I'm glad you decided to follow up and come here, and you've provided an excellent overview of the landscape parameters. For the info of others, I've linked below to the Decorating thread, where some of Duluth's suggestions for the house itself have also come up. With respect to landscaping, I originally thought the house would need beefier foundation plantings but upon reflection I wonder if there would be some merit to planting along the fence to give the boundary more presence. Chainlink being see-through, it offers no sense of enclosure or coziness. Painting the fence to make it disappear won't help with that. I think planting there would serve the purpose of flattering the house a bit as well; since from the curb, fence-line plantings will appear to supplement, and extend, the foundation plantings. I'm not sure if an outright hedge, or just a series of various plants, it would depend a bit on your taste and what you can get within budget. My only hesitation about recommending this is that it might restrict your ability to see as you exit the driveway, and enter it vis a vis hitting children playing in the yard. For that reason I don't think it needs to be anything tall. Something like a row of low azaleas and/or junipers or smaller boxwoods would provide an enhancement without blocking much driver view. If you go around the perimeter with the plantings, on the side past the corner you could go with some taller deciduous shrubs, which grow fast (think lilac, mock orange) and would enhance privacy in what seems like an otherwise very exposed yard. This need not be beyond your budget, especially if you get plants at a season's end discount or dig for other budget sources. For example, watch craigslist for people who want to give plants away. But even if you have to buy them small, I think they will have some impact. Maybe you could photoshop or sketch the idea and see if it appeals to you "on the ground" - sometimes things look really different in real life than they do on a picture. I agree about a specimen ornamental tree on the right - even a couple on the right and one on the left, not lined up with soldierly precision but somewhat naturally distributed. I'm going to guess this is a sunny yard that could use some shade, and there appears to be room even for trees that will eventually get quite large. Trees always seem to nestle a house into its site. Again, I don't think it matters if you have to plant small, and you may be able to get a good deal as local nurseries try to clear stock before winter. KarinL Here is a link that might be useful: Decorating thread

I'm going to not have to worry about this til spring now. But I have 3 options that I can consider... 1) I bought this a while back. Since it's going to go more or less by the evergreen in the corner next to where the deck starts, it could blend in better than the next option below. I only wish this had some type of a hose winder, pain to try and put it back each time with my length of hose. http://www.amazon.com/Yard-Butler-HCF-3-Standing-Garden/dp/B000CZ2XRQ/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1321707766&sr=8-1 2) Hose box - bulkier than above, beige color, but winds up easily, sit sprayer on top 3) Use neither of the above in that location. Why I didn't think of this before, maybe my mind is going worse than I think it already has. Take the longest hose I have and hook it to the faucet on the right side of the house, which is right behind the lattice that's now up under the deck. I had one put in, right to the left of the door to the crawl space in the pic posted on Nov 11th, bascially to the very left of that picture. I think the hose I have could be used almost all the way around the house if there. Can't remember the length, but it's pretty long. Will measure it and see if it's a possibility that could work. That way, no need to wrap up more than 1 hose and it would be hidden and not be an issue. Here's hoping!!! I can keep a smaller hose on the first option just long enough to do the very front of the house, in which case, it's length would be a breeze to wrap up after use. Thank you all for racking your brains with me! On to the next problem....

I'd consider a pale green. That works with the roof and also with your interior colors. I would not go more brown if that is not working for you already. BTW - I painted our wood siding and love the results. It had been an awful worn brown color and I painted it lavender because I could not stand it for another day. It took a ton of primer and paint to do, but the results were awesome. I know I'll either repaint later or use siding, but for now and for the coming years, it works so well. Our house went from ugly to cottage-y which is what I as trying to accomplish. When choosing the color, I wanted something that was not available as siding because with paint, you can choose exactly the color you want and are not tied to the siding mfr's palette. It would go more mainstream if we ever side it down the line. I suggest using quality paint and primer so it lasts longer before needing to be repainted. Here are the before pix (shown a few years before painting, was more worn looking) and the current look at sunset, with my cell phone, so not accurate as to the color. It is much more subtle a lavender shade where it even appears white until you notice the white trim and bricks.

kcmnc, shrubs grow faster than you assume. Here is a bed I planted in the fall of 2009, but photographed in June 2010, with nothing taller than 3' except a very few of the evergreens that were 4'-5'. Most of the rhododendrons, dogwoods, spicebushes, hydrangeas, etc were under 2', and some were about 6". The cherry trunk visible in the photo below is just out of sight to the right in this photo. And here it is in 2014, with just less than 5 years in the ground. The large pink Hydrangea paniculata 'Pinky Winky' is 8' tall x 12' wide, well over my head (it is the little lopsided green blob on the left in photo 1.) Note how much space between the hydrangea and the dark green arborvitae in photo 1; they are touching in photo 2. Even after gardening for 35+ years, I was floored by how quickly it filled in! It has almost totally hidden the large logs, buildings, and solar panels it was designed to keep out of sight. Many of the perennials I put in initially have disappeared since they were overgrown by the shrubs. Seriously consider looking up your shrub's predicted width and plant accordingly as suggested above by all of us. In two years you will have covered at least half of the foundation as long as they are plants suited for the spot (soil, sun, etc), and the plants will create a distraction that makes it less apparent since your eyes will have something else to focus on of more interest. Are you planning on staying less than 3 years? You also always have the option of parging or painting the foundation to make it fade into the background better. If you leave the shrubs where they are, either you or a future owner will regret it since you/they will be putting in time fighting to keep them away from the building.