It’s a great looking house. I found a few photos that may help inspire you. I think your current plantings are fairly traditional, but it seems to have been there for a while. Might be worth it to see if they can be refreshed with some pruning, or it might be time to start anew. You may also want to consider adding some more hardscaping, maybe a more prominent path, or some garden walls, etc.

I particularly love the restraint of this white garden lots of different shapes and textures of green with the red brick, white trim and black shutters.

Do you have the budget to change the front path? The facade is formal and symmetrical but the walk is narrow and meandering. I'd make it wider and straight.

Your home is beautiful! And I strongly suggest that you hire a landscape designer for a few hours, at the very least, to walk with you through your yard and give you some ideas about what you might do to enhance your home. You have a corner lot, I think. Whatever is done in the front of your home, must continue on the side. It must be a comprehensive plan...and you should consider lighting, too. Trees, as well as shrubs. The best money you can spend is to talk with a landscape designer. And, if your budget permits...implement their suggestions in stages, over time. Your home has so much potential. Good luck!

You need to talk to a professional on this one. But keep in mind you are going to need some evergreens because six months of the year your deciduous plants will be bare or nearly so.

I agree. There's a lot of potential but, as others have mentioned, the walk is a destroyer to the overall appearance. It looks like one fitted for a camper in a tourist park, not for a 2 1/2-story brick home. Because the shot is not lined up with the front door, we can't tell if the yard light is placed to allow for a straight walk, or if you'd need to keep it serpentine. (The light could move, too.) I'd be Ok with either so long as the path was worked out to make sense. The walk should be at least 4' wide. 5' and 6' are OK, too, but if you made it that wide, I'd suggest incorporating some decorative component, as opposed to plain concrete.

We can't see the porch well but, to be sure, there needs to be a broad landing at its base -- at least as wide as the porch itself. (It does not need to match the walk. It will likely be wider.)

If "welcoming-and-inviting" is the visual message you want to send to anyone passing by, the present turtleneck arrangement and shrouding of the walk by plants, works against your intentions. The bed line is near opposite of what would be useful to you. Regarding the plants themselves, I'd make it a lot fewer things, arranged in a simpler, easier to read configuration. I think you could use a small tree off of the left corner to help the house seem more integrated into the surroundings. You already have large trees at the right side to do this, though I'd remove the limb that starts low on one tree. (I've marked it with an "X".)

We can't see much of the hedge at the foreground of the picture, making it hard to evaluate. But if I could see it, I'd probably think the overall scene would look better without it. Just my guess.

Since you already have ivy, I would use it in any sizeable area where you need groundcover, as it would tie things together nicely. I've had it at a couple of properties and managed huge tracts of land which included it, and found it to very useful and not too difficult to manage. (But it does require learning how to do it.) BTW, I would not let it grow on any walls of fences as it capable of harming them over a period of time. It's better to limit its use to groundcover.

The walkway and landscape are a do over. House is wonderful as is.

Here are some ideas:

Doug to the rescue - lovely design.

As Yardvaark said, the narrow, informal walk doesn’t match the house. The yews tight around the steps make the entry feel more crowded and narrow. And I agree about the tree off the left corner of the house helping anchor it.

I would begin with removing the ivy and plopping the ferns and hostas in pots or a holding bed because used in a more effective manner as a solid groundcover might save you some money that can be used elsewhere. The small islands of plants plonked down in the middle of the lawn look as though they are covering something up since they don’t relate to anything else in the landscape, so I would evaluate whether they might be used elsewhere; for instance your red plant looks like a weeping maple that might do well somewhere else in the yard.

Once you have evaluated and removed plants (don’t just rototil and expect plants to die), and have a plan for the shape of the new beds, I would strip any sod that needs removing and add organic matter to improve the soil already there in the entire new beds. If you add soil, that can change the level of the soil around the house and create issues with the structure and drainage, and there is no guarantee that the soil you bring in will be any better than what is already there, and may have such things as weed seeds.

The shrubs you already have are not worth saving. Your new choices should be of a size to remain below the level of the window sills without excessive pruning needed, us include some evergreens as well as some plants of seasonal interest. Because your home’s facade is formal and symmetrical, you want the plantings to be symmetrical as well.

