What about knockout roses by the porch or next to the garage?

Here's what I did today. I plan on adding black mulch or pine nuggets in the middle. Thoughts?

Looks awesome, stay with one colour, can you get cedar mini chunks? They fade beautifully and smell awesome. They aren't artificially coloured so nice if you prefer natural scape and smell so good along pathways, especially after rainfall.

I suggest you add some colour and height with perennial grass, smaller mounding blue fescue interspersed in front and taller interspersed in back (Karl forester).

You could put three taller grasses by your downspout.

Hostas by your downspout would work too as they prefer moisture. Maybe some big leaf coloured ones (Frances?)

Should I add thing else near the walkway? I originally didn't want to add anything because I don't want it to grow into the walkway and didn't want the area to look "busy". Visually would that mulch you mentioned look better in brown vs if I go with a black color mulch?

Here are the shrubs I bought at Costco. Should I water them daily and for how long? Here's another shot. You can tell this area will look better once the nuggets go in the middle. I plan on keeping the rocks on the corners.

When you say the taller ones should go in front do you mean by the walkway ? And back by the garage wall?

I would plant annuals...something short that will spread together in the area at sidewalk/drive/gutter area. A bed on the other side of the aidewalk that would bring the same plants over the walk would look nice. You need balance. Don't worry if things look empty. Shrubs grow. Usually too big. Do yourself a favor. Watch the Gary Alan videos on You Tube. Please don't put nuggets or black mulch. Your mulch should resemble dirt if you have a bright area. If it is a dark area then put a lighter milch. Here it would be cypress. Not siure what your local mulch is. Consider pine straw. Makes a beautiful bed. Please NO NUGGETS or DYED MULCH.

No nuggets or mulch? Why is that?

I like cedar nuggets but I admit that is my preference. They can sometimes be messy by a path but can easily be sweeped back into planting bed.

I edge out along my paths and push nuggets to bed. Not sure if that makes sense but works for my yard that is naturalized in zone 2.

Sounds like cypress is the way to go. Honestly I'm after a black type mulch. I don't want anything brown. In our area we have harsh winters and the mulch gets discolored which means we always have to buy more every 1-2 years.

Definately mulch. Nuggets would be. comsidered mulch too but it is very outdated at least in my area. Cypress is a light colored mulch and lightens with age. Pine bark mulch is IMHO the prettiest and is brownish black but it will float away. Cypress is the only mulch I know thar doesn't float.

I don't have to worry about anything floating away in this area :) should I go with that pine bark mulch then ?

If mine wouldn't float that is all I would use. It mskes the plant colors pop.

Would it be better if I totally remove the rock border and just stick with mulch?

Probably my fav combination of borders with rock. May be costly unless your area has rock. No natural rocky areas in LA.

Looks fantastic. What big rocks are those? How do I keep from the small stones from leaking on to the walkway?

Yesterday when I raked the stones around this area to move them to the edge, a whole lot of mud is now mixed up with my small stones and it looks horrible and dirty instead of clean like this pic. is there anyway to make it look cleaner or will the rain to that overtime

Be careful of planting items too close to the side of house. Should be about 2' away to allow for air circulation and growth. Watering once you are finished planting will wash the stones off, and perhaps a nice edge along the sidewalk of stacked stone would help "contain" whatever ground cover you decide to use eventually. Plants staggered create a more appealing look rather than in straight lines as well. Didn't know you were ready to plant. Yikes! Is the tree there a pine? What is it? It could possibly be sculpted a bit to help make it look better. Might need to be transplanted to another location? Can you take a photo from much further back, because it would help us put everything in perspective better. Thanks!

Thanks. Yes Costco had a great deal on these Boxwoods. This is a crabapple tree. What did you mean by stacked stones for the edging?
Would this look be ok? I'm worried that big stones would make a flood in this area when it rains not allowing water to escape.

You need to put weed barrier under the stones to seperate smaller rocks from dirt. Black plastic on a toll that water runs through. If you raise the bed without having french drains near your wall it will hold water.

