Based on my experience, I'd not kill the grass. We have fine sandy loam soil and a steep bank (an old river terrace) which we killed the grass on when I planted shrubs. We mulched well. The soil has definitely slumped some - the shrub roots don't seem to be as deep or as tough and binding as the roots of the grass that was there before. We ended up pounding in stakes to use as soil pins and they seem to have helped. Leaving the grass would have been less work. I think if I were to do it again, I'd heavily mulch the area around the shrub to reduce competition and then hope that mowing with a weed whacker as needed would be enough to deep the grass under control. If you have different soil, you might find you have different results.

Anyone growing Rhus copallina var. latifolia 'Morton'? I have a hillside of white pines with an adjacent 30' x 30' grass opening. I have an assortment of native shrubs on the other side of the opening. The grass on this hillside is now dead thanks to the drought and the hot location. I'm considering replacing the dead sod with 'Prairie Flame' Shining Sumac. I want it to look somewhat naturalized and massed, with the added benefit of not having to mow the hillside. Does 'Prairie Flame' sumac behave itself so that mowing where I want to keep it within bounds will be all that's required. And secondly, will I need to grow something under this plant to prevent erosion and suppress weeds. If so, what would you recommend. Finally, can I plant this species in the fall or should I wait until spring? Just so you know where I'm coming from, I mostly do native plants in my yard, but I'm not opposed to adding a few non-natives to increase design possibilities especially when it comes to lower maintenance and function, so please advise accordingly.

From the choice of plants it looks like you are going for a wildflower hillside look. There will not be a structure to the design since you are not including any bushes between the groups of flowers. If that is the look you want just plant the tall plants to the back and short plants in front.

A monochromatic color scheme in a garden design is very appealing. It has the ability to immediately unify any planting plan and white flowered plants seem to be the most popular choice, likely because they have such great contrast against a green backdrop and they glow at night. I also like the idea of including a white flowered spiraea to bridge the gap until the hydrangeas and roses flower. If the euonymus is considered invasive in your area (as it is in most of the northeast and the midwest), it is just not a responsible gardening practice to plant. And it is equally irresponsible for anyone to advocate that you do so! A Japanese maple could be a very nice substitute......nice suggestion, chloe!