Beginner Gardening: Need ideas for front yard of Tudor revival-style home, 1 by jcoakley

jcoakley wrote:
A little background: we've been in our home for going on 4 years this summer. The backyard had been landscaped by one owner & then allowed to overgrow by the next owner. So we've spent a lot of time cleaning that up. Now it's on to the front. The house faces west. Due to trees and proximity to neighboring home, it gets full sun on the south corner & mostly shade on the north corner. The center gets full sun. My husband has chopped down two of the four yews that were there when we moved in (but still needs to remove the stumps) and I have dug up and thrown out gallons upon gallons upon gallons of lava rock (UGH). There is quite a bit of clay in the soil so I know it needs to be amended, which we plan to do this fall. So far, since we have begun clean up of the area, tulips & hyacinths have appeared in the spring in that section between the yews. I also planted a clematis which I am trying to train to climb that little section of fence which I had found in the rafters of our garage. Last fall I put in daffodil bulbs, of which a few came up & bloomed this spring, but I think I need to move them b/c I don't think the soil drains well enough where they are. In the bed on the left (the shady north corner) I put in bergenia & astilbe this spring. But now I need suggestions for a flowering shade loving shrub to put in that corner, as well as some ideas for other perennials in the center area around the clematis and in the bed on the south side. I'm thinking about a eunonymous (burning bush) on the south corner. Any thoughts? Any & all suggestions welcome; TIA!


This message was edited May 30, 2008 2:36 PM