Whatever you do, don't plant anything that blocks the view of that house. Wow! Classic.

The front yard looks shady. Will grass grow well enough there? Make sure you use the right blend. Maybe ask an arborist about thinning the trees on the right a bit.

The "landscaper" basically gave you a newer version of exactly what you have. Your foundation is really nice, does not need to be hidden. Do you want a lot of foliage in front of your house? If it were me, I would put in low growing perennials adapted for shade with colorful foliage in the beds in front of the foundation, to compliment it. I'd put in some flowering understory trees (dogwood, for just one example), that I could view from the window and would look nice. Then call it a day unless you are in love with gardening. It looks like you already have some type of trees there already so maybe just clear up that area and remove the overgrown shrub. Your style of house would also look great with some planters but you have to keep them watered so YMMV on that. You can make little "islands" under your trees and plant with spring bulbs and colorful ground covers, but really not necessary unless you want something else. Just be sure not to plant a bunch of things with deep roots under those trees, too much competition. Google "planting under trees" for instructions on how to do it right.

Thanks, Tatts. It used to be shady there that’s why they put ivy I think. I am having the big tree to the right thinned out so grass can grow. It’s a huge oak tree.

Landscaping is less a planting fantasy imposed on one's yard, than it is a series of constraints with solutions that are trade-offs. To approach it as the former might might lead to great expense or disappointments down the road. One must accept the reality of what one is working with before deciding on making changes that are unrealistic, inefficient or wasteful.

If you walk around many yards with large trees, you'll begin to notice that often the grass in the shade of the tree is dead & gone, or dying. The idea of removing a successful, existing groundcover and replacing it with something that is almost sure to fail, is not a good idea. I think you should re-approach your expectations. Just because you have a dog doesn't mean your front yard can necessarily grow good grass.

The only way people can get an understanding of your yard is through pictures and the one you've submitted is not good. The lighting and focus is bad and the sidelong angle of view leaves the far side of the yard a mystery. Please retake them, lining the camera up with the center of the house and while standing at the curb. Then, take a panning SET of slightly overlapping photos that show all the way from far left to far right. Merely pivot the camera but do not change locations between pictures. We need to see setting (the neighboring yards/houses) all from that single, central point of view.

I would pull all the ivy off the tree. In my area ivy is a class C noxious weed that is taking over the woodlands. It can work in some areas but not climbing trees.

Oak trees have a fairly shallow root system. Besides shade being an issue for grass growing under them, oaks suck a lot of surface moisture so it's a constant battle to keep grass watered. If the ivy is thriving, I'd leave it.

You have a beautiful home.

I don't care for the proposed landscaping plan. The shaped shrubs don't seem right.

A landscape design with considerably more flair would better suit the house. You have time to consider various ideas: it's autumn in Ohio, wait and see what kind of bulbs pop up in the spring in the foundation bed. In the meantime, you could move the arbor to the back yard or twine some solar fairy lights around it for the winter.

Trees of any kind = shade = poor grass. Local plant nursery can suggest a myriad of plantings that will do well under your particular tree. Why mow when you don't have to? Lovely home.

I don't have any advice, but may I say, what a stunning house! I can't take my eyes off of it.

Ok, here are some more pics of the house. Thanks everyone for the nice comments about the house!

This is of the right of my house if looking from the front. The neighbors told me today that they would pay to re-landscape their driveway area if I came up with a plan for them. The japanese maple is on my property and I was going to keep it. The lower lying plants just past it are the neighbors plants that I can re-landscape.

Lots of things could be done. I would keep it fairly simple. I like the idea of bushes under the windows , but I would have them extend from the porch to the edges of the house. You could put urns at the beginning of the sidewalk or at the porch with some seasonal plantings in them for some nice color. They would need to be watered, but they wouldn't be big. You could add a hedge of small fence if you are interested in privacy or keeping the dogs in. A low cast iron would be fitting with the house. I would put something at the beginning of the sidewalk (if you don't use the urns) that you have to turn around to go to the house. I agree that the arbor doesn't belong where it currently is, especially without a fence or hedge connecting to it.

If you can find grass that will grow well in your yard, go for it. If you can't (which seems more likely according to everyone above), the ivy is nice and very traditional.

