Please help with foundation planting.... evergreens... shapes?
Gardenpeace
2 years ago
last modified: 2 years ago
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krnuttle
2 years agocecily 7A
2 years agoRelated Discussions
long - foundation planting, half sun help please
Comments (18)Hi, Dee Thought I would suggest Arborvitae, Emerald (Smargd). It is a tall, columnar evergreen that I use alot in my designs where I want tall and narrow. They will get to about 10-12 feet tall and three feet wide here. I have them at each corner and each angle of my house, and on either side of my front door. I grow them in full sun to almost total shade here and they do well. If anything, the shade makes them a bit narrower, which is fine with me. You were talking about depth of your beds. I find it easier to design the plantings first and then just make the beds a depth that will accomodate the mature size of the shrubbery. Be sure to leave a good two feet of empty space along the wall of the house for window washing and other maintenance. You mentioned purple foliage. I find it shows best, especially against a dark background when it has something chartreuse planted behind it. If you want to use alot of deciduous plants, you might want to consider doing a low edging around the beds, or part of the beds, with boxwood. This gives a parterre look, which I have really come to enjoy over the years. It can be low maintenance if you choose the right box. Go for low and SLOW growing varieties. I use alot of korean box (which may or may not be good as far north as you are) for this purpose. I only have to shear once a year. Be aware that boxwoods can have hungry roots. I root prune mine every year or two with a spade to keep them in bounds and away from other plantings. I can get one gallon boxwoods here for about $8 each. Of course, we don't grow Green Velvet and some of the other beautiful ones like it here in the south. One other thought. If you will get a pad of graph paper and a tape measure and go to the house, you can measure and draw out the area to scale. Just use one little box for one square foot. Then draw away (in pencil). When you are done, you'll know exactly how many plants you will need for the project. It's a low tech way, but it works. Being able to visualize things in your mind really helps. It sounds like you have that ability. Good luck! I am sure it will turn out beautifully....See MoreEvergreen Flowering Foundation Plant Suggestions
Comments (13)snicker- you'd be dead before a daphne odora got that big. daphnes are great, but they have a habit of dying right around year 5-8, and they normally top out at about 3-4'. they grow slowly, to say the least, and are pricey, though the big boxes carry them for reasonable amounts compared to nurseries. do pop one in, just for the fragrance & looks, but put it in front of something taller. they need excellent drainage. another thought- hellebores would be nice to have a t the feet of some of your bigger stuff. they have long lasting flowers, can take poor soil and shade and thrive on neglect. they ain't cheap, and grow slowly, but they are worth it. if you can find someone who has them already, ask for seedlings- they self sow abundantly - and start that way. it'll be 3-4 years before you see blooms, but you won't regret it, and you'll forget they're there til then. camellias are easy. not high maintenance at all here. just pick the type you want based on the bloom you want and when (some bloom late fall & some spring) and the size, and be patient and let it grow. they'll do that faster with some sun and good soil, but will grow in shade; it just takes longer. if you can improve your soil, a 1 gallon plant, which would probably be about 12- 18" high, would probably get to 3-4 feet in a couple years. most camellias are going to get much larger than that though and you'll want to be careful in picking ones that match the size you want eventually to avoid trimming chores (most get bigger than what you're wanting). camellias have an nice shape naturally and shouldn't need too much fussing, unless you plant the wrong thing and it gets too big. i'd consider mixing and matching rather than doing all one thing. that way if you do have disease or insect problems, it doesn't wipe out everything. or if one dies down the road, you aren't stuck buying a huge one so you don't have a hole. a little variety in shapes and forms is much more dynamic in design, too. you can get a better range of color and scent and times of color as well. have fun with it!...See MoreDwarf trees/evergreens for foundation plantings
Comments (1)TiaMaria, I am sorry you haven't gotten any response yet but it does require a long complicated answer without a lot of information. I am not familiar with JCBakker but they come up as a wholesaler for me. I find it odd that some of the plants you mention are grafted. They are easy enough to root. Are you sure they graft Viburnum, Rose of Sharon, Barberry, Hydrangea? Also it is hard to design an unseen site. There are many variables besides just taste. If you break apart your question and search each one, you will find a lot of material to mull through. Such as "narrow evergreen", I came up with almost 750 hits just here on the GW. Sometimes the answer just comes down to what you like once conditions are considered. And there are always people pushing the ideal conditions and getting away with it. May I suggest you take a day to visit Rare Find Nursery in Jackson? It is not the only place to go, but they have a very interesting selection of plants and its a great place to start. Plants do range in size. Some are too small and I might suggest you stay away from the smallest rhododendron starts unless you really must have something. It takes a while to go through between the offerings and the gardens so don't go when you are in a rush. Here is a link that might be useful: Rare Find Nursery...See MorePlease Help with Foundation Plant Suggestions
Comments (1)It doesn't matter that there are thousands of plants. The list of those that are commonly used in landscaping is much shorter and you only need about 10 or a dozen of them. I made some suggestion for plants, as a starting point, on your other thread....See Moreken_adrian Adrian MI cold Z5
2 years agogardengal48 (PNW Z8/9)
2 years agoken_adrian Adrian MI cold Z5
2 years agoGardenpeace
2 years agolast modified: 2 years agoken_adrian Adrian MI cold Z5
2 years agofloral_uk z.8/9 SW UK
2 years agogardengal48 (PNW Z8/9)
2 years agocecily 7A
2 years agoGardenpeace
2 years agokrnuttle
2 years agocecily 7A
2 years agolast modified: 2 years agoken_adrian Adrian MI cold Z5
2 years agolast modified: 2 years ago
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