Right Plant, Right Place

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Let’s start with the most common mistake people make when planting trees and shrubs. Almost invariably I see foundation plantings literally hugging the concrete. Shrubs are like puppies- so cute and little when you buy them but the next thing you know you’re struggling with a Saint Bernard on your lap and a mugho pine barring the front door! Research what it will be as a mature specimen, believe what the tag says, then add 25%! Being armed with a proper idea of scale assures your success, and saves you hundreds of hours of pruning, after which the plant was going to win anyway.

The next most popular faux pas are guards at the door. You didn’t want company anyway?! Always create a happy smile across the front of your house, using tallest specimens at the farthest points from the door and working your way to the shortest either side of the front steps. To add to the invitation to come on in never, (and I mean never!) lay a walkway at right angles to the house and drive. Since the beginning of time no man has ever walked this way. Landscaping is really all about “cutting corners” or hiding them. Curvaceous is the key- that leads us to shaping a planting. What you most want to do is disguise any 90° angle created by the house, walk, driveway or patio. Tallest corners of the house require taller trees or shrubs to accomplish this. Beds shaped out and away in soft curves from these anchor plants finish the job. Even a softly shaped bed away from the house can help disguise those unnatural 90° angles.

Each species of plant has it’s own special needs. You need to be aware of what those needs are and accommodate them. Stay away from invasive varieties (lovely as they may look) and try not to go with a formal plan or your life will not be your own. The more formal the look, the more care it requires, and invasive plants are just that, they’ll take over your yard in a very short time.

Landscaping can be an expensive venture so make a five year plan to accomplish what you want to do. Since a lawn is by far the most costly and the most necessary begin with that. However keep in mind where you want the planting beds, why pay for seed or sod just to tear it out again. Bark mulch the beds and let them be.

The next most important items are trees, you want your house to look like it grew there not like it landed from outer space! Trees “ground” a house but only once they are big enough, so get them started as soon as possible. Larger specimens are more expensive but you really only need three to get the job done.

Third step-evergreen anchors, especially for the foundation planting at the front of the house, because they are slower to mature then deciduous plants.

Shrubs and perennials are next, most flowering shrubs are as big as you’ll ever want them in three years, perennials are even quicker and they can fill in spaces that can’t accommodate a shrub.

Last but not least annuals- use them in the first few years all those cute little plants aren’t covering the space they will when mature, and they can give you a spot of color that can change with your taste, so your design isn’t static. Always leave a little spot to “play” with.  Happy designing!