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frankrebecca28

Need help on design

last month

I need help with a design…

there are hostas planted on the lowest tier above that is a hodge podge of day lilies, hostas, lavender, wormwood, black eyed susan-lots of different stuff. need a clean and higher end design plan.

Comments (25)

  • last month

    Post a picture.

  • last month

    Plants look best with others that would naturally grow in the same condition so no hostas next to lavender IMHO.

  • last month

    Need as many photos as necessary to clearly illustrate the situation as well as a geographic location.

  • last month


    Sorry, thought that i had posted photos, will take some more and repost when i am home. here is one from July 2023 to give you an idea . it just feels a little messy to me and could use more design. i am zone 4

  • last month

    It makes for a formal look.

    It also makes for a very boring look. Not great garden design advice. One, we have no idea what the actual planting situation looks like and two, that layout is more appropriate to an annual bedding planting , not a residential landscape.

    If only herbaceous perennials are planted, what will this look like during the long, cold winter months of the year? Why no permanent woody based plants to provide structure? Why nothing evergreen?

    btw, the comment about the hostas and lavender is totally valid.

  • last month

    That is the advice i am looking for…what should i plant? i need a design for this slope. i can rip out everything, i just don’t know where to begin, or what would look good. my original plan was to gain as many perrenial plants as i could get my hands on. it seems as though i have created a monster, and now need some order. i have some junipers, mugo pine, spirea, red twig dogwood, other various shrubs if that would be of use.

  • last month

    I agree about the comment on lavender and hostas, but you can also see in the picture, they both seem to grow fine here.

  • last month

    Personally I have nothing against hotch potches or hostas with lavender. But I do like repetition and coordination. However you have a bigger problem than that. It looks as if you have variegated ground elder there. This will be an ongoing nuisance whatever you plant. It wouldn't be too bad if you were doing a shrubbery with a sharply defined edge, but in a perennial bed it's going to be a nightmare.

  • last month
    last modified: last month

    i have some junipers, mugo pine, spirea, red twig dogwood, other various shrubs if that would be of use.

    Yes!! But plant in multiples, not onesie-twosies. And in loose clusters, not in lines. Fill in with your perennials but limit the number of different species and again, plant in loose clumps.

    they both seem to grow fine here

    They may well be growing okay but they don't look "right" together. Part of what provides a cohesive garden design is selecting plants that look good together........or at least like they want the same growing conditions.

  • PRO
    last month
    last modified: last month

    Love it as is. Add some LED ground lights here and there and a bird bath, or some piece of sculpture.



  • last month

    I’m with @WestCoast Hopeful - i like that it looks natural and welcoming, wish my problem spots looked like that 😅

  • last month

    The ground elder does need addressing

  • last month

    Mojavemaria is right about hostas next to lavender. Hostas love wet areas and lavender prefers dry. That said, I think your hill looks great. Can't spot the lavender though.

  • last month

    Is the ”ground elder” the same as snow on the mountain? thats what i call it. i admit that was a mistake to plant, my mother-in-law warned me about it. it is just such a large area to plant, i thought a ground cover might have been a good idea. any great ideas on how to get rid of it?

  • last month
    last modified: last month

    Ground elder is aka Bishop Weed, Aegopodium podagraria. No great ideas just hard work digging out every piece of root. It has the potential to cover the entire garden.

    The lavender actually looks very happy among the day lilies, maybe because it's near the top of the bank and away from the shade of the conifer.

    Current pix would be useful.

  • last month
    last modified: last month

    Ground Elder, Snow on the mountain, Bishop’s Weed - are the same, I believe. Not so easy to remove. On the upside, it’s potentially edible- according to this:

    https://foragerchef.com/foraging-ground-elder-snow-on-the-mountain/

  • last month

    Yes. It's only present here because it is believed that the Romans brought it in as a vegetable and medicinal plant.

  • last month

    Snow on the mountain as I know the common name is not bishops weed. Problem with common names. Ground elder is a new one to me.

  • last month

    Exactly. To me S on the M is Cerastium tomentosum but there are others. That's why I gave the botanical name, although some people are resistant to what they consider showing off. It's the only way to be clear.

  • last month

    InterInteresting! i did not know the history of ground elder, or that it was edible! i am excited to give it a try!

  • last month


    Here is a current picture. it is very dreary since it is early in the season and things have barely began to sprout. i added the steps last year to try to create smaller sections and give it some kind of order. the lower tier was added as well which is all hostas, i thought that would give it some kind of border?

  • last month


    It is a very large space next to the house. it is hard to tell from the picture, but it is quite a slope that makes it difficult to work with as well.

  • last month

    I think adding dome height and texture woukd be intersting. snapndrsgon, foxglove, russian sage if you prefer airy, etc

  • last month

    It would be less dreary in winter if you added some evergreen material. I don't know zone 4 winters but I assume there are some hardy conifers. You mentioned juniper and. Mugo pine. Would Gaultheria work? Your dogwoods, while not evergreen, would provide winter colour if you coppice them regularly.