I think you need to separate design from plant selection. Make sure your design - layout, hardscape, functional amenities - is what you want. Don't even think about plants at this stage.

Plant selection is a completely separate process and can be done several times over (and for me needs to be) within a satisfactory overall design. Then there is plant maintenance - plants can be fine for a spot even if they need to be staked late season or clipped.

You're also trying to design mostly with ephemeral elements - perennials. Plan in a few more static elements such as evergreens or at least woody plants, even a tree if you have space - as footholds, or focal points, or a backbone.

If you're happy with your design and not unhappy with having only one season of interest, then it's only the August blahs you're looking at. Although you may still need to move/reselect plants for some spots, you could consider reading up on plant care - things like cutting back the late bloomers in May or June to keep them compact. That, and invest in some good plant supports.

Read back a few pages in this forum, or search the forum or the internet for "side yard" and you may find useful ideas and input.

KarinL

Does your path lead anywhere, or does it end at the house corner and cherry tree? How deep/long is the space from the patio to the tree? It's a little hard for me to tell from the photo. What I'm wondering is, if the space beside the path is difficult because of its narrowness, could you redesign the space as one deep bed rather than as two narrow beds along a path? Would you then have more flexibility to add height along the fenceline?

I think I understand what you are trying to do.
I suggest you use the fence to train a vine like clematis or honeysuckle or any number of beautiful flowering vines. That will give you the height and flowering visuals you want without the depth.
You already know that you don't have enough width to have two rows of plants.
Then the ground can be used for medium and low flowers.
The echinacea is beautiful but I would move it to the end where the path curves and you have a little more space for it's size.

Karin - Your point about design vs plant selection is well taken. When I started with this unsightly, grassy strip, the only things I knew for certain I wanted was a curving path, a tree and a shrub of some kind. I'm not sure if I have the tree (a columnar cherry) and the shrub (a blue mist bluebeard) in the right places. I was shooting for balancing the vertical structure of the fence with vertical elements along the side of the house, but am not certain
that was the best plan.

I think you're right about adding more static elements. I'm not sure where they would be best added - I assume along the fence. Any ideas you could share about that would be appreciated. The "side yard" strings had lots of good information.

surf_girl - The path goes on past the cherry tree to a small concrete slab (about 4 feet wide and 10 feet long) from which steps go up to a side door tucked back into the corner of the house. When I go from my house to my backyard, it's on this path. The space from the patio to the tree is around 20 feet, with another 3 feet of path past the tree to the small concrete slab at the bottom of the steps.

You may be right about the space along the fence being difficult because it is so narrow. The total width from the house to the fence is about 8 1/2 feet. Around 4 feet of that is on the house side of the path, where I have the bluebeard and the cherry tree and 24-30" of that width is along the fence. When I put in the path I realized this might be a problem, but I didn't want to put the path in the middle...and at the point I didn't want to put it along either the house or the fence. At this point, I'm willing to consider all options!

naples - I really like the idea of putting flowering vines along the fence and moving the coneflowers to the area where the path turns so that they'll have more space.

After reading everyone's input, and the side yard strings...I may move the path closer to the house. I really love walking along the path with something growing along both sides...particularly plants like the hyssop which smell so nice when you brush up against them!

Thank you all!

Mags

It is really tough to make specific suggestions as only you know what is really important to you. For example, you might like to brush against the plants, as you say, while I might make the path itself wider, more defined, and more of a feature. Also, only you know how much work you want to do - I love rocks, and might suggest using them to make some raised areas if you can, but you're the one that's got to haul them in there! But I will say that dwarf or narrow conifers might offer some good structure. Not something formal or dull like the usual landscaping stuff, but more interesting ones... you can get books that provide an overview, or maybe see what specialist conifer nurseries show on line (search Pinus parviflora Brevifolia for an idea of what I mean, that's one I really like). The conifers forum has some interesting older threads with photos. There are actually also rhodos for sun... but these are plant groups that I can get carried away on, which doesn't reflect you and could cost you ...and I'm sure you won't thank me if I mention Japanese maples! Having an arching one as an upper story plant in one of the wider spots might pull things together visually.

It's almost impossible to suggest much about trees or taller things without seeing pictures above ground level, but again I think it is best anyway for others to give you principles that you apply as best suits you. A tree should be put where it has airspace to develop and where you would like the shade - on the house, or for the ground. I would probably want it to shade a bit of the planting area so I could use some bigger-leaved plants, which calm things down visually sometimes. Even without that, the more sun-tolerant hostas such as plantaginea, Guacamole, and the like might provide some nice foliage variety.

KarinL