What would be the easiest way to clean off these small stones and place them in top of fabric. They are mixed with dirt and mud right now.

Move them on to the sidewalk and hose them until the dirt drains down the sidewalk.

How did I do?
Hemlock mulch, stone border.

What are the shrubs you planted? If those are boxwoods I would plant them closer together for a hedge or just get rid of them. Boxwood is not a nice landscape feature if planted without a plan or purpose. I would move the shrubs away from the foundation, there is usually a rain shadow there.

They are 2 feet from the foundation and 3 feet from each other.

If you look up, are the eaves over the plantings? If that line of shrubs is not meant to be a hedge (and they are too far apart for one) I would shift them into more of a triangle grouping.

https://www.thespruce.com/how-to-plant-boxwood-hedges-2132253

They are Buxus Green Velvet Boxwoods.

Triangle isn't possible because of the hostas, crabapple tree, garage wall and porch. We're not after a back to back hedge design. We has seen many Boxwoods spaces out like this and after they grow they look wonderful.

In the end it's up to you, I've planted a ton of boxwood as a professional gardener. Boxwood in a line says hedge but if they are too far apart it's weird. It takes a long time for them to get larger.

Understood. Overall how do you like the layout of mulch and rocks.

Personally, I wouldn't have done that, just for functional reasons, but it looks OK right now.

Really? This is quite the common design. If I used 100% mulch it makes the area next to the walkway look empty. This way the stones start the design leading into the mulch taking your eyes away from the fact that there's no shrubs or perennials there.

What would you have done.

I think that the boxwood ...(if the type you plated) plated by itself (far from another) is just a boring green bush. But, when planted together in a line or a spiral or someway in a design it is what gives the bed it's structure. This particiular bed needs the boxwood variety that so many are using now that stays small. If yours are the large boxwood, you may not wanr thrm in your soace. The rock and mulch look pretty. What mulch did you use?

Thanks! Hemlock which is hard to come by around here. Glad I found it. Such a wonderful scent.

The rocks will get sucked into the soil and will end up looking dirty, so you are adding rock back in to a garden where ideally no rocks should exist in large quantities (not a rock garden). Mulch adds to the improvement of the soil, it's organic. For my personal preference I would have planted ground cover like daylily or geranium or lamium or lady's mantle or sweet woodruff or wild ginger etc etc etc.

If you scroll up I've had these stones in this area for 2 years. They don't look dirty and have not sunken into the dirt. I agree on the ground cover, my fear is placing anything close to the walkway.

Is there an tony non visible edging that would work in my case that I could place around the area so the rocks don't spill out on to the walkway? Or is that not a good idea because it will retain water in this area?

I have rock edges. I blow mine off with the blower. IF you seperate the dirt from rock you won't have that problem.

You lost me there.

Believe me, over time it's inevitable. I've been gardening professionally for years, if you were my client I wouldn't have let you do that LOL.

http://forums.gardenweb.com/discussions/1920162/mulch-or-rocks

You most certainly have the right to your own opinion. LOL

Well it's not just my opinion it's my experience. Plus the rock makes it difficult to put anything shade loving there, which I guess you weren't going to do anyway. Rock in a sun garden is a whole different story, it's a lot easier to find sun and heat loving and drought tolerant plants than shade and heat and drought tolerant plants.

I get it. Thanks for your time. Enjoy your weekend. Some "clients" don't need things to be picture perfect by the way. :)

I have had a rock border for about 15 years. You'll be fine.

Can you send a picture? Not sure how yours looks based on your explanation.

I'll take when when I venture outside.

These are a couple. One in the background is just border. Ones by the street are the whole beds. Flood waters last August were over the mailbox and the rock stayed put...go figure.

What I meant was what edging can I install that isn't too visible that holds the stones in the bed vs leaking on to the walkway? FYI this only happens when wildlife or kids run over them for example or if someone happens to step in this area accidentally the stones spill out. No big deal I brush them back in, but there is metal or plastic edging I seen at some big box stores in the past I thought.

I don't have edging Yes sometimes they scatter but looks much nicer IMO.