Help! My front yard is nekkid!
Posted on July 16th, 2008 – 8:18 AMBy Connie Nelson
I’d been nagging my husband to trim the yews out front. They were overgrown, I said. They engulfed our poor little house, I said.
He said what he usually says: Uh-huh.
(Uh-huh, I’ve discovered, is Husbandspeak for “. . . wonder how the Twins did last night?”)
But suddenly this weekend, he started pruning. And pruning. And pruning. He didn’t stop until he had pruned the upright yews into gigantic lollipops . . . And the the low-growing yew? Well, that was pruned right out of existence. Our house is no longer engulfed. Now it’s buck naked! It looks blank, exposed . . . like my forehead when my mom gave me my bad, back-to-school bang trim.
To my credit, I didn’t gasp when I saw the naked forehead of my house. Nor did I grab the car keys and head straight for Bachmans. Since it’s hot as hades and not the best time in the world to plant, I decided to leave my house exposed for a bit and actually PLAN before I plant.
And that’s where you come in. I’m looking for ideas. This is prime, east-facing real estate with lots of morning sun and sweet afternoon shade. I’ve got some tall grasses (Calamagrostis x acutiflora ‘Karl Foerster’) that I’m going to divide come spring and transplant there. But other than that, it’s a blank slate.
So, gardeners, got some shrub suggestions?
14 Responses to "Help! My front yard is nekkid!"
I have the same type of deal (east facing, morning sun) in my front yard and my magnolia is doing great there. It’s definitely my most impressive shrub.
I also have 3 rhododendrons that do not seem to be growing much bigger despite having been there a couple of years.
I planted an “Endless Summer” hydrangea there this spring and it did all right. It definitely did not go crazy.
I actually planted a whole bunch of perennials there this spring including some tall grasses which are not getting very, um, tall. I don’t think they get quite enough hot sun. But all my new “basics” (echinacea, daisies, sedum, Russian sage) are doing really great. Oh, and I also did a Foxglove too that was absolutely gorgeous and did really well in that spot. I’m adding more of those next year.
I have sunburst junipers and also wigelias that are doing great. My rhododendron is not doing that great - it finally bloomed this year - first time in 3 years.
I have the same deal and have a mix of shrubs (blue spruce, Weigela, Ninebark), a great, wild tree (Hakuro Nishiki) mixed with perennials–some peonies, hydrangea, russian sage, lupines and grasses.
Under the Nishiki, I’m trying some coral bells in a lovely limey green–they seem to be thriving. The phlox died in that spot–too shady and no air, I think.
It’s best when the peonies and Weigela bloom together in early summer. I need to find more mid- late-summer bloomers.
I started with the tree and shrubs 4 years ago and have been filling in with flowers. The Nishiki is my prize–no flowers but new growth are pale, pink feathers that turn to almost white- green leaves making it a bright, eye-catching spot. It is in serious need of a haircut right now but still stunning.
The Nishiki was my starting point–all the ideas grew from there. Find a new favorite and be inspired.
No specific suggestions, but we moved into a house that we joyfully discovered has a front yard with some kind of horticulture feature going in each season: blooms, berries, pretty grasses, something happening somewhere each season. Given our severe weather, it is a sanity saver and well worth investigating bloom times.
As long as we’re on the topic of ‘what to plant’, may I add a request for GG reader/writer input as well?
The gardeners for my association ripped out several evergreen bushes from in front of my townhouse (one pruned to about a 5 feet tall globe and the others were low-spreading) . Granted they weren’t the ‘best’ looking/thriving specimens, but they certainly didn’t deserve their early demise either (IMHO).
NOW I’m told it’s up to me to supply the landscaping in this 12 x 4 foot rock bed if I want anything besides empty holes. The entire area faces west, and is partially shady due to a large tree and the townhome across the driveway. The first 5-6 feet (adjacent to the front door) has a 4 foot tall brick façade with siding above (no windows). The remaining area (the shadiest part) contains 2 ½ foot tall ground level windows. Personally I wouldn’t mind a bit more privacy if some growth covered part of the windows.
