Looks like they lost a tree. I would plant an ornamental tree there. I would add plants along the foundation, but not too close, that add height and color. Paint the window trim and the garage door the same color as the trim around the garage. Paint the front door a deep red.

Here is a visual on how shrubs should be pruned.

Are they looking for just landscaping at the moment, or house colors as well?

Also, do you know what is currently there for plantings?

IMo the best id to make a trip to a local garden ceter where they have a garden expert on staff that will help with what grows well where you live and also some plan to work towards over the next couple of years . I think the house itself could use some upgrading for curb appeal too. Right now all that is there looks over grown and starting with a clean slate is always the best with a plan. A nice garden is a planned over time area so maybe for now a good ground cover to replace what is there , it should be not too invasive and also able to withstand low water use . These are a couple of ideas but where in N Cal.

They already have some wonderful healthy ground covers and bushes that look healthy and established. I would choose a great tree for where the palm was removed. Then I would focus on the area up by the door (need more photos of that area). The shrubs that have been shaped- they would probably be better in a natural form unless they grow giant.

The front door looks off centered to the arches. And the house needs height. I would remove the arches entirely and extend the porch out farther for rocking chairs or comfy chairs. I’d add a tall portico and tall trees to frame the windows to the right. I would enlarge the windows, pull out landscaping, and add white rocks with color flowers
near the walkway going to new portico. I can’t see the stairs but they may need to be removed for a fresh beginning.

^^ QED :-))

I think houssan hit the ball out of the park first at bat.

If the young couple is going to be there forever, they have plenty of time to execute a master plan as funds perfmit but for now they need to do just a few simple things to make the house lovable. New paint for the garage, window trim, a front door with more presence, replacing the lost palm and adding a couple of tall plants at the foundation.

I would go one step further and consider painting the interior of the porch a slighly different lighter tone.

they basically have a Spanish Ranch style home. Doing a xeriscape front/drought resistant w/native plants, would work well. They should contact a local landscape designer who does low-water yards geared toward a mediterranean look. That would look best w/this home.

And then maybe they could take a cue from that and make the home more Spanish style.

This creamy white stucco w/the darker trim colors look great w/the clay tiles. paint the door a blue gray, and the garage door the darker trim color. add hardware to it.

this is a 1945 spanish ranch, and they haven't done much to it.

I think bringin some hardscape, succulents and other native plants to that area, would be perfect

very common w/spanish homes to have colorful tiles, ceramic pots, and hardscape materials.

Stucco colors were almost always light, w/a contrasting trim. the white garage door is NOT the least bit spanish looking! lol. they can paint it and add some iron hardware to it. exterior lighting, painting the front door, etc, can do wonders.

all they really have right now is the roof tile and the arches. But I'd embrace that and really bring in more of the spanish revival look. start looking at pictures to give you ideas.

Thank you everyone so very much. It was wonderful that so many of you kept their budget in mind and offered cost effective improvements (painting the door/garage etc.) It is nice to get ideas from fresh eyes. My daughter in law is going to send me some more pictures in the morning and I will post them so you can see more detail. That is indeed Juniper that has taken over the front yard. Seems like a fire hazard to us as well. This home is in Novato, Ca for those of you that are familiar with the area. They will have to complete improvements a bit at a time as funds allow (new baby and new home = DIY landscaping for now 😊).

jake, another budget option they could try is to visit a local nursery. bring pics of the yards and spanish xeriscape inspiration pictures. I bet the owner of the nursery would be of help w/ideas that they could tackle on their own. Or maybe he could recommend a local landscaper in the area that could help them out.

I would have a arborist in first to check the condition of the apparently dead or dying trees behind their home. If they are on their property. I would be concerned about them from a fire safety perspective.

Ptreckel. Those dead trees have been removed. Definitely were a safety issue!

Using a color scheme that would work with your roof, I would suggest painting the exterior of home off-white/cream with a very dark green or blue (almost black) on window trim and garage door. Replace the front door with a wood and glass door so visually lightens up the porch. To create more balance for the door add a large container of greenery to the left of the door. Add some weighty Spanish style lanterns to the sides of the arch leading to front door. And as some have suggested, plant a new tree to replace the one you removed. Remove the large older shrubs and replace with new ones that grow well in your area. It's a nice home and setting, so enjoy making changes to suite your tastes.

Nor Cal girl here. I would get rid of the plastic Adirondack chairs (wrong style). Think Spanish: wrought iron bench, lanterns, etc. Rip out the junipers and go with low water perennials (salvia, lantana, lavender, kangaroo paws, etc). Plant an arbutus marina in the bare spot. Paint the garage door the color of the trim. Paint the front door cobalt or aqua and add some big ceramic planters to match. Keep the arches as that is classic Spanish ranch staple prevalent all over Northern California. Clear out any brush in back to create defensible space because fire season has already started. Bougainvillea planted on either side of the windows would complement the Spanish style as well.

I would remove all the juniper and overgrown shrubs and start from scratch. They can go to a garden center and get a good low water design, and then implement it as they can. Use a drip system for the irrigation. Have a few larger plants and rocks for interest, with lots of ground covers and drought tolerant shrubs or succulents.