What is the plant growing up the arbor? White star jasmine?

"I plan on replacing the ornamental ivy with sod for my dogs." Sorry for being ignorant about this, but not being a dog owner, I don't know if this means that the front yard is slated to be just a big dog bathroom, if the dogs are going to be playing croquet or what ....?? Are dogs the only motivation for making the change from groundcover to turf?

Apple pie, no idea on what is growing on the arbor. The arbor looks old and a little rickety. I will probably get rid of it. I lole the pic @nicholasworth55 posted above but it is a wider arbor. This one barely fits a person through it.

Yardvaark, I think the grass will look nicer and cleaner. The dogs will also benefit and can use it although we do have a service pick it up weekly. Only the large oak to the right of my house is casting shade and we plan on trimming it up.

Which direction does the house face? It looks like shade from the house may be a bigger issue than shade from the tree. If shade is an issue at all.

Pft on the oak needing to be thinned. I have three huge oaks in me front yard and grass grows fine under them. If it was a Norway maple then you would probably have to cut it down. Whether grass will grow or not depends on a lot of factors including orientation, soil, nutrients, moisture, etc. I can't imagine a small yard like that surviving a lot of dog pee, that would be my biggest concern.

Yaardvark's concept is great.

Your "landscaper" should be slapped. That was a mess that would quickly become a crowded mess.

You need shaped, structured evergreen shrubs for this house style. (Glad to see that the blind enemies of the clipped hedge are gone!)

Definitely beef up the hardscape. And I second leaving the groundcover under the tree. The tree is great, and grass won't grow. I think there is less room than Yardvaark shows, though. I think the house would benefit from pulling the walk back from the house some so there is more room for the foundation shrubs. It should be wider, too. I would like a very angular design there.

The arbor should be trashed or moved to the entrance to the side yard.

Thank you all for your feedback. Yaardvark, that is very nice. Just so I make sure I follow. I should widen my brick walkway, carry the brick over to both sides, structure the foundation beds? What plants would you recommend for the bed? I’d like to get a small bush/hedge plant there that doesn’t grow much b/c I have windows on the base of the house that provide nice light to the basement.

Golden globe arborvitae are great at holding a small profile, but there are many other options. Find a reputable nursery to work with. Not the folks who gave you that plan! :)

First, I love your house! Your house needs simple classic LA design because it is the star. I'd do a simple line of shrubs across the front in a straight line. Not sure of what works in your zone but something like boxwood — something evergreen or at least semi-evergreen (but note that true boxwood takes patience as it is slow growing if it does work in your zone!) If you want something more, another ornamental tree or two. As for the ivy if you can make turf work, go for it.

English ivy is beautiful but almost as invasive as bamboo and can choke trees and provide a habitat for snakes. No thanks, let them find another habitat! Anyway, I think it's worth the investment to have a landscape architect draw up a master plan for the whole yard so you can plan for the future. (Note: I am biased on this subject). Whomever you hire, check out their portfolio first and see which yards resonate with you.

English ivy doesn't "choke" out trees. It stays only on heavy wood; never out on skinny limbs & branches or over the top. But if you don't want it to climb trees, simply sever it at the base at the end of every summers growth. Don't waste time pulling it off, as it will fight tooth and nail. Leaves will fall off fairly quickly and stems follow in a few short weeks. Neither does the plant attract snakes any more than any groundcover. And why would one care if snakes might sometimes be where one doesn't usually walk anyway? My entire yard is groundcover or higher. I'm in it all the time and the rare snake I see seems no more than when it was grass. Our snakes are good so I wish they'd come more.

Noviceinvenstor, I think you generally understand the drawing. As far as what shrubs to plant below windows I don't know what works where you are. In Florida it might be Dwarf Raphiolepis, In Altanta it might have been Dward Yaupon Holly. Whatever works there for you, you'd need to have the shrub far enough from the window in order to maintain the basement light. This means moving the cross walks out from the house quite a bit.

The dogs will obliterate the English ivy wherever they go in it, so you definitely want to define a yard area. (btdt)

If you want to keep the basement windows clear, then I wouldn't make the walk farther out but would put a low evergreen groundcover there. Vinca in the Deep South. If vinca is invasive there or if it's too cold, pachysandra. Mondo grass and liriope both work z8+. They look pathetic in <=z7. It does need to be structured, though. A hedge stand-in.