Hi all, thanks for the comments and compliments. I have briefly tried to hire a landscape architect locally. It seemed like they don't have a pricing structure for this type of engagement. The two I talked to are tied to a landscaper and don't want to release drawings unless they are doing teh work. I'm going to do the work.

And that walkway! That is why I posted here! I never saw that as the problem, but now that you mention it, makes a lot of sense. A neighbor had a contractor put in a wider walk recently. What they did is they outlined the walkway and every break with brick. Which made it a foot and half wider essentially. Looked really nice. I will walk by today to see what the feeling I get is if I picture that at my house. As a side note, we have been budgeting to replace that front porch. Whoever did it didn't account for something and the whole thing is getting ready to burst from the inside out. Maybe we use some of that budget for the walkway if we can get a volume discount from one of the contractors....I've not laid a brick in my life.

I like the two renderings as well. Where that tree is on the left, there used to be one there. I am interested in planting a new tree there. I like the color, but agree with the poster that said to keep in mind the 6 months of the year PA doesn't get flowers.

The photo I posted was after a few beers I pulled the google maps photo and posted it. I've done some spring maintenance on the area like edging and mulching some of it. I also trimmed that Japanese Maple and put some accents around it. I'll post better pictures today.

Why is everyone suggesting to hire a professional here? I know our house is very formal, but we aren't. And am wondering how a more "wild" front area would look.

Kind regards,

"And am wondering how a more "wild" front area would look." Couldn't imagine exactly what vision the word "wild" gives to you, but what I envision from it does not seem good to me. You don't need to be "formal" people in order to have a tidy landscape that is compatible with a tidy house. Formal suggests fussy or intricate, but I think you can see that a simple scheme would work fine.

I guess formal for me means symmetric. I don't need that. Simple is good too.

People are using the word "formal" because you have a symmetrical, i.e.,formal, looking house. That doesn't mean everything has to be perfectly symmetrical, but there should be some symmetrical elements in the new landscaping.

Here are some more pictures

. Thanks for all the comments.

Surge, the better way to go with an arrangement is to be honest up front with the landscape architect, set a budget and tell them you want plans, the beds prepared and some of foundation plantings installed, no perennials or annuals. You would like a Phase I and a Phase II plan. A landscaper can do the bed preparation, install edging and foundation plants along with mulch in a way that looks professional because its done all at once. Next, tell them that you want to work on the plans now with installation in the fall when they are less busy. That’s a better time to plant in any event. I’m a Master Gardener and the bed preparation if done correctly is a major undertaking. I oversee the work to make sure its done correctly, but in a large yard like yours you are talking about four men working 4-5 days to do it correctly - and that’s just the installation - not the tear out. And what is your level of experience performing bed preparation and plantings? If none, then you are being penny wise and dollar foolish because plants are expensive. If you plant them there will be NO GUARANTEE versus if the landscaper plants them they generally offer a YEAR GUARANTEE. Landscaping is 30-40% of the value of your entire home and if done properly will add to its value versus done poorly and it kills your equity. Just saying.

The house is very tall, and fairly narrow for its height. The landscaping should try to minimize that, and currently doesn't. A tree on the left side that will grow taller than the house will help, as will making the foundation beds deeper. That part is going to be a bit tricky since the plants should stay below window height. I'd leave the yews next to the house, pull the ones farther out and replace with something flowering.

Exactly what plants will depend on exactly where you are, and which way the house faces. The amount of soil preparation you are talking about probably isn't necessary. Why people are convinced they have to do something special for plants to grow in a land of 60 ft weeds is beyond me.

Just be aware that a symmetrical garden plan doesn’t mean a tight, rigid, tricky garden. It means that the structure is well-planned. Then....nature will prevail! Plants will grow. You will tend them. But nature tends to lean toward the natural!!! And that is what gardeners love about it. You provide the structure, the order....and watch what happens! Good luck!

"Why people are convinced they have to do something special for plants to grow in a land of 60 ft weeds is beyond me."

