Just to answer a few questions, yes there is a HOA with the original house I posted about, and they have already okay-ed the idea of putting in the gravel - it's not a straight gravel operation by the way, but more along the lines of a Japanese rock garden, with a few plants here and there as highlights. I figured if I lay black plastic underneath, with a bed of gravel above a couple of inches thick, nothing is going to grow through it! A neighbor suggested using Asiatic dwarf jasmine as ground cover instead of the gravel option, while another did suggest perennial peanut. The dwarf Mondo makes me a little leery, as I half imagine the HOA screaming at us that it looks like unkempt grass in need of a mowing! As for the point about using a lawn service and writing it into the lease when we renew it, that is something we've definitely considered for our old home (the one with the pictures above of the rampant lawn) because the problem is that the area is so large that I think it puts the tenants off from keeping it well looked after. As I said, we bought a mower for the property that we wrote into the lease - they just didn't want to use it. The other house that I originally posted about though is a different situation, given that the front yard is relatively small (30' x 35'). The other issue I should have mentioned is that it isn't just case of taking care of the lawn - the present area is really in bad shape, with crab grass, bare patches everywhere, weeds, etc, and really should be replaced. That was our original intention and we had already lined up the replacement sod. But when we realized that the tenants weren't going to look after it, my wife and I looked at each other and wondered what would be the point of throwing all that money down for new sod, only to watch it either go wild through lack of attention, or die because the tenants wouldn't bother giving it the abundant twice-a-day watering needed in the first month - that or we'd have to drive over twice a day to take care of it ourselves. Then I also discovered that the sprinkler system was shot, because what I thought were mere missing sprinkler heads turned out to be crushed pipes from former tenants parking off the concrete constantly and on the lawn (a fact confirmed by neighbors) or what was left of it. So it would all have to be dug up and replaced. Throw all that into the pot, and that's why we started thinking about alternatives that would circumvent these issues, such as a Japanese rock garden with drought resistant plantings and little care required by tenants, or ground cover like dwarf jasmine that needs no watering once established - or so we're told. A last point. Yes, we've had plenty of grounds with both properties to issue evictions, but you know, who wants to do that unless really forced to? Last year the family that rented out our old home went into a divorce, the husband moved out, and the family thus lost their chief source of income because the mother was a stay-at-home parent home schooling her children - AND she had her crippled old mother living with her. Sounds like some kind of cliche, right? They ended up getting three months behind on rent, we even put their security deposit towards the payments (with the tenant's permission) to try and keep them afloat, yet reached a point eventually where we simply couldn't afford to keep making two mortgage payments and were virtually begging this woman to find a job to save us having to evict her. My wife and I just sat there totally stressed and virtually in tears, asking ourselves how we'd ever reached a point where we were going to be forced to toss a financially destitute woman, with her two young children and an elderly grandmother, on the street. To say it was a horrible feeling doesn't even come close, but thankfully her church eventually came to the rescue and she eventually dug her way out of the her precarious financial state. The fact she's letting the house virtually fall apart outside, and all the disingenuous excuses she uses to cover it, have worn down our last reserves of kindness, and we have already told her that three years is more than enough and that she needs to find another place to live in when the current lease runs out. Thanks again for all the response. It's been really enjoyable seeing what everyone has to say on the matter.

This is not the ideal location for a piano, as far as the piano itself is concerned. However, it may be the only place to put one in the house. Add a nice big rug under it with strong padding to absorb vibrations. i wouldn't put it on the angled wall, it would get bumped by people coming in the door. It looks like a console-spinet-upright could go between the two windows on the outside wall. Me, I'd be uncomfortable playing with my back to the house (experience with sneaky siblings when we were kids lol), but your family may be comfortable, and it allows for placement of a couple of chairs on the wall where the passthrough is. Move the console table to the angled wall. You will want a cabinet or basket or something for music. A small sofa would NOT be the best choice; a couple of small "occasional" chairs and perhaps a chair from the dining room would be best. A baby grand would look nice tucked in the corner where the plant is. Maybe put plantation shutters on the pass-thru. Will a teacher come to the house, or will the students go to the teacher? Will other music be performed? I've seen local houses where the living room, which otherwise wouldn't be used, is the music room, with stands, music storage, and chairs, as well as instruments, ready for playing. Definitely consider plantaion shutters, sheers, or solar blinds on the windows to protect the piano. Will the digital piano stay? Or be moved? Beautiful floor!

Yardvaark, current ground cover on the hill between the driveway and the road is english ivy (of which I'm not a fan). I was told by neighbors that the total hill was covered with ivy until a couple of winters ago. I wasn't sure if I was going to keep the ivy so at the level spot at the top of the driveway I planted morning glory and ornamental grass. It's doing great. The area between the driveway and the house is pachysandra. I added phlox between the rocks because it has grown favorably for me in the past. There are some other plants popping up but they usually get eaten by the deer, especially the hostas (despite best efforts with the smelly products). We were told the first owners of the home were gardeners (wife had the front, husband the back yard). The terrain is so steep the wife had to tie herself to a tree to weed. When I weeded a couple of months back, the rock was slippery and fell to the bottom. The husband, on the other hand, left us fabulous beds and great soil in the backyard. I wasn't sure whether the rocks were there to help with the rain or to fill in the blank spots on the hill for the sale of the house. If we can use planst, I'd like to do that. Did notice most folks do have ground cover but was hoping to jazz up the front a little. There are a lot of trees so when it storms and branches fall, it's difficult to get to them so just trying to make life a little easier for us. Is it weird to have more than one or two areas of ground cover in the same areas? Should I try to add a couple of plants into the landscape? I don't know what the prickly bushes are at the bottom of the driveway along the sidewalk (not a fan) but they are growing well. Appreciate your opinion and how quickly you responded.

zone is not enough ... we need a location.. big city name ... do you know your soil??? what direction does the front door face ... are the only shade trees the one on the left .... if there is clear sky above.. im not sure i would even call this part shade .. if this is a winter pic.. do you have a summer pic to see such?? winner winner chicken dinner is done.. more tomorrow ken