Not being familiar with what is winter hardy in your region, I hesitate to make a lot of specific recommendations. However, a few things to consider: Japanese maples are adaptable, but have only moderate to low tolerance for salt, so think about whether your road is salted in winter and where run-off goes when you are placing that tree. Basically, think about placing plants to connect your house to the land, so it looks like it is nestled into the setting rather than sitting atop it, and something to soften some of the edges. The large trees behind and alongside your home give you a good start on this. Evergreens will, of course, give you color and coverage year 'round, but don't overlook deciduous plants hardy in your region that will also provide winter interest, like winterberry holly (you'd need a male and a female), red twig dogwood, witch hazel. Plants native to your region are usually a good choice, as they are well-suited to the climate and have co-evolved with and support local wildlife (think birds, butterflies, bees, and a host of tiny beneficial insects that help control pest insects). Therefore, native plants usually (but not always) require less attention from you. There are many non-native plants, too, that will "play nicely" with your native choices. Choose plants that are well-suited to the site where they will be living. Consider the amount of sun/shade, moisture levels, wind conditions, and, very important: your soil. Best bet is to have a soil sample analyzed for structure, pH (acid/alkaline balance) and nutrients. Here in the U.S. we have our cooperative extension services, run by state universities, with offices in most counties that provide a wealth of information, including soil testing. Perhaps you have something similar? If not, then you can do some basic tests at home. Most common landscape and garden plants on the east coast of North America prefer slightly acid to neutral soil that drains well, but is rich enough in organic matter to retain some moisture and nutrients.

Christine- you saved a life! Not many can say that! I like to think I'm the type that won't panic but since I've never been in a true life threatening situation, I can't know for sure. I was an athletic trainer in high school, in football country, so I've had my fair share of calming injured persons down. This is completely anecdotal but football players are WAY more "sissy" than softball/volleyball girls. I had to restrain several girls and tell them "NO, I need to look at that ankle!" while I had to tell at least one football player to get up and get off the field! The closest "panic" experience I've had was when my 2 year old severely burned herself. I only had panicky feelings AFTER she was at the hospital. During the moment, I was in the moment, using the skills and knowledge I had to help her. Did I ever mention my original "when I'm grown up I want to be..." was a doctor? Probably helps that my dad was a first responder and I remember sitting around the dinner table and him telling about reaching into a guys broken leg and pinching the femoral artery shut. When we were at a family gathering later and he was sharing the story, others were disgusted and couldn't finish their meals!! That's when I learned that other people have a different tolerance/panic level than we (my family) do. Marrying ketshup....EWWWW!!!!!!! Look, I'll save the old, almost empty bottle (in the fridge) to use next time but mixing them? Bleh!! Shaken, not stirred? All juices, salsa, ranch, BBQ sauce, basically all condiments, chocolate milk, tea. I'm a southern gal but growing up my mom only drank unsweetened tea. It wasn't until I was a teenager that I learned that southern iced tea is generally sweet tea. Still can't stand it to this day. IF I'm going to have tea it will be iced and NOT sweet! Also, no one else has said it but can I just say that canned veggies need to die a horribly slow painful death? The only veggies I got growing up (remember mom HATED cooking) were canned. Canned corn (Meh, OK in a pinch) canned peas (SOOO mushy!!), canned carrots (OK, if I can't have fresh I actually do prefer canned to frozen), canned beets (BLEH!!! Still my most hated veggie to this day) canned green beans (THIS is LITERALLY the worst!!! Salty, limpy, bad flavor yuckiness put in a can!!!) The only one I actually liked and still buy/stock my pantry with is hominey. My canned goods storage is very different from my moms. Her pantry was/is stocked with canned veggies, soups, beans, etc. The cans in my pantry are generally tomato sauce/paste (hoping to start growing my own next year!!), and prepped beans. Pinto, black, refried, black eyed peas, etc. I really want to start my garden next year and grow tomatoes, bell peppers, onions, garlic and herbs to start with. Hopefully, years from now, my daughters will talk about mom's atrocious pantry with ready made foods because they have grown accustomed to having fresh food. :)

I would paint that mustard color away if you haven't already. Nice house, just some not great choices on the roofing color. However, with the stone, I think some more "landscaping" across from the driveway to the front door area would be a big plus. I would come out around 7-8' from the existing sidewalk on the outside edge and cut a wide bed curving all around to the existing stone wall area. I would put a split rail fence along the outer edge of that bed and plant some climbing vines that flower on the fence posts. The put some evergreens in the bed along with some seasonal flowers and the seasons progress. Winter colored cabbage in fall and winter (conditions prevailing) then bright colorful probably begonias since they like full sun which it looks like you might have. I would put some interesting large boulders into the beds for texture or maybe some of the stacked stone from the house. I would also plant a very large tree or a group of 3 trees out in the front yard to balance the drop of the lot and keep the house from looking like it might slide down the hill. You need a large bed and probably 3 trees. Maybe 2-3 pines that are fast growers and would be 10 year type trees, and one large maple or whatever nice growing deciduous tree is in your climate zone. Mixing pine and deciduous allows for some green most of the year. Then if the pines start getting too tall and leggy you cut them down and let the deciduous tree flourish as it is more mature. A Drummond Maple or Sugar Maple would be nice. Check with your local "Extension" office and they would be delighted to help you with selections that would be good in your "zone".

With apologies to the original poster bmccoy5, but criticizing ideas is part of the solution, and as long as the criticism is directed toward the idea rather than a personal attack, it is fair game. There are pros here who don’t label themselves as such as well as a couple of folks (and not including Doug) who labeled themselves as pros who clearly weren’t. And there are pro kitchen designers who make comments on landscaping that aren’t necessarily practical in the outdoor world, so being able to add criticism is part of finding a solution that works for the question at hand. I frequently make critical comments about Doug’s designs as well as pointing out things that I think will work well in any given situation. In this case, a hedge isn’t a practical solution in this yard due to the large tree. A hedge close to the tree, if it survives at all, will be patchy and won’t match well with parts of the hedge with different light and moisture levels due to not being under the tree canopy, so IMO allowing anyone to believe differently is doing a disservice to the poster who wants to improve the yard’s appearance. I personally have no problem aesthetically with dividing a large front yard to make a part of the yard a more private space, but it this case it will need to be a fence such as the pickets above rather than a hedge or a masonry wall which won’t play well with extensive tree roots so that either the tree or the wall will suffer. I agree with the posters who suggested that having tall plants hiding the side facing main entry isn’t a good idea. I like finding the entry easily, and I dislike approaching entries swathed in foliage for safety reasons. I also agree with the suggestion to widen the pavement on the dooryard side to add a longer walkway at least a couple of cars deep. It will make the entry more visible, and when cars are parked in the drive it will add a firm dry walking surface for visitors. Like Yardvaark, I would love to see how the house looks currently as well as what is to either side of the photos above, so added photos would be good. Is that odd looking bed edging still there? And what is meant by “stone along the side” of the driveway? Gravel? Cobblestone or other masonry edging?