Those coral bells are excellent! Just perfect with your house and I love them.

Yes, I think a tall thin shrub off to the left is a good idea, but since we have no idea of where in the world you are I can’t recommend something appropriate.

A professionally installed brick edging all along the bed would keep your landscaping and yard clean and neat. If a professional is out of your budget, simply find a strapping young high school or college student who could work under your supervision for some pocket cash.

Doug...you are amazing! It's like you read my mind.

Ittlebug....I am NE PA, front gets sun in morning for few hrs. I like the coral bells with the faux brick we have. I think Doug has helped me see what I can do.

So cute!! Love the porch. I would put cardboard down and sprinkle mulch over it to keep the weeds down. Mulch alone doesn’t work nearly as well. Garden beds always need maintenance and weeding, even when the plants are fully mature. I removed about 50% of the garden beds at my place and turned it back into lawn to cut down on the hours needed for maintenance. They were not well planned and it was kicking my butt trying to keep up. Much prettier and saner now.

Mulch is very effective if it's thick--not "sprinkled."

Yeah, mulch is not to be sprinkled. Shoveled instead.

Shoveled at least 6” thick, which is a lot of mulch. Much easier, more effective, more eco-friendly and less expensive to break down those cardboard boxes that get delivered to your door and just sprinkle 1” of mulch.

Do you know the lifespan of cardboard outside in my, and the OP's climate? It's measured in months. Cardboard placed now will have weeds growing through it by August.

I use cardboard all the time here in north Missouri, z5B. I use double or triple layers, well watered in between layers, and pile the mulch on top. It easily lasts two or three years or more. If it begins to fail at an overlap spot, simply rake the mulch off and lay new cardboard there, wet and then re-mulch.

I have had poor luck with newspaper - just not thick enough.

I’m in MD and use one layer of cardboard. Been doing it for all of the 15 years at my current place. I also cardboard my vegetable garden and pile leaf grow and garden soil over it instead of mulch. I also spray round up 2-3 weeks before putting in the garden if any weeds sprouted up over the winter.

@ ShadyWillowFarm How do you do 6" of mulch around the low growing plants? do you lessen it around them & keep it bullt up elsewhere?