Bright bush or shrub for under our northeast-facing front windows?
robin44444
8 years ago
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Deb
8 years agorobin44444
8 years agoRelated Discussions
looking for a shrub with bright red flowers
Comments (28)Aztreelvr mentioned it above, but I want to reiterate that the Coral Fountain (Russelia equisetiformis) would work perfectly for you from what I can tell of your desires. It is perennial, and is very hardy. It doesn't take much water, and it is only a bush size. Mine is only 3 years old, and it blooms year round, throwing up pretty red flowers all over the bush (although more in the spring & summer)- the hummers love it! The only down side is that it spreads rather easily...branches can take root when they touch the ground. But, it's not that big of a chore to pull any seedlings that have started every couple of months (I give them to friends, and they have them in their gardens now!). That's my suggestion! Good luck! Tristan...See MoreFor those of us with front facing garage doors: can we accent them?
Comments (77)Thanks. meanom I did start a new thread on adding some whites to speak to the windows. One suggestion was to paint white casing around garage (currently that is grey). Since so many helped on this thread with the difficult garage door decision, I wanted to make sure I wasn't messing with the garage door if we add some white. Here is the long shot. Feel free to comment on the other thread or here. Please tell me if you like J or this new J with white version: J with white casing: Here is the link to the repeating white on the exterior thread, for those that can stomach one more of my exterior design elements. If not, thanks for all the amazing help on my garage door decision. You guys are the best! Carol [Thread: Repeating white on the exterior to speak to windows [(https://www.houzz.com/discussions/repeating-white-on-the-exterior-to-speak-to-white-windows-dsvw-vd~3185395)...See MoreAppropriate shrub(s) for in front of a deck?
Comments (12)Looking at the current shrub, it might be a low-growing Spiraea or perhaps one of the smaller Deutzias. I do notice what appears to be ivy growing under it, and I think that may be a problem plant in some areas of zone 7, so you might want to look up your state department of natural resources to see if it perhaps should be removed. I would decide on one spot where you have a shrub or perennial that can be cut back hard if needed and still recover if for some reason you need access under the deck. Put that panel on with hinges so it can swing up and provide access if necessary. You also probably want to put hardware cloth (wire mesh) on the back side of the lattice to keep out small animals. Currently the shrub on the left is sort of marooned out there. I might plan on tuning that whole area behind it into a garden area so that the deck will have the appearance of being set down in a garden that goes across the entire front of the house, with at least one plant that is a bit taller on the left side, but not tall enough to block the window. I wouldn't try to make it symmetrical, since the house isn't symmetrical, but I would repeat at least some of the plants on both sides. If you can give up a bit more space in the yard, planting a staggered row where the plants alternate forward and back will allow them to overlap a bit visually and may help make the planting look more dense. Be sure to leave enough room for the plants to grow to their ultimate size, even if they look really sparse initially. I would plan on using some mix of broadleafed evergreens or needled evergreens along with deciduous plants to give some color in the winter. In my area those would be something like rhododendrons or mountain laurels, but there are many more options in your area, so hopefully you will get good suggestions from others who have experience in zone 7, though you may find some rhododendrons that would work well for your size range. You will also want to vary the varieties since the sun conditions vary and so if you plant all one type, they won't grow evenly. I don't have any experience with plants in your zone, but will suggest a few in your size range that you will need to research to see how they will do in your area. You can use plants up to 5' or so without blocking your view, and varying the height will add interest. You will also want to grow a variety of plants since the sun conditions vary and so if you plant all one type, they won't grow evenly. Physocarpus/ninebark 'Tiny Wine' is densely twiggy, deciduous with dark reddish leaves and small clusters of pale pink flowers followed by darker pink seed capsules that stays shorter that 5' IME. There are a range of Hydrangea paniculata types that vary between 3 and 5 feet that would be good in part sun in your area. I leave the dried flower heads on in winter for added interest and screening, and cut them off in early spring before the new leaves appear. If your area isn't too dry, check out some of the shorter types of winterberry holly, Ilex verticillata. It is deciduous, but will have bright red berries clustering along the stems from early fall until the birds eat them. You will need a male (though it need not be in the same garden bed) along with the female to get berries. Check out Leucathoe for the shadiest areas. It's a broadleafed evergreen that likes shade. It has creamy spring flowers, and some have wildly colored leaves. If you want to look up Rhodondron varieties for your conditions, here's a search engine from the Am. Rhodo. Soc that lets you use multiple parameters. And a similar one for azaleas, which can be either evergreen or deciduous. For Leucathoe, Rhododendrons, and azaleas you need to have acid soil, but since we don't know where you are geographically, I can't make an educated guess as to your soil pH or soil type. If you want to add your zone and general geographic location to your profile, it will show up next to your name in all your posts. Here's how: Go to Your Houzz in upper right of every page, click Edit Profile, and on the left side click advanced settings. Well down the advanced settings page is a blank labeled Climate Zone for Garden Forums along with a link to find your zone. If you add info on your state or the nearest large city you will get even better information since zone only relates to average coldest winter temperatures. Zone 7 WA is different from z7 VA is different from z7 OK. Then return to the top of the page and click Done Editing....See MoreHow tall do we trim bushes in front of these windows?
Comments (26)I pinkmountain Yes, the shade in this part of our yard is a challenge to me. The overgrown shrubs here leaned away from the house, toward the sun. Meanwhile, this whole little miniature courtyard which is to the left as one approaches the front door, is heavily shaded much of the day. At different times of the day/year, there will be full sun on the slate pavers and on a little mound where some flowers and some kind of annuals grow. There is a blood orange behind that, which *might* get good tasting fruit if we learn to feed it properly. Maybe it doesn't get enough sun either. The fact is, I am intimidated by this space and its pools of shadow. Ironically I loved the way it looked when we bought the house 18 years ago but didn't know how to keep it up. Here is the main area: This is the area near the front door, in front of the windows, that is usually shaded That becomes a weed fest. There used to be a ground cover, I think it was Baby's Breath, in front of the pittisporum and around the pavers, but we killed it off and I was unsuccessful in planting something else (star creeper or something like that). I am willing to try again, though. Then there are these corners behind trees, corners, and I have no idea what I should do there. Sometimes I put down newspaper and mulch to keep the weeds at bay. Below is the area in front of the orange tree. It has daffodils and annual meadow type flowers come up, but lot of weeds too. And there is that dark corner behind the orange.... should I do something with that or just mulch it? This whole little area has a bench for viewing the garden that faces the house, and is bordered by a fence in front of our front lawn area. There is a huge maple and a Chinese Pistache in the front yard, and those trees shade this little garden area from the west. I have garden plans from a professional Japanese gardener the former home owners left for us, but often I wonder if he really was a pro or just pretending, because some of the ideas on there make no sense to me. Oh and there is a gigantic prolific persimmon tree in this garden too! The fruit is good....See MoreDeb
8 years agoSkybird - z5, Denver, Colorado
8 years agopopmama (Colorado, USDA z5)
8 years agorobin44444
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8 years agoZachS. z5 Platteville, Colorado
8 years agorobin44444
8 years agoZachS. z5 Platteville, Colorado
8 years agolast modified: 8 years agorobin44444
8 years agoZachS. z5 Platteville, Colorado
8 years agoaloha2009
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8 years agoZachS. z5 Platteville, Colorado
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8 years ago
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popmama (Colorado, USDA z5)