Gotta know where you live to help you. What zone?

Also, keep in mind that if you're looking for winter interest there are many deciduous shrubs that have much to offer. Twig color, berries, dried flowerheads...all can have a very pleasing effect when combined with evergreens. And not all evergreens are conifers, either. Azaleas/rhodies, magnolias, euonymus, boxwood, holly all keep their leaves in the winter. Plus many more lesser known shrubs that might work in your zone.

That being said, when considering plantings for around a deck, consider both the insects they draw and the debris the plant leaves. You don't want bees during your dinner. And you don't want plants that will drop sticky fruit, large petals, or other debris.

This particular area is quite hot during the summertime. You mentioned magnolia and as a matter of fact, we just planted a 'Ricki' magnolia just in front of the rose bed and to the left of the perennial bed. The perennial bed is approximately 10 feet in front of and adjacent to the area for which is am looking for suggestions.

Would love to incorporate texture, variegation in foliage if at all possible, and would be amenable to deciduous also I believe after reading your message. Would it be too hot for the azaleas here? I also like the low growing boxwood but do not know which variety it is. Or is that too formal a look.

I'd add aroma to the list of things to consider, and boxwood has the annoying habit of occasionally smelling like cat pee.

Most conifers like sun, though some Chamaecyparis varieties (some gold ones) will scorch. But you could do a lovely combination of golds (chameacyparis), blues (spruce), and greens (pine, chamaecyparis, abies...), even variegated (and orange, if you include Microbiota which turns orange in winter - there are many other winter shades too).

I don't know if it is precisely the best conifer buying time, but it sounds like a visit to a good nursery might help. Line up/group conifers and other plants you like there in their pots before choosing, and ask whether the plants you like are suitable for the conditions.

I would have never known that boxwood smelled like pee, amazing. Thanks for that advice.

However, can the conifers be used successfully with a water feature (not necessarily a pond) but something smaller like a fountain or large urn with water trickling over it. It is not a large area so would need suggestions for names of small evergreens and ones which do not grow wide. Aroma is certainly a major factor in location of plants near a deck and can be appreciated with seating close to any plants. Are you thinking in terms of perennials or flowering shrubs? or conifers. Thanks for your help.

Vicki

I have a similar situation. I planted dwarf mugo pine, dwarf hemlock, and robusta juniper. The juniper is iffy, size-wise in the long run, but I couldn't resist. Other options to consider, some of the smaller yews (watch out, because the common ones get huge) and dwarf japanes white pine, which I think is a gorgeous tree. You could also plant one of those weeping evergreens and have it crawl along the border. I don't particularly care for that look but I have seen it around a few places.

You have to go to a good nursery which has good information about the size of their plants. There are lots of dwarf evergreens, but you have to really look to find them, try finding a nursery that specializes in them. I'm lucky to have two just up the road from me. What you want to watch out for is the fact that some evergreens just get huge fast. Cultivar information is vital.

As it happens I am trying to landscape around a fountain and just asked on the conifers forum whether any conifers would love/hate that environment. I think it depends a bit on how much water is likely to be coming out of the fountain - ours, unfortunately, catches rainwater and will overflow into the flowerbed. The answer I got wasn't encouraging, and no one disagreed with the poster, so I think it is a bit of a risk. The conifers that like it damp are probably a better bet, although it depends a bit on how good your drainage is. I'm just studying the options in Adrian Bloom's book Gardening with Conifers. On the other hand, there are no guarantees in gardening anyway...