The shrubs would looks best, but you have to respect what makes the inside work, too.

I’m in Southern Ohio if that helps.

The mockup by yardvaark is just stunning, as usual. He has created a STAGE on which to display your home. I learned that concept years ago from professional landscapers who did the same for a local brick institutional-looking building. :)

This works because your house is the Star of the property. Not your yard, grass/ivy, shrubs, arbor, or even flowers. The house. Show it off.

Yardvaark did do an amazing job! My neighbors are giving me carte blanche to change their landscaping on my side of their driveway (the tall grass and blue spruce). Any ideas for that space? This could also enhance my yard’s look since it’s connected to my yard. Photos below.

Your house is gorgeous :)

Before you use that carte blanche from your neighbours think long and hard about how well you know them and their personalities. They might be the most loving, generous, forgiving people in the world but they might not be, and it's easy to say "do whatever you want" *before* you see what the new neighbour chose; and just as easy to say "this is hideous you've destroyed our property value" *after*.

Maybe you could explore the idea of hiring a landscape firm together, to work on both properties in a collaborative plan that all parties approve in advance. That way you'll all have protection.

At the very least, don't touch an inch of their property without getting them to sign off on a design plan.

The white flowering plants in the front foundation bed are Purity Pieris. The paving is Belgium Block (granite cobblestone). The blue shrubs are Baby Blue False Cypress.

Wow! I like this one too. What kind of hardscape walkway are you proposing? And what is the flowering bush that you have near the steps and tree?

@Lindsey, definitely I will get them to sign off. I don’t want to touch it before that.

There's no way you're going to get shrubs to grow well that close to the tree. Tree looks like it might be red oak or pin oak. Something smaller and farther away, maybe. Those blue shrubs in DDD's design look like spruces, they would fast outgrow the spot. You want dwarf shrubs. There are dwarf conifers but you have to go to specialty nurseries to get them. I am a devotee of one about 50 min. from my house, so you may have to look around for a good nursery, they are becoming rarer and rarer as these family run businesses struggle to compete with the big boxes.

Boxwoods and hicks yew do fine in shade. Both are appropriate for the house and grow very slowly.

I think that may be a Japanese Cypress "boulevard". They do well only in light to very moderate shade. They look good for 15-20 years, then you replant.

Lord knows I love Hicks yew, but it grows 3-4 ft. spread and 8-12 feet high. I would not put one of those next to my house. You can prune them into a hedge, but pruning is not everyone's forte. Looks like Novice has some kind of yews already up against the house. That's why it is very difficult to advise someone on plant choices, because everyone is different in terms of taste, desire to do maintenance, family, pets, time, etc.

Your landscaping really isn't that bad. It just needs to be maintained and pruned for the most part. I'd focus on the area around the front steps, and just edit the edge islands, there seems to be weedy plants in those areas and the mature trees and shrubs could be pruned a bit to make them look more aesthetic.

Boxwoods are great and would look good with your house. I didn't mention them initially because they take so long to grow in. If you're willing to wait, they're a good option.

It looks like you have a slope near the sidewalk with a step down. Please post a photo taken from the door looking out to the street.

Emmarene, I do have a slope near the sidewalk with two steps down. Hard to see from the pics I posted. I will post a new one. Here is a pic of a landscape I saw in my neighborhood that I liked—

I like the smaller green bush with a lighter green bush wrapped around it like you see in the bottom left corner of this pic. I also like the yellowish plan in the background.

Ask this neighbour who did their landscape design. Hire that firm. :) I'm sure the neighbour will be tickled by the compliment, as long as you don't copy it exactly!

I actually did that when walking by my neighborhood. I asked a lady working out in the yard if she had any landscaping help. She referred me to someone who helped her. You can copy lots of things you see around in your neighborhood. I developed a portfolio of ideas for my last place. Looks like that yard has some healthy boxwoods. They've also done a good job of picking plants that grow to an appropriate mature size without needing constant pruning. The owner would probably be glad to share some ideas and resources with you.