It's interesting to go through the entire thread and see that you did, in fact, take suggestions offered here. That's nice to see since I suppose many wonder if their advice if falling on deaf ears. I am so glad you dumped the idea of the dwarf alberta spruce. Good decision. Also, I see you nixed the landscaper's suggestion of the cotoneaster. While I am a big fan of cotoneaster in the right location, they would not have suited the front of your house. Another good decision. I think the whole thing looks sweet, actually. I liked that you stayed low on the left side of the house and did some nice repetion of form and plantings. I would like to see a note of height on the right side, but you can maybe add that in next year somehow. I also like the color palette...the soft pinks of the spirea, blues of the hydrangea (or pink depending on your soil) and the white azalea, along with the "traditional" (I assume you mean pink) azalea will work nicely I think. However, although right now the "hot" colors of your impatience are okay since the shrubs are small, next year you will want a softer, cooler palette of annual color. Also, I totally concur with the windowbox idea. That would look very nice, in my opinion. Patty

I would be much less bothered by details not being worked out to perfection than I would if the overall scheme was not worked out so as to function properly. If this house was newly built and had no walk or drive at all, would we be installing a drive whose left edge cut rightward at a pronounced angle (so one would back out of the left side of garage and run off the drive if they weren't being careful.)? You might examine the sidewalk issue by pretending that neither drive or sidewalk exist ... and how would you make them if you were starting from scratch? Working out the geometry of the layout would be the most important thing to get right. Once that is known, you could see how the existing surfaces can conform to the desired outcome. If the surfaces are in good shape, you could probably add on to them with the same material and obtain an integrated appearance. That has more appeal to me than adding bluestone or something else to the mix. Depending on the layout, it might work out so that another material could be added, but I'd want to see the layout first. If the string and stakes represents a new walk, you should think about making it a little wider. Also, why do you wish to have a separate walk when the drive and walk are in close proximity? In general, I think of "modern" as simpler, more direct and well functioning. (Modern people don't like to put up with things that don't work well.)

Thanks for the input so far. Answers to some of your questions: -We have done our best to water. I'm out of town during the week, and DH sometimes is, but when he's home he waters daily. But we had a month plus of >100 temps and the watering only partially offset that. We have had a few rains in the past 2 weeks, and temps are back in the 80s-90s, so things have greened back up a bit and the worst seems to be over. -Those 2 trees are actually quite a ways from the house. There's a circle drive in between them and the front beds/lawn. -The dianthus have been pretty good about coming back each year, though not all of them, so I've replanted to fill in. -Good point about "well cared-for" trumping "filled up and lush." But we've still got sporadic stuff (like 2 surviving petunias) that isn't helping with the overall feel. Last night I went to check out what's available plant-wise since we're getting late in the season and pickings are slimmer. My thoughts: -Transplant dianthus from the back yard to fill in the front beds and make them more of a mass planting like the green stuff Yardvark drew. -Mass mums in the more central area that Yardvark made yellow. -Potentially one or two crape myrtles in the left bed, where the azalea is now and/or in the empty space to the left of the rock. I love crape myrtles. -A tree--or possibly another crape myrtle in the front of the expanded left bed. -There's lots of lantana available. Don't know if there's a good spot for that, or if I should bother this late in the season. Here's a rough draft plan. Feedback welcome. My other concern is what to do to keep the beds looking nice through the winter, since I've mostly got perennials that will die off. Our house is in the top 10% price-wise, and things are moving slow around here, so it wouldn't be a surprise if we're here through then. I'm thinking of getting a couple dwarf alberta spruces to put in urns by the front door. What else can I do to keep the beds from looking completely morose? I personally like the whole "spring back to life from nothing" look, but I am trying to sell a house here. :-)

I presume you are talking about placing the trough bricks adjacent to the house ...? They are are nice for certain applications but you don't really NEED them. If the patio along the house is level, then they will only hold a few drops of water but not run it anywhere. If the patio has pitch away from the house, water that lands next to the house will run away anyway. The trough bricks will only retain a bit of it which will dissipate downward in their seams. If the patio length slopes adjacent to the house the trough bricks would be useful, but not too much since we're under an overhang and there is also pitch away from the wall. Personally, I don't use polymeric sand. While it could be useful in certain applications when carefully applied, I don't create those applications and neither do you have one of them here. Also, p. sand has the potential to create an unattractive film on the surface of otherwise fine pavers. For the most part, I think it is a way to upsell a product. Remember that many decades (centuries) before p. sand arrived on the scene, pavers were installed with satisfactory results. Read some online reviews before you proceed with it.