Because plants included in a landscaped garden are seldom "60' weeds" and soil quality is one of the most important aspects of growing plants healthy and well. And is typically one of the most overlooked or ignored components of landscaping.

And I would also strongly recommend bringing in a professional designer to help with the layout and plant selection/planting plan. There are many desigers that will do plan-only designs that you can implement as time and budget allows......just keep hunting ;-)

So how would you recommend the soil be amended for planting in this situation?

I made that bed in the front which I guess my pictures didn't show from earlier today. I have ran a landscaping crew for a few years specializing in hardscape, and agree, getting a bed ready for planting is a lot of work. I will probably hire laborers that will work beside me. For the bed I did (Japanese Maple) I got enriched soil which was mixed with mushroom manure. It's hard to compact like a bed should be, but has nutrients that re good for most shrubs. Also I plan on running a drip irrigation system in our beds once complete, at least for the first couple years until the plant mature.

Any idea why my pics wouldn't upload? The first one did without issue.

"So how would you recommend the soil be amended for planting in this situation?"

Until I could see and evaluate the soil, I couldn't possibly comment. Every soil in every garden is different and how it has been treated is very dfferent as well. And this last issue is often more important than the first.

Yes, gardengal soil is very important. My soil is very different from front to backyard. I believe 40+ years ago when my house was built they dug out the soil & dumped it in the backyard. So my front yard has soil that grows volunteer dogwoods, the backyard cannot sustain a Mimosa tree. Surge, you can have your soil tested at your local extension center. I add compost, manaure, peat, sand and use pecan hulls as mulch - because in the back yard it is heavy clay - it makes Oklahoma soil look like a dream. In the summer it turns to concrete. The front yard needs only compost and pecan hulls. It’s a dream soil which is fluffy and full of earthworms.

For pictures to upload properly, you have to wait until they are no longer grayed out before you hit the submit button.

Landscape architects may may not be needed for this project unless you are going to be coming some more major hardscaping.

Go go to your best local nurseries and ask around for good garden designers who will help create a master plan that can be implemented over time on your own. That is not an unusual request, so keep looking. Those people are out there.

"I guess formal for me means symmetric. I don't need that." When you rebuild the porch, will you be making it asymmetrical in order to sync with your likes? Will you be changing other features of the house to be asymmetrical ... like having one style of window on the left and a different style on the right? If you're going to impose personal likes on a design project, in spite of what exists calling for the contrary, it sounds like you don't need a designer at all! Just plant everything differently on the left than it is on the right and you're good to go.

I'm bumping my old thread to thank everyone that pitched in. It helped us form an opinion on what we wanted. We executed stage 1 I would call it :)

I wanted to get some plants in the ground to mature but yet be able to build off of it in the future. This week we will plant some Phlox? on both sides where we left space open along the front of each bed. We will do a small evergreen on both ends of the house like suggested in one of the drawings above. I hope to do that in the fall.

Right now both sides mirror each other. Each side has 3 hydrangeas anchoring the back of the house. They've really taken a liking to the area and have shown good growth. In front we have 3 bushes, the name escapes me Holly?, and two smaller evergreens in the front. Then some grasses arranged. I really wanted to hide the terrible shape of our front porch, so I transplanted mature plants from another part of the yard. It doesn't feel like they have taken yet.

As most here pointed out, the walkway is hurting the curb appeal. We got quotes for doing a straight six-foot wide walkway and it's not something I can budget for right now. And I'm not sure that I can do a pour that big, so it may have to wait. Does anyone have an innovative solution?

With the local parks closing and having two young children, I feel like my energy is better spent in the back yard now. I thought it was really good insight I received here for the front beds, it made us more sure of our decisions. I'm going to start a thread about my backyard now, and hope to get similar input!

Thanks again and in the future I'll update this thread when we do major stuff in the front.

I thought about that, but how long would the brick hold up? Some neighbors have brick walkways, but here in Pennsylvania they don't hold up well. Anyone with a brick porch like mine has similar issues.

Have you done a walkway in the way you described it? I guess what is different about your suggestion is that you are suggesting that I don't mortar the bricks.

Thank you for the house compliment. We really feel lucky to live here and love working on it.