Broadleaved evergreen shrubs are some of the most low maintenance of any garden planting choices........and there are lots hardy to a zone 7 and few are very 'tropical' looking. Also to consider are dwarf conifers and then deciduous shrubs......also pretty low maintenance. And filling in blanks/empty spaces with groundcovers will help to keep weeds down.

Some you could look at are abelia, rhododendrons and azaleas, dwarf crape myrtle, boxwood, Ilex species (holly), euonymus, globe arborvitae, dwarf threadleaf cypress, hydrangea paniculata, dwarf lilac, dwarf ninebark, nandina (if not invasive in your area).

I'd pick somethng taller gowing for that blank wall area and then 3 or so other species that look good together and will grow in combination (same planting and care conditions). Plant them in informal groupings of the same plant, not lined up in rows. It's not a big area so don't try to stuff in too many different types of plants - keep it simple.

Make the bed deeper (at least 6' deep) so that the plants aren't right up against the house and move the ones there farther out (or replace them entirely).

Choose plants that are sized so that they won't need pruning. Plant so that at their expected size at 10 years they will still not be against the house - leave about 1' between the expected width and the wall so the building isn't damaged and the plants grow symmetrically.

Put in a buried edging that keeps out the grass, mulch the bed well (3"-4" deep) after planting, and put in a groundcover such as Astilbe chinensis pumila, lady's mantle or pachysandra to reduce light to the mulch and therefore reduce weeds. Plan to spend 10 minutes a week weeding so that no weeds get big enough to seed around.

Consider planting just a few types of plants, and not high maintenance ones like lavender or roses. Have some evergreen shrubs and/or groundcovers and some long-flowering shrubs - for me panicled hydrangeas such as Little Quickfire fit the bill, but I don't know enough about soils and temperatures in TN to have a feel for what would work for you. Shrubs with groundcovers will be far less work than a perennial garden.

Hydrangeas are great and do really well in Tennessee, but you will need some type of irrigation, unless you want to spend a lot of time watering.

Boxwoods are also a good choice. You could also add some bulbs like daffodils and lilies to create the cottage look you like.

Doesn't it get hot in Tenn? Is there room for a tree?

Lots of gardening books, magazines and catalogues have garden plans. For example, Bluestone perennials has a starter garden for full sun. I think White Flower Farms does, too, although their prices are high relative to competition. Don't forget flowering shrubs. Rhodos are often evergreen.

You want some repetition, but some variety in shape, season, color and height.

Here's an example of variety of shape

This one has some repetition of color in those reds

Here you have both height variation and a contrast between the spiky leaves of the Iris and the rounded shrub

It's a scheme of how you might approach this, beginning with a new bed line.

Thank you very much for the great ideas! Yardvaark, suggestions for the tree form shrub? I have a Natchez Crape Myrtle that I like elsewhere in the yard. I wonder if there would be a better choice for winter interest?

thank you!

Begin by googling "large shrubs for [Tennessee, or a similar nearby state or your agricultural zone]. It will lead you to lists of potential candidates for making small "trees." You have to study and evaluate as each plant mentioned is not necessarily a good candidate. Plus, it's the Internet so things may be messed up and need "sorting." Surely, there will be potential large shrubs that will either be evergreen or have some winter interest that appeals to you. An example of one possibility is 'Burford' or 'Dwarf Burford' Holly. Surely there are many others for your locale.

Another thing you can do is post a request for recommendations on the trees or shrubs forums or the general GardenWeb forum for your area.