New Back Patio design questions

4 years ago

I am presently installing a new back patio. It will be dimensional grey pavers. (Photos below) I am in the Pacific Northwest, zone 8b.

I have several design questions.

1. Should I make the bed between the firepit area and the house square or in the shape of the house bump out as in the last photo?

2.In the beds between the house and the patio would you place decorative rock with plants in pots or plant the plants right in the ground. The bed on the right side of the stairs will be about 4 feet front to back to get a sense of the dimensions.

3.While I like the overall design, I'm wondering if I should have some evergreen shrubs in the beds to the left and right of the house bump out. Right now, small hydrangeas and common bleeding heart are in the design. Any ideas are welcome!

4. Any additional plant design ideas are more than welcome.

Thank you!

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Comments (2)

fnmroberts
4 years ago
last modified: 4 years ago
https://youtu.be/yh0ZL-PwsMQ

We reside in the upper midwest. Our landscape plan was by a local nursery and now more than 20 years old. Generally schematics show projected 3-5 years for size so the video will provide a mature look.

Appears you have a professional design. Difficult for a novice to envision from only a layout but if you have confidence in the landscape designer I would follow it.

Do a layout of the features using landscape paint on the lawn.

Plan for a phased approach th help your decision regarding plantings.

Personally I would not mirror the house shape onto the patio. Make it stand alone functional. Regarding your question on alternative plants, I suggest speaking with the landscaper. He or she can advise best suited ones for your climate/soil type/sun exposure. Certainly they will wish to incorporate favorites of yours.
l pinkmountain
4 years ago
I don't think you have to mirror the bump out necessarily. The difference is slight.

I'm not a fan of plants right up against the house. In my experience, they hold moisture and lots of bugs and critters hide amongst them and that is not great for the house walls or foundation. Plus the bugs can get inside easier. If it was more than 4 ft I would say OK. I have rocks to about three feet against my house. The original plan had shrubs and plants planted amongst the rocks, but the debris is tough to deal with. I have gradually torn out the shrubs and for the area near the house I do planters. I could see maybe doing two feet of rocks and two feet of dirt for plants, splitting the difference. Just something not too messy with plant debris. Hosta work out real well here for that kind of application. Also salvias and heuchera. None of those plants are really messy. You don't want anything that gives off a lot of fine debris . . . ask me how I know . . . our arborvitae sheds little scales and is impossible to get out of rock crevices.

Evergreen or no is just up to you. I love evergreens. YMMV.
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