What "dead" landscaping am I supposed to be seeing?

Interesting definition of 'dead'.

I apologize for the lack of clarity. The lilac dead center, as well as the taller tree to the left, are both being suffocated by ivy, which you cannot see well from these photos, as well as other issues that our local nursery recommends we address. We would like to redo this front landscaping from the tall left tree to the rod. on the right, and are looking for ideas.

The lilac does look poorly (although far from dead!) so feel free to remove. But the conifer to the left looks fine and will not be easy to replace with something similar so I'd remove all the vines/ivy that may be a problem.

I wouldn't touch the rhody. It looks exactly like it should and they rarely ever require much pruning. You can deadhead the old flower by just snapping them off where they emerge. Don't cut or use pruners to do this as the current season's new leaf growth will surround them and you risk damaging or removing that with any pruners.

As to what other plants to add, impossible to say unless you tell us where you are located geographically.

Lilacs often respond well to hard pruning. If they are overrun with ivy, removing the ivy would be where I'd start.

Some idea to go with evergreens

Hi Dani
I see what you mean especially with that middle bush. I love Celery’s suggestions. Cute house!

I like floral_uk z.8/9 SW UK’s idea to adda curve bed around the tree to connect it with the rest of the yard. I couldn’t find just the right photo to paste onto your photo, so you’ll have to ignore the huge stone steps. Low maintenance grasses could look lovely.

I would start by cutting back the 3 shrubs, as I circled them in blue. Remove all the ivy.

Looks like a beautiful, mature garden to me. Perhaps you could show some landscaping that you admire. If anything is dead, remove it, of course.

I'd like to see the facade facing the street given more importance. Open up the area.

Here is a concept render:

Add bench and stepping stones. The arched wrought iron trellis echoes the white arch at the gate and the birdbath is a nice center focal point. Wrought iron window boxes, foundation flowers.

Or you could add an impressive stone wall along the front as a long planter. Install a paver patio and water feature

These Before and After photos appeared in today’s Latest Stories. They illustrate the concept of including your tree in the planting bed much better than my clunky mock-up.

Midcentury Modern Reborn · More Info

Mid Century Restored · More Info