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Oh, and other plants to consider that will grow well in Novato: sea lavender and pride of Madeira

Thank you everyone for your kind and thoughtful responses. Ikloes, thank you so much for the specific plant suggestions. Trying to add some more pics closer to the house in case that helps spark anyone’s imagination.

Here are pictures closer to the house. Thank you for your help!

We put these octopus agaves in the front bed of our house and like their sculptural quailities. They certainly fit the bill of being drought tolerant and low maintenance.

"Whether the designer acts as just a consultant or actually drafts up a plan, it is a minimal investment to protect their property."

Agree! We went through this recently. We did have them do the complete landscaping job, but the cost would definitely have been minimal had we stopped at just having plans drawn up. Well worth it IMO.

`if they are going to sit outside near the front door it is definitely worth thinking about flowring plants to enjoy in the small square of a bed right in front of the mini-patio. Be careful however that a LOT of stunning drought-tolerant plants are VERY baby and toddler UNFRIENDLY for having truly terrible thorns and prickles — which includes, alas, bougainvillea, many agave cacti (and other cacti). But any nursery will steer the buyer away from such plants (which may not look threatening when small-pot sized if you just tell them you need small-kid-safe plants. Plenty of drought tolerant fit the bill

Also, wrought iron is classic but it’s also uncomfortable. Acapulco chairs can be fun

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Just some porch inspiration for the longer term projects...

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Keep the plants low in the area in front of the patio - don't put in anything that will grow over 18" or so in that spot. On the hillside, creeping thyme is a great drought tolerant groundcover that spreads and will help hold the hillside in beween the taller plants. Look at flax plants for the other side of the house and the hillside. They grow well with succulents.

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They could start by removing the poorly shaped shrubs that flank the walk. A few small shrubs closer to the house would be nice. Is the gravel path necessary? It is not attractive. Which direction does the house face?

Thank you again everyone for your responses. Calidesign, creeping thyme sounds like a great ground cover option and they will definitely be careful not to put anything too tall in front of the patio. Emmarene, the house faces Northeast. The shrubs that are there now will definitely go. The gravel path was there when they bought the house (as was everything else). It does not need to stay although some sort of walkway to that side of the house is necessary as there is a gate to the backyard on that side of the house. Thanks again everyone. Lots to think about!

Resident of the EBay here:

This is probably not the time to be putting in any new plants. Novato is under STRICT WATER RATIONING. This is the summer and there will no rain until October at the very least. In 2019 we did not get any substantial rain until late November and then it was dry again for over a month.

Great if you were a golfer! Lousy for putting in new landscaping. New plantings need to be watered in for the first year, whether it's by rain or city water. There is no plant except maybe cacti that you can plunk into the average crappy CA soil and not have to water regularly to establish it.

"...The Amended Ordinance 41 now specifically request a 20% voluntary reduction in water use from May 1 to June 30, and mandates a 20% (Novato Service Area Wide) reduction in water use from July 1 to November 1, to be achieved with non-essential water use prohibitions." (Novato Municipal Water District, https://nmwd.com/emergency-water-conservation-ordinance-41-amended-for-novato-service-area/)

Watering is 3 days per week only, and even car washing is restricted.

I have a mature, lush cottage garden which I water only every 5-6 weeks, using soaker hoses for a couple of hours on half the beds (the others live or die on runoff). However, that is because when I put it in, I first (a) improved the soil and then (b) watered the plants in with soaker hoses twice a week to start, then once a week for the next 6-9 months. I also mulched heavily with cocoa mulch.

The house is very nice, but absolutely do NOT plant right next to the foundation, on any side. There are two year-round problems here: termites and mice/rats. It never freezes, and the bounty of edible plants means it is wild animal heaven. The only thing worse than juniper groundcovers are ivy groundcovers: rodents adore yards with them.

I agree with the others those awful shrubs by the stairs have to go. They are too close and in natural form will spread over the stairs, which impedes access and is visually annoying (I have a friend who has stairs with shrubs just like that, LOL). Something softer and shorter, like lavender - a mix of two or three different varieties (not in a soldier-like row, please) smells wonderful and encourages our local population of bees.

In addition to the excellent suggestion of flax plants, there is also a wide variety of other drought resistant/tolerant plants. The following have done well in my garden, which has a lot of sun, regular fog, good drainage due to slope. My EBay temps are roughly 5 degrees cooler than Novato:

Perennial salvias, hybrid pelargoniums, shrub and trailing lantana, agapanthus, lavatera, roses (yes roses - water them in properly and the deep taproots keep them alive), oleander, loropetalum, stacchys (lambs ear), delosperma (similar to iceplant but NOT invasive), helichrysum, microlepia fern (partial sun only), santolina (frost sensitive, tho), tagetes, euonymus.

Once the current plantings have been removed, the weed seeds destroyed, and the soil improved, whatever landscape plan they install needs to take into account the full size/width of the plants. I reiterate this old adage because it's really true. I've spent as much time taking plants OUT as they've grown too big, as I spend weeding and installing ;)

Also, they need to track the sun throughout the year. Plants like to "lean" in that direction, especially if that's the direction of the high winds we get twice a year. Keep that in mind when siting new plants.