Based on what others in the association have done, it looks like I can do any combination of evergreen, bushes, and plants or flowers, but the rocks have to stay since there are no gutters and this rock bed abuts the foundation. The soil under the rocks seems to be pretty pathetic (lots of sand – no real ‘black dirt’) and the area would only get Mother Nature’s moisture as the auto-sprinklers are not targeted to water the rock bed.
Any suggestions on what I might do with this area would be GREATLY appreciated!
First of all, take the pruners away from your husband. Pruning is an art, and you should understand the impact of what your cutting before you cut. Here is an extension publication on pruning:
http://www.extension.umn.edu/distribution/horticulture/DG0628.html
And for replacement shrubs I would recommend hydrangeas, but not the endless summer. They are really not very reliable in our climate. Annabelle hydrangeas do well in part sun but my favorites are the PeeGee cultivars, like Pink Diamond or Tardiva. They both have beautiful flowers later in the summer.
Clethra [summersweet] is a totally under-used shade-loving shrub with fragrant white or pink summertime flowers and good fall color. If that side of your house is pretty protected, you might also try Fothergilla, which is kind of borderline for the Cities, but ‘Blue Shadow’ has the most amazing blue foliage [as blue as any hosta you’ll see]. It also has a stellar fall foliage display.
As far as perennials go, it’s tough to beat ‘Rozanne’ perennial geranium which does well in sun or part shade. It blooms nonstop from June all the way to frost. The sky-blue flowers are produced in abundance and look glorious in fall against fothergilla or clethra foliage.
An evergreen choice I really adore is ‘Blue Shag’ white pine — it has soft, blue-green needles but stays a polite 5 feet or less. It’s easily one of my favorite dwarf evergreens!
–Justin
Senior Garden Editor, BHG.com
Better Homes and Gardens
I really like clethra, also. A word of caution to those in deer-populated areas, though: it’s’ among their favorite at my house.
Hey M in Minneapolis,
How did the wigelias do for you? I really like them, but have never grown them.
I have the exact same garden at my home and the most thriving bush is my burning bush - it is beautiful. I planted the “dwarf” variety and still need to prune it back a bit every year as it just LOVES the sun/shade exposure it gets. The bonus: In Fall it is the most beautiful crimson red you’ll see! Otherwise I have PeeGee Hydrangeas (for those of you having trouble with Hydrangeas and Rhododendruns, they require high acidic soil and rich, well drained soil to perform best), and several variety of Spirea. I also have a couple of cotoneasters and a barberry for color contrast. I would plant shrubbery for your perrenial choices and add annuals for floral color - that way you can change up your color palate every year! Most of all, just have fun and whatever you plant make sure its something YOU love. 
My wigelias are going great - they really are low maintenance. I’m going to trim them this weekend.
@Blossom - Where are your cotoneasters? I planted a row of cotoneasters 4 years ago because my neighbors keep talking of taking the fence down on that side - (not knowing anything about gardening then I just grabbed whatever at my local garden center.) That being said - I’ve never trimmed them down…Should I? I want them to eventually act like a privacy fence so I’m scared to prune them - even though research I’ve done online tells me I can??
PS - I have a peegee that is all but planted in clay in my crappy yard and is TOTALLY thriving in morning shade - afternoon sun!
rip them out and start over! that’s what I did when the yard guy turned my evergreens to poodles.
Yews will grow back, they can be pruned to bare wood and new growth will fill them back in. That is what makes yews such a great shrub for lazy gardeners that don’t take care of their plants as they should, but the time to hack them back is late winter to early spring before new growth.
Greengirls Jaime Chismar, Connie Nelson, and Robyn Dochterman are dishin' the dirt from the backyard garden and beyond. Whether you're a greenthumb or greenhorn, they're eager to learn from your misshaps, mistakes -- and most importantly, your sweet successes -- all growing season long.
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