What would you grow on this full-sun East face?

18 years ago

I need your help to think of ideas with what to do with the following area of my house.

This is a drawing I did of the east face of my house and the flat parcel of land directly below it. My house is light gray siding with matching light gray paint over the cinderblock and brick chimney. My screen porch is at the rear (northeast corner) and there is a 10' wide deck running the length of this side of the house. There is a small flight of stairs down to a level area. The entrance to the deck is at the front of the house (southeast) and a gravel drive runs along the flat parcel at the level of the deck. We're going to dig out the eroding embankment there and put in a small retaining wall. There is lattice covering the underneath of the deck. There is a stump of a dogwood tree next to the stairs, on the right as you look at the house. The dark object on the left side of the stairs is my compost/worm bin (it can't decide which it is.)

This is a full sun location in the summer until nearly 3pm, when the sun finally gets far enough past the house to put the areas closest to the house in some shade. The area further from the house continues to be in full sun until sunset.

I used to have my vegetable garden in the flat parcel area but this year my neighbor informed me I was "over the line" by three feet (I didn't know this, I knew I was close, though - I was after the full sun!) and so the growing area is now too small for my farm - I have moved the farm to the full-sun embankment behind the house.

So I need ideas for sprucing up the actual face of the house with plants of some sort. And I need ideas for the flat parcel below the deck! What would you plant?

Get creative gang! Thanks!

-Regina

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Comments (3)

rizzir
Original Author
18 years ago
I forgot to mention that the straight line to the north (right side of picture) when looking at the aerial view of the flat parcel delineates a grade downward to the north - there is a slope there that I was considering controlling with a retaining wall. Beyond that to the north is a flat strip of yard about 8 feet wide that runs along the back of the house. Beyond that is another dropoff.

Where the line meets the northeast corner of the deck is quite a steep dropoff, probably 4 feet high, while the northeast-most corner of the flat parcel is an extremely shallow grade downward to the north.

About 4 feet out from the deck would be a natural location for steps, but I leave that up to you.
DirtDiggingLady
18 years ago
Regina,

I think some hydrangeas would be really pretty up against your deck. I have one on the north side of my house that that get sun in the morning and doesn't get much sun during the later part of the day and it seems to be growing like a weed.

I also have some rhododendrons and azaleas on the east side that are doing very well and they are getting just morning sun until about 2 or 3, but this is the first year I've had them. We'll see how the morning summer sun here affects them later on.

What about some lavender right next to the slope? Would they get enough sun there or does your house shade that area too much in the afternoon as well? I know that lavender likes to be well-drained and a slope should do that (one way or the other it could be arranged much easier on a slope).

