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Landscape Design

How to improve the curb appeal in my house?

last year

last modified: last year

Hello!We have a house that has a large front yard, therefore the house sits pretty far off of the road. We also have several trees which shades some of the flower beds and causes the other beds to have full afternoon sun. I've been trying to add flowering plants in front of our holly bushes to add color but I'm always having problems with things growing well in these areas. I also have had a vole problem in recent years that we are trying to fix.My husband has always hated the Holly bushes and would love to dig them up. However, that would leave the house looking quite bare since they are covering about 90% of the front of the house. So we never got rid of them. But now that we've had a really hard cold snap in December that is not normal for our area (below zero temperatures in middle TN), most of the bushes on the front of the house look freezer burnt and are possibly dead. I'm not sure if they will come back or not but we will see soon. In the meantime, I would love some ideas on what I can do to improve the curb appeal on our house. Should we look into other evergreen type bushes? What kinds of plants would look best?Thank you for reading!
I will add a picture once I figure out how

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Comments (12)

Wendy White
Original Author
last year
Akhilesh Joshi
last year
Beautiful front yard! Here are some design ideas for inspiration.
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You have a great house. I love your front porch. New landscaping will add tremendous curb appeal. Right now the big bushes in front of your home don't say "Welcome Home" they look more like a barrier. Dig Doug has posted a more modern landscaping design. You can also meet with a local landscape designer to work out a plan that you can implement over time. I would remove all the shutters. Your windows are too large for those size shutters especially the picture window to the left of the front door. But even the double windows are too large for those small shutters. I think your home will look much better without any shutters at all. Here is a brief article on shutters Shutters vs Shudders I'll see if I can find an insp pic that suits your home.
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I would remove the shutters, beef up the trim around the windows, change the rails to something less “rustic” looking and more cottage like. Paint the porch and steps. [The portico appears to be the incorrect shape for your home? Though I appreciate the barrel ceiling.] Get a larger light for the portico. If you change the door color, make sure you paint the storm door to match the front door. Personally, I would remove that mushroom-shaped shrub by the window and plant something more free-flowing. Remove the other one as well. You can add a couple of cozy chairs and a small table in between if they fit on the porch—otherwise maybe a bench with a cushion if you sit out there. Pots with colorful flowers by the door and you’re done.
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I love your house. I imagine it is quite old since it built so close to the road. I like the shutters on either side of the door, but would get larger lanterns. I would remove all the foundation plantings along that front side of the house so you can have a nice wide walkway. Then I would add steps to the right side of the entry so you can walk straight to the mailbox. Instead of the iron railing I would do a Chippendale wood one. This company fabricates them. Here is a modified one with square spindles. I can see your house with color. These are from Benjamin Moore's Colonial Williamsburg Collection"
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Comments (17)
Thanks for the feedback. Looks like most of the suggestions are to make the house more modern. I think the style is eclectic as the brick and pitched roof are traditional and the rest is modern. Does it make sense to also go the other way and make it more traditional? Make the rest of the roof pitched as well and add some windows in the front?
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cecily 7A
last year
Well, you certainly do have a few hollies! What's the tall shrub that's reaching the gutters?

Does removal of the hollies need to be an all or nothing choice? I expect they will green up in spring. How about you keep every fifth holly and add white azaleas, dwarf boxwoods and white drift roses for more interest.
Wendy White
Original Author
last year
The tall bush is also a holly. Honestly I didn't considered possibly just taking out a few vs all. That's a good idea.
simplynatural
last year
last modified: last year
Is the front door used? If so, how do people reach it? I don't see a walkway. And I assume the house faces west, if this area gets afternoon sun?
Wendy White
Original Author
last year
We use the back door to enter the house since the driveway wraps around to the back. We plan to add a sidewalk someday when budget allows. It would be 80 feet long to connect the front door to the driveway.
Shasta
last year
Add some color and texture in place of the hedges which do nothing to compliment your house. I don’t know what grows in TN but I would go to the local nursery for some ideas of good candidates. It would be good to have a plan to work toward so you can do a zone at a time. Beautiful lawn! I’m quite envious living in CA.
PRO
Dig Doug's Designs
last year
last modified: last year
Here are a few suggestions:
Sigrid
last year
You can move the hollies. Or keep them. In shade, you can find a lot of rhodos and azaleas that should be fine and, in some cases, even native.
ffpalms
last year
Wow, Akhilesh Joshi! This one is fantastic and looks achievable.
charles kidder
last year
If you have deer in your area, that will greatly reduce your options. I'm guessing you do and could explain why you have just a few evergreens in the front.
cecily 7A
last year
I figured their landscaping is minimal because they're working parents. Or they're just not into gardening which is also cool. The basic issues I have with the hollies are a lack of interest because only one type of plant is used, the dense planting which creates a heavy "eyebrow" look and the height of the shrubs reaching the window sills.

For an easy DIY update, I'd remove the hollies on the far left (shady) side and replace with azaleas. Space the azaleas five feet apart and five feet out from the foundation. Yes, you'll be able to see the foundation between them. Your house is lovely and you've got nothing to hide;)

Next, remove the hollies between the front door and the tall guy. Choose a smaller flowering shrub like Drift roses or spirea to plant there. Again, plant the new shrubs five feet off the foundation and five feet apart. Add liriope and flowering annuals in front of the roses.

Shorten the tall guy by two feet and prune it into a denser cone.

When you plant the new shrubs, don't spread bark mulch around them. Wood mulches may attract termites. Use river rock along the foundation and compost (like the bagged Black Kow brand sold at Home Depot) around the shrubs.

Leave the remaining span of hollies in place until you install the sidewalk.

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