"... if that is the front of the home (as it seems) then I would not use anything deciduous. It's an important spot and not to be wasted during the winter months IMO." That's a curious "take" that I've heard expressed in various ways before on the forum. In fact, I think once--long ago--I held the sentiment ... but now don't. I find that many of the deciduous plants provide the greater interest and that sometimes evergreens pale in comparison. Once there becomes sufficient "twigginess," the bark coloration, form and style becomes important and there is even some degree of ghost-like screening or view filtering from deciduous plants. And deciduous plants offer bloom that outdoes most evergreens (depending.) Sometimes there's a dried floral or fruit display that lasts a long time. There's lots to find interesting about deciduous plants, even in the winter time. In this particular case, I, too, would not place a featured plant in the center. I'd place it in front of the right quarter of the railing (where it abuts the garage) and place the lower plants at remaining 3/4 of the rail. A low, seasonal flowering "mat" (8" height or less) could be next to the entrance to the stoop.

Do you have room off the right corner to plant an ornamental tree? Like a 20’ tall, flowering tree? We can’t see what’s over there and don’t know how far your property line goes that direction. (A small tree would need to be at least 15 or 20’ from the house.)

You've probably already planted, but if not, I would suggest the Regent Serviceberry. It maxes out at 6' and most descriptions say 4-6' high and wide. It has fragrant white blooms in spring, berries that ripen from pink to purple to blue to black, and it offers fall color. The winter interest is also there, because it is more refined than most shrubs. The fruit is edible; some say it's better than blueberries. I will be putting in a hedge of these all along my frontage of 112'. I will have an arbor in the middle, and I will have other fruiting trees and shrubs behind. I rented a sod cutter to remove the grass, and I've laid down the mulch. Now, I just am waiting for the plants to arrive! Look up "Regent Serviceberry hedge" to get an idea of how beautiful they are! They don't seem to require much if any maintenance, especially if 6' is not too high. Birds, bees and butterflies love them as well as people! Pick some to freeze throughout the winter, and make a few pies while you're at it!.

First of all KUDOS to you!! I have rock mulch all around my house and it has taken me years to get rid of it in some spots. Of course I'm not as dedicated as you obviously were. Really amazing that you were willing to take the time to do that. Give yourself a big pat on the back!! In IL, I wouldn't plant stuff up close to the house, It holds moisture against the house, in many forms, including snow. Haven for all kinds of bugs that get into the house. I'd leave at least three feet between the house and anything I planted. You might want to start out with the less expensive smaller plants, but make sure to check how big they get at maturity. Below is a link to the MO Botantical Gardens "PlantFinder" search engine. You can look up most of the plants that would grow well in your zone and find out the real deal about them. Give your baby plantings room to grow. Easier to fill in between shrubs with annual flowers than rip out overgrown stuff. Ask me how I know . . . https://www.missouribotanicalgarden.org/plantfinder/plantfindersearch.aspx Maybe walk around your neighborhood and take pictures of houses you like the landscaping of, and copy some ideas from that. That's what I did when I moved into my first house, for ideas on landscaping. I took nightly walks and got a lot of ideas from peering into neighbors yards . . . Check out some books from the library, there are lots of books on how to basically landscape a basic home. My favorite, probably out of print, is Cass Turnbull's handbook. She goes into not just how to design your plantings, but how to maintain them too. https://www.thriftbooks.com/w/the-complete-guide-to-landscape-design-renovation-and-maintenance-a-practical-handbook-for-the-home-landscape-gardener_cass-turnbull/389930/item/391485/?gclid=CjwKCAjwrPCGBhALEiwAUl9X0_79Z7hoPI67oemQK8eqUFYDEz_xHv3F_eRviJaKq4gNPhsTl3Z0GRoCO00QAvD_BwE#idiq=391485&edition=2871674 Another older book I used was "Better Homes and Gardens Complete Guide to Home Landscaping." In general, think big swaths, not tiny little edges against the house. Most people don't look at the whole landscape, the lay of the land when landscaping, they just throw plants right up against the house. Look at your yard as a whole. It's even hard to recommend things just from the sectional photos you posted. Obviously you're going to do something about that weird "C" shaped bed in front of the house. It's unnecessarily difficult to mow around. As for "something with some height" I would recommend looking into some type of viburnum shrubs. The question is, are you going to a nice professional nursery or a big box store. If you go to a big real nursery, there might be someone there who could help you find the kinds of plants you are looking for. I know last time I visited such a place, a lovely woman helped me find the perfect tree for my yard . . . You might consider a rose trained against a trellis between your front windows. Just a thought. And here I'm breaking my rule about not having plants up against the house . . . ! Here are some lovely shrubs that I've dealt with that keep themselves tidy--weigela "Wine and roses" "Margic Carpet" spirea, "Miss Kim" lilac, Gold mound arborvitae, dwarf mugo pine, dwarf fothergilla. I also love the landscape roses, but that's me . . . One kind of hosta alone is sad, a whole selection of different colors and leaf shapes is cool. No go if you have deer browsing . . . I agree though, the purpose of landscaping up against the house is for your pleasure. Curb appeal is just al little welcoming thing at the entrance. Can be a simple planter with red geraniums. The rest is what you want to see and enjoy. From the street, you want big structural elements, well away from the house, but places so they don't impede the view in or out. Unless you want a lot of privacy in the front . . . There's really no reason to obstruct the view of the front of your house with a lot of heavy maintenance shrubs, etc.