bettsyy, the bumps on the stems may be roots trying to form where the stem got wet, tomatoes will try to put out roots along the stem even above ground if the stem is wet enough... do you water the ground below the plant or the actual leaves? Also, if the yellow leaves are relatively spot-free, and they are the lowest leaves, they could just be dying off due to age and lack of sunlight down low on the plant... or they can be yellowing from overwatering. How is the soil you planted in and how have you been watering and have you had much rain?

Hillary, I am not a professional so I try to think of things that could be done by a homeowner on their own without spending a lot of money. If the grids in your doors cannot be painted then I would paint the door white. I would trim the tree so that the trunk is viable. Evaluate plants to determine if they should be relocated. It is not attractive to cover the lower windows. Plant something attractive and flowering near the door. Grow grass in the small bed at the end of the landing. The entrance will have a cleaner look with that bed gone. Any plants you choose for the center of the foundation should say low.

Is the wall color as gold as it appears in the photos? I can't tell how much is actual color, how much is lighting, and how much is photography, but the whole room seems very yellow/gold. It looks like there is a covered porch or patio outside that limits the natural light, so I would be looking to increase the amount of artificial light, and probably increase the color temperature of the lamps as well (up to 4000 K). Does your sister just want a change or is she specifically looking at what's currently "in" and thinking, "I want that"? If the latter, I'd probably be looking at paint color (grays may or may not be going out, but I don't think golds a poised to come back in for a while. Maybe a greige, or white, or blue). Changing the light fixture would also be a relatively easy update. A new window shade could add some color and pattern. If she's not as concerned about trends, I might focus more on artwork and the arrangement of the plants. I like the plants, but evenly spacing the pots looks a bit uninspired. Decorators like grouping odd numbers of objects (so 3 or 5 rather than 2 or 4). She could change out some of the pots so that they look more cohesive (this would be a way to introduce a new color if she wants).

I agree w/ tozmo about disliking black and thinking that a creamy color would complement your brick and stone better. Re window boxes, I'm in z5 so they're planted from the end of May until the frost kills them (usually Sep or Oct). One year I decided to fill them with stems of silk mums for autumn, then switch to silk poinsettias right after Thanksgiving. I didn't anticipate the mums being frozen solid in the soil until late April. LOL!!! Fwiw, I now use fresh cut evergreens for my window boxes in the winter and love the look.