what I have.

Sweeps or drifts are an irregular placement of 3 or more of the same plant, so that they grow together as one large mass. Better visual impact.

You are probably in hardiness zone 6. So that means most dwarf conifers will work in your zone as well as broadleaved plants like boxwood, Japanese holly, rhododendrons, pieris and abelia. Check to see what's on stock at your local better garden center, NOT a box store.

And as that is not an overly large area, I'd keep significant plant choices down to just a few.......like maybe 3 different species. You can always add in more seasonality with spring bulbs, annuals or some summer flowering perennials but again, limit your choices to just a couple.

Still a work in progress. I am going dig the border and stakes lower to make it level with the pebble walkway. What I need to know now is: - I think I narrowed it down to wanting a purple rhododendron , pink azalea and

Euonymus fortunei Emerald Gaiety AGM

just need help with placement and I don't mind moving some perennials around if I have to. I also like the dwarf blue juniper but don't know if it fits in?

I'm putting down black mulch on both sides too

It's hard to be specific about placement since I don't know how many plants you purchased or what their ultimate size may be. Very generally, you want the largest either in the center of the bed or the back (if not seen from that angle). And then the smaller growing shrubs grouped around it.

Since the rhody is likely the largest growing plant, I'd be inclined to place it in the center of the larger bed to the right of the walkway. Space your additional shrubs around it and to fill in the area in front of the porch. Perennials should be clustered and planted along the perimeter but they are easy to dig up and relocate and even divide if you need more.

Be sure you space the plants out so that they have room to develop properly and fill in without impacting their neighbors.

I've believe for a general idea they all grow to ABOUT 4' tall, 3-4 ft wide and I could always prune them to an appropriate height

Many rhodies grow much taller than 4 feet - like 6-8 feet or more. Check the many types of rhododendron available and select one that will mature at the height you want; pruning to keep them small is just not practical or good for the plant. For a glimpse at the many colors and sizes of rhododendron, take a look at the online catalog at www.rarefindnursery.com. The founder was a major figure in the rhodie world, and their catalog is a great resource even if you don't buy from them. (You will also find an amazing variety of azaleas there.)

A word to the wise (as they say): Euonymus is very prone to scale, and e. fortunei has been named as an invasive species in some states. (See notes from Missouri Botanical Garden at http://www.missouribotanicalgarden.org/PlantFinder/PlantFinderDetails.aspx?kempercode=c206.)

Does scale affect other plants ???

It is mainly a serious problem on euonymus species, as well as pachysandra and bittersweet; though it may be found on a variety of other plants, rarely to the point it becomes a problem ... or so the literature says.