One thing about our CA climate is that when plants like their "home" they often grow bigger than expected....a lot bigger. A 3x3' salvia - pineapple sage, bright chartreuse leaves with fire-engine red flowers, very gorgeous - grew over 5' high and 6' wide. I have to regularly hedge-clip it out of my neighbor's driveway. A purple fountain grass did the same; got twice as wide/tall as I wanted. That was a pain to dig out!

Also, don't assume succulents are going to be a carefree, no water garden. They're a diverse species, and some actually require quite a bit more water than the plants I named above. They are also very prone to mites, and need excellent drainage, so if the soil is clay-based, they won't be happy unless it's amended.

Jakkom,
Thank you for that thorough and thoughtful response. You clearly know what you are talking about! The kids were never going to plant directly against the foundation for exactly the reasons you mentioned. I can’t even imagine what critters are living in that Juniper. The shrubs are going to go and they will do that themselves soon. I think that alone will be a visual win. They are very aware of the water rationing in Novato and aren’t planning on doing anything immediately. Just searching for ideas and trying to make a reasonable (and drought resistant) plan for down the road. My husband and I have also made the mistake of miscalculating how big a plant will become. Excellent and wise advice. Thank you for all the specific plant suggestions too and for taking the time to comment. It is greatly appreciated. I bet your garden is beautiful!

I have 2 sisters in Petaluma , 1 in San Rafael. Get rid of old ugly stuff and don’t plant anything. Marin and Sonoma counties are going to drastic measures due to the drought. Fill in with fir bark for now.

Can you fill in with stones until you plant?

I don't think replacing the tree is necessary as the house faces northeast.

I would keep a border of Juniper as it nears the street. It is established and probably prevents run off on the rare occasions when you get rain. The rest could be a Mediterranean type landscape. They should seek a professional landscape design. I've heard many have waiting lists in the North Bay. If this is still true I hope they don't wait long. If they can do the work themselves then they only need to pay for the design.

I tried to add plants to the right side. Not a good photoshop but you'll get the idea.

Emmarene,
Always great to have a visual! I think everyone’s responses have helped them figure out where to start. I think removing the shrubs might be where they start (just their own labor). I think they have realized they need to get a professional landscape design even if they need to wait a bit to get on someone’s schedule. I imagine this will help them avoid costly mistakes. Houssaon, they could fill in with stones until they planted, but wouldn’t that just be adding to work and expense in the long run?? I went back to your original post as well, and I think some paint and elbow grease will help add some curb appeal quickly (and won’t take ANY water :). Thank you for those ideas!

If they’ll be doing this in phases, I’d strongly encourage them to use bark and not stones. It will be much easier to remove (and a lot cheaper, too)!

And get a landscape designer. Ours are 6 months out right now, but we’ll worth the wait!!

Oops, I just had a thought about why there are those front yard junipers.

DEER.

Especially during drought times - they'll eat even plants they don't normally munch on. It would be a good idea to find out if there's a deer problem before planting anything else, LOL!

Jakkom,
There are definitely deer around and they have certainly left the junipers alone but not the plants they have previously tried to plant in that small area in front of the porch. Do you think that the kids should just leave the junipers be for now with that in mind while we are struggling with the drought? They could still remove the shrubs and just focus on cleaning up the area closer to the house. Any suggestions on how to disguise the area where they pulled out the old tree? I was thinking they could put dark tan bark there so it would blend in more, but not sure if that would look any better. It is just very obvious right now. Thanks for still thinking about them.

Taking a page from the previous droughts, although it sounds crazy, a matching green spray paint on the brown area might be enough for a short time.

Mamadoc,
Don’t think I could convince my son to do that. Interesting thought.

The plants I suggested earlier in the thread are deer resistant. Please, if only for the neighbors’ sake, don’t spray paint anything in the interim. Use bark if you need a placeholder.

I’ve just read through jakkom’s excellent plant list. I’m just curious that Santolina is marked as frost tender. Its perfectly hardy here in the British Isles.

Consider removing only the juniper ground cover that is between the area of the removed tree and the big stone walkway, but also remove the big boxwood that is halfway up the stone walk, so you can show off the sweep of the big stone walk. Make the emptied out area look like a design feature, like an organic free form pool to the left of the walk. Mix in darker mulch into the bed, and gradually fill in the ”pool” with points of interest, depending on budget and how the drought goes.

You might want to thin out the rest of the juniper but do it carefully if at all because right now it might be retaining a lot of very useful moisture under its thick cover.

Btw, deer will feast on roses!

Ikloes,
We have all the plants you mentioned on a list. Good to know that roses are dessert for deer! Ital mover, making that emptied out area a bit of a design feature for now is a good idea. We have so much to think about and, again, thank you all for your ideas, expertise and advice. It is appreciated so very much!

I do hope you post photos of the completed project. Fingers crossed for an end to the drought sooner than later!

Will do! Thank you!