Go to your local garden store and get proper advice for your area

Since we have no idea where on the planet you might be located, we cannot make any meaningful suggestions. What grows in Minneapolis is very different from what grows in Miami :-))

Oh wow! Sorry, didn't think of that! I am located in NC, zone 7. Thank you for your feedback!

I agree with Patricia. Take your photo to a local nursery.

There are some beautiful hydrangeas. They come in pretty well any size.

Just wanted to say a birch would be great if it suits your climate zone. They can look especially nice at night with lighting underneath.

Oh wow! Thanks Yardvaark! I agree for the crape myrtle on the front side of the walk! And that's the problem I have for landscaping myself!! I never really know how big the plants will be to know what to pick!! Thanks again!

Check out the plant tags to find out how large the plants will be. It will give you both the height and the spread. Or google the plant name and go on a site that sells the plant, and they will have this info. It's great because then you know how far to plant from a wall or walkway, so you're not pruning the plant constantly later when it is mature.

When the plant is small, add mulch to make the beds look nice, and plant some annuals in between. Or use perennials and plan to move them when the shrubs become mature.

I would suggest matching your trees instead of two different ones. When you match it makes a property look larger. Also for plants you can visit www.monrovia.com put in your zone and what you want for flower color/sun. It will give you lots of options. Monrovia ships to nurseries across the us so if you like something you can find it at the nursery.

You need better landscaping and a line sight to the front door not the car. You can still maintain a sidewalk between the driveway and the front door, but you shouldn't see it!

"You need better landscaping and a line sight to the front door not the car. You can still maintain a sidewalk between the driveway and the front door, but you shouldn't see it!"

That's pretty arbitrary :-) There is a very clear line of sight to the front door. And no earthly reason why the walkway from drive (usually the most convenient and frequently used location for these) should not be seen!! I don't recall that stipulation being included in ANY landscape design class :-)) Ideally, primary walkways should always be clearly visible.

Also, if no sidewalk and plenty of onsite visitor parking available, a walkway to the street is probably completely unnecessary and seldom - if ever - used.

Well you musts not live in an area where people have to access your front door, like Fed X, UPS and the mail carrier. Hardly ever used? The only sidewalk that is "hardly ever used" in our neighborhood is the one from the driveway to the front door. I studied architecture in Europe. The saddest day in our history was when the US Supreme Court locked the front doors permanently. Only prisoners use the back door! Everyone is entitled to their opinion, but a welcoming house has access from the street to the front door and doesn't relegate guests to the servants/staff entrance.

"Well you musts not live in an area where people have to access your front door, like Fed X, UPS and the mail carrier."

Well of course I do!! And that is why the walkway should never be hidden or disguised! UPS/FedEX, repair people, etc. park in the drive and use whatever walkway is closest - or barring a convenient one - walk across the lawn and any planting beds. Unless in the most urban areas of the city with small lots (and this is not), paved sidewalks and short, narrow drives, no one around here parks on the street. In some neighborhoods, street parking is even prohibited!

I'm not sure what this has to do with European architecture (I have an architectural degree as well), prisoners or servant/staff entrances. A walkway from the front door directly to the street is optional. And if not often used....if at all......completely unnecessary. The front door still remains the front door regardless of how directly you approach it. Having the primary walkway that leads to it arise from the driveway doesn't make it any less the front entry and NOT a prisoner's or servant/staff entry!! That is just a preposterous assumption!

some ideas