clean slate front yard critique needed

14 years ago

Hi folks. I'm completely new to landscape design (never planted anything but vegetables). I moved into a new house earlier this year and just had everything torn out of the front yard so we could have a clean slate. I was hoping to do the design myself but I could really use some input from folks who know what they are talking about. I've included a link below to a diagram of the house I made with some landscape design software. Everything is done to scale. The only thing that exists now are the arborvitae on the left side of the house and the lawn. I know the weeping maple will outgrow that spot. I was planning to transplant it to the side yard once it starts getting large. The plants in the picture are as follows:

Rose of Sharon

Himalayan Birch

undecided upright Japanese maple (maybe Fireglow)

undecided weeping Japanese maple

Japanese Holly green lustre

Emerald Gaiety

Russian Sage

dwarf Japanese garden juniper

Japanese painted fern

Brunnera 'Jack Frost'

Blue Phlox

Sedum 'Autumn Joy'

misc annuals

Any comments or criticism would be greatly appreciated before I jump in and start digging.

http://i988.photobucket.com/albums/af5/jeezits/house.jpg

Comments (3)

missingtheobvious
14 years ago
Clickable link: {{gwi:44066}}

Very good-looking plan! I'm sure people will want to know what software you used.

A few questions: What direction does the house face? And what's growing under the birch? Is the wall a retaining wall, or just a decorative wall? What's the scale of the drawing? 2' squares?
Frankie_in_zone_7
14 years ago
I, too, was wondering about directional info and sun patterns--I'm assuming house faces N? Have you considered placement of larger trees for shade/energy costs in a long-term landscape plan, or are you seeking a more decorative landscape limited to smaller items?
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what about a trellis on each side of the windows with some climbing roses. A nice tall bird bath in the middle and maybe a mailbox in the corner next to the door...i have one of these for all my small garden tools. Having something that climbs up the mailbox but not another rose but definately something flowery and showy. Then fill in with a few greeneries (hosta, and things things like that) and annuals and perennials with lots of color. I think color is the big thing. If the shrubs could go you could extend the flower bed on around and just make the color flow nicely, at which point i would move the mailbox from the corner to the other corner where the brick and siding meet. You could also place a nice shepherds hook with a cute birdhouse in the front bed or anywhere for that matter. Very cute house if i may add...and you can grow a ton of houseplants with all those windows there...is that a heated area?
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Here is a small contribution toward your needs. A tree, a shrub, some low groundcover among the rocks, and annual color by the door. (Not sure how you intend to put gravel on right side of house.)
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Hi KS. I saw some photos you posted in another thread, but now I can't find them. I saw a 2 story white house with wood siding and a 2nd story deck, lot sloping toward the back. It appeared to be mostly grass and dirt in the back, and was that a driveway going down to the small shed at the property line? Then a nice green wooded area behind you, lots of tall, dense trees. I can imagine a graded patio off the back of the house bordered by a low stone retaining wall, with steps down to a grass terrace that can serve as a driveable surface for the rare instances you need to drive down to the shed. Then a third lower terrace, densely planted with medium-height mounding shrubs that will flower seasonally, maybe even a small water feature. The patio will have to be fairly wide and deep to contain a fire feature in a safe location. Consider the direction of prevailing winds, and how you will sit around the fire -- permanent bench seating? A collection of comfortable outdoor seating? Be sure the patio is large enough to allow for all that. Plan your lighting at the same time -- uplights built into the patio floor? Overhead strings of lights? Lanterns on low posts on either side of the steps? A lot will depend on your budget; terraces and stone retaining walls will be expensive, but will add value to your home and your family will enjoy them for many years to come.
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Don't think of this as a plan, but as an unfinished, tweakable scheme that could be a starting point for figuring out a layout. At the beginning, don't focus on planting, but on hardscape and layout geometry. The planting will adjust to it. There's still a good bit of the back yard that is hidden from us ... the back of house and west side of garage. About running a fence across the neighbor's garage, I presume the goal is to hide as much of the garage as possible. The problem is that you'll only be able to hide part of the wall with a fence that ends up, after weathering, to be probably not as good looking as the wall could be if it had new paint. There might be regulations against doing this because it would prevent your neighbor from accessing his wall for maintenance or inspection purposes. Consider conferring with the neighbor and explain the dilemma. Since he can't see it, he may be completely fine with you painting the wall the color of your choice. I doubt he's given any thought before.
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jeezits
Original Author
14 years ago
Thanks for the replies. The house is in central Massachusetts. It faces West/SW and gets a lot of sun. I was hoping to put painted ferns under the birch. Do you think the birch will provide enough shade given how much sun hits the yard?

There are some very large pine trees on the right side of the yard that I didn't show. They are on the property line of the neighbor's yard. I hadn't really thought much about larger trees out front as I don't want to hide the house. I just had a 10' tall wall of arborvitae pulled out from the street line against the wall that completely blocked the street view of the house. Do you have some suggestions as to where you think a larger tree or two might go well?

Also, do you know if the Japanese holly in front of the house will be a manageable foundation plant? The tag on the nursery says they mature at 4'x4' but I've seen conflicting info online that lists them growing much larger.

You are correct about the squares, they are 2'. Also, the wall is just decorative. It is plain concrete at the moment and pretty ugly. It was hidden by the bushes I just pulled out. My plan is to cover it in stone veneer instead of spending the money to have it removed.

Also, the software I used is called realtime landscaping plus 5. It was pretty easy to use but cost me $80. I figured I would get more enjoyment out of the $80 buying the software and trying to design myself instead of paying someone to do the design for me. So far the software has been easy to use and I'm happy with the purchase.

I was just hoping some folks with more experience could look it over and let me know if I'm doing anything crazy. This is my first gardening experience and I'm having a good time so far but want to make sure I'm on the right track.

clean slate front yard critique needed

Comments (3)

missingtheobvious

Frankie_in_zone_7

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clean slate front yard critique needed

Comments (3)

missingtheobvious

Frankie_in_zone_7

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