Katie
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Have an enjoyable safe trip. Here is one more idea that you could do that may increase the odds of keeping your new flowers alive under intense sun exposure - acclimate your newly purchased flowers for a week or two in the original nursery containers and at he same spot as the hanging planters under like growing conditions before repotting or transplanting them. Transplants (and seedlings) are vulnerable and very sensitive to external changes in light/wind/heat/water even just with a foot of difference in relocation and without direct sun exposure in my experience. When I start to see some wilting (due to more loss of moisture on top by the leaves than is taken in by the roots) in new transplants and always in shade first, I sometimes have to partially protect the top wilting portions of large newly transplanted plants in light-weight small clear plastic boxes or enclose smaller transplants entirely in glass jars in the new shady location for a week. Moving and gardening in steps help the flowers avoid and slow some transplant shock and moisture loss even when they do not have the scortching sunlight to contend with.
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On your list and in my east facing against the house I have Verbascum, Oriental Poppies, an unknown pink Monarda as well as Monarda Jacob Cline, Sweet Williams, and the Forget me Nots. It's amazing what you can put in an area which receives sun until noon. I also have Aconitum, Phlox Paniculata, Eupatorium, Echinacea, Clematis, Daylilies, Columbines, etc. The Phlox, Echs, and Joe Pye were all placed there with the anticipation that they would be moved to a sunnier location later but they did so well and bloomed as if they were in full sun. I think the reason is that they do get full sun until noonish and then good light the rest of the day since they are not shaded by trees or anything else. A lot depends on what is going on around and on top of the fence so if you want to plant something there, do try. :O)
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Anything in the mint or basil family... both families are full of heavy re-seeding perrenials that will come back year after year. Mints: List Basils: List Lemon Balm (in the mint family also) Oregano (there are a few varieties ranging in scent/taste) Sage Lavender Thymes (i suggest regular thyme and 'lemon thyme', latter of which is amazing, but there are many, ex: Caraway Thyme, Italian Oregano Thyme, Orange Balsam Thyme, Lemon Thyme, etc.) Tarragon Anise (great re-seeder, great smell, not many practical uses I've found, good bee attractor!) Shiso --- if you want purple shiso seeds, please let me know, i have five million of them and will spend the postage to send you some, this goes for other GA GW members as well! reseeds profusely! Lemongrass Chives, garlic, scallions PEPPERS! I would also consider peppers, if you're a pepper fan. so many different varieties are available, in all types of heats. i just got turned onto using fresh peppers. there are a lot of things you can do to reduce the heat on peppers that would otherwise be "inedible" to most, such as jalapenos - take out the seeds, saute in a frying pan with oil, then add salt, and you can all but kill the heat. some light-heat/no-heat peppers i would recommend trying: poblano, sweet banana, anaheim, ancho, pimento. some medium-to-higher-heat peppers that are good to give a kick to your food: chipotle, jalapeno, serrano, guajillo I could probably go on and on, but you've only got so many pots! As all of this has been said, consider getting some long, rectangular planters (the 18" x 6" ones) and planting various salad greens. You can find nice hangers for these and easily dedicate a tall skinny section of fence to nothing but salad growing. they make drip trays for them also that will hold water. greens are pretty easy to take care of, especially on an east facing area where they're not bombarded by sun all day long (dries out the soil). consider using a "moisture control" potting mix and lightlight mulching the salad planters once they've gotten an inch or two of shoots showing.
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rizzir
Original Author
18 years ago
Well, thanks to you folks at the ETN Plant Swap, this side of my house has an official theme! It's going to be a Tropical Garden! The dimensions of the garden are 14' x 15'. It gets sun from 9am to 5pm nearest the deck, and 10am to 6pm at the east edge. I've graded the area to be as close to level and flat as possible.

We just tilled 5 inches of decomposed leaves into this bed. Actually, the leaves were so deep we didn't bring up a lot of clay... so it's mostly just finely mulched leaves, sticks and coffee grounds and an occasional hunk of clay at present. I stomped all over it thoroughly to try to compress it, but it's still a little spongy when walked on. Is this an acceptable medium for planting these plants, or should I be adding something?

Here's what I have to put in it:

Varigated Hibiscus (need to dig up?)
Versi-peach Brugmansia (need to dig up?)
White Brugmansia (need to dig up?)
Clerodendrum thomsoniae (Bleeding Heart Vine)
Cestrum nocturnum (Night Blooming Jessamine)
Cannas in many colors and foliage colors!
Buddleja (butterfly bush)
Hibiscus syriacus (Rose of Sharon)
Crocosmia
Touch-me-not
Grasses
Tomatoes
Colocasia esculenta (Taro root)
Angel-wing begonia (B. x superba)
Tamarindus indica (Tamarind) seedling (may not live, but if it does it will be a tree)
Dracaena fragrans (Corn plant) cutting (need to dig up)
Ponytail palm
Yucca
Daylilies
Irises
Kniphofia (Red hot pokers)
Gladiolus
Calladiums (need to dig up?)
Castor bean
Red honeysuckle

I'm also getting:
Musa basjoo sapling (Hardy banana)

Now my question is, design! I'm not sure of the best way to lay all this out.

Do Bananas give much shade? How tall should I expect it to get? If it does provide shade, perhaps it would be good to place near the deck so the deck gets some shade in the hot part of the day? A friend suggested getting a yellow locust for next to the deck, and planting the banana elsewhere. I'm interested in your opinions on this.

I'd like some privacy from the neighbors to the east. What to plant on that border that won't get too tall and block the sun for the other plants? I'm thinking 12 feet maximum. Are Buddlejas and Altheas good for this?

I'd like a nice relaxing area in the middle of the bed, where I can do a little sunbathing without feeling like people can see me. I have lots of cobbles of all sizes, and quite a lot of marble pieces. Would either of these be useful here?

Another thing that would be helpful to know in planting this is heights and space requirements. It's a long list so I'm going to start researching it, but it would be helpful if you know offhand what heights, widths, spacing, and other requirements or restrictions I should know about - I'm so new to tropicals!

What would you grow on this full-sun East face?

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rizzir
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DirtDiggingLady

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What would you grow on this full-sun East face?

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rizzirOriginal Author

DirtDiggingLady

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