Landscape/ curb appeal

13 years ago

All our front bushes are original to the house and need to be replaced, 2 evergreens and 2 rhodedendrons(sp). We live in Metrowest MA. Also want to replace front door and lights. Thinking of hydrangeas and some evergreen. Any ideas on how to make the front of the house shine? I am getting estimates from landscapers but want to sound somewhat knowledgable!

Featured Answer

apple_pie_order

13 years ago

Attractive house. Is transplanting the blooming shrubs to another location an option? These are pretty large and it would be worth exploring ways to re-use them in the landscape.

It's my impression that hydrangeas get huge. They may not be in scale for your house after a few years, namely, you may have the same overgrown shrub problem you have now. Foundation shrubs look good if they are shorter than window sill height. How about a cottage style garden with azaleas, floribunda roses, and some perennials? Your local nursery will know what is winter-hardy. Try edging the front walkway with some annuals this year; dig a bed about a foot wide on each side.

To change the look of the house quickly, you could paint just the shutters. Try the Sherwin Williams paint color visualizer.

The front doors lights look in scale for the house, but perhaps you are ready for a change there. They can be painted a new metallic finish or replaced. Add house numbers you can see from the street.

A big colorful welcome mat can add some punch. The painted coir mats are widely available in lots of patterns.

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Comments (17)

Judy Tobey
Original Author
13 years ago
Another view
User
13 years ago
Add a flagstone pathway to your driveway from your front porch. Paint your door a pretty yellow. Paint shutters dark grey. Paint or replace porch rails white. Hydrangeas in pink and white.
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JWinteriors
13 years ago
First, consider the front of your house. It would look beautiful with an overhang over your front door with beefy posts in white with white handrails. Then, work a stone walkway to your drive..again, keeping it large and inviting. Add trimmed boxwood hedges with coned arborvitaes and hostas for your greens. You could incorporate window boxes overflowing with flowers as well as potted and hanging flowers.
pcutler
13 years ago
You could do conifers, adding in a few shrubs with lighter and darker leaves for interest, or you could start with hydrangeas and add in shrub roses and other perennials in shades of white, pink, and blue or purple for more of a cottage garden look. I think the path is a good idea...I'd just use the stones alone surrounded by grass. Maybe, at some point, a thin, matching stone border lining your driveway along the grass for interest.
Judy Tobey
Original Author
13 years ago
The shrubs have had it. Thinking
of a black Caged onion cottage style lamps. The shutters are vinyl
as is the siding. I like the blue and
White, don't want to make the house look smaller!
Judy Tobey
Original Author
13 years ago
We just had the molding around
the door replaced less than a year
ago. When we replace our roof prob in the next few years, we may revisit that.
Judy Tobey
Original Author
13 years ago
We do have a stone walkway, I
Took the pics before my hubs mowed the lawn. They are thin stones tho!
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Carolyn Choi
13 years ago
Sweet house, love the color. Definitely a cottage style garden like the one I've sketched would go well with your house -plant small blooming trees on both sides ( redbud ( purple/pink ) or dogwood ( white ) if they grow in your area. Remove grass and create cottage garden filled with small broadleaf evergreens ( azaleas, rhododendrons, etc. ) low growing rose shrubs that have long bloom, cottage garden perennials and annuals and mulch it with pebbles or gravel. Add window boxes and a bird bath and if there's a way to add a low picket fence that would add plenty of curb appeal. If its in the budget I would spend money on making the driveway more attractive either by having it stained a deeper color or tiling over it.
Judy Tobey
Original Author
13 years ago
Thanks, sweet Caroline, but think
you missed the "low maintenance
Post! Like the cottage idea, thinking hydrangea heaven with some conifers
Ann
13 years ago
Beautiful house! A pathway to the front door would be great, like Sweet Caroline's picture. Also, I think a dark charcoal or black front door and shutters (leaving the trim white) would really look nice.
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Kathy Henry Exterior Design
13 years ago
I totally agree with Sweet Caroline. I was going to say to add a curved walkway into the driveway and remove the grass. Great minds think alike. Low maintenance option is to do ground covers, grasses and shrubs that still have that cottagey flair instead of perennials and annuals. I live in Southern California, so I am not sure what plants would work there.
Judy Tobey
Original Author
13 years ago
My husband loves his lawn, that
would be a hard sell! How do think a navy door would work?
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Kathy Henry Exterior Design
13 years ago
Well then do a flower bed in the section to the right of the walkway and a large curved bed in front of the house with grass in front of that; like where Sweet put the birdbath. That way you have beds and grass. I would hire a landscape designer to plan it out so your money is spent wisely. I can't tell you how many people I know that keep killing plants, or rip stuff out because they got plants that got too big, or planted too close together etc. etc. I also like the picket fence idea.
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Carolyn Choi
13 years ago
Lawns are high maintenance, jude16 using up to half the household's water. Your area of grass appeared to be small but if its large then as Bloom Garden Design indicated, leave some area of grass . I wouldn't say that Hydrangeas are low maintenance -they too are water hogs and will be the first to droop when its hot. Of course if you have shade and lots of water they're no problem. Why don't you google drought-tolerant, low-maintenance shrubs and plants for your garden zone ?
bjowen
13 years ago
would like to see you pull the garden away from the foundations a bit, you could use Japanese maples, small conifers, low spreading azaleas, hosta, hellebore and ferns to create an easy garden with year round interest, sprinkle in bulb groupings and choice annuals in season...
Ann
13 years ago
Considering roof, brick and siding color (which is great), I like very dark charcoal a little better than navy.