A make over of this full sun area

I really need a big change on this area. It's facing east, gets all day long sun. The dirt is a bit clay, but lots of gravel in it. Tried to get rid of them, but seem like they are very persistent to stay there ): Unless I have to dig more than 2 feet, but its impossible to do, unless I's break this fence (hubby disagree about this).

Since I'm a beginner gardener, I need your suggestion what plants are suitable for this area. What I want to do is having 4-5 rows of plants with different time of blooming and also drought resistant.
1. Flowering evergreen plant as the back drop with mature high less than 5 feet.
2. Evergreen for front row with about 2 feet high.
3. One row of perennial for center area
4. Another one-two rows for the center of flowering bulb.

Thank you so much

Day lilies and coneflowers could handle your clay/gravel soil and they both have fairly long bloom seasons. And of course with the day lilies, you can use different colors for lots of color. Coreopsis would be pretty too. I'm not sure about the flowering evergreen plant--are you planning to expand the depth of your bed or leave it narrow as it is now? Are you planning to use a vine or shrubs for your flowering evergreen? Size of the plants you choose will make quite a difference on what you can put in there.

Thanks NatureLover,

Yes, I will expend the depth for about a feet which will make it 4 feet wide. I think want to use shrubs because if I use vine it will too heavy for the fence. But if there is a vine which easy to control, I will consider planting that too. The problem is I do not know much about plants.

I have a star jasmine vine in an east-facing flowerbed that stays evergreen but I don't know if it would in your area. I have mine in a very large clay pot with a trellis in it. I've used green plastic plant tie to train it to the trellis. It looks so pretty and smells wonderful when it blooms. Clematis is not evergreen but it's a beautiful vine that will only need a trellis. It will climb on it's own and is relatively easy to care for. Most shrubs will take up the whole 4-foot width of your garden so you might want to consider, instead of putting the shrubs in the background, space them out and put your flowers in between and in front of them. I did that in my front flowerbeds and it looks nice. I put tall shrubs on both outside ends and dwarf shrubs in the middle. On either side of the porch stairs I put tall day lilies. If you purchase plants, try sitting them out in the pots first. Play around with your arrangement until the look pleases you. That way you won't have to keep digging things up to move them. Another thing I did was run searches on every plant before I purchased it to find out if it would survive in my zone, the length of the bloom season (long bloom time is good in my opinion!), if it would be bothered by lots of insects, and how much water it would need (I like drought tolerant). If you do that, it could save you a lot of work and heartache. And keep asking questions on DG--these folks love to help!

Thanks again NatureLover,

I like your idea about planting tall and dwarf shrubs in between. I have 'Carolina' Jasmine, planted under the deck as below picture with less sun than. Do you think it's OK to plant them on this fence site? Not too hot? They are evergreen in Nashville. I like them even mine is not fragrant.
I think I will plant few clusters of different iris on the 4nd or 3rd (depend on their high) coneflower, coreopis on the 3rd row. Second raw I think I will plant daffodil. For the first row I know what to plant, I have them, but I forgot their name. I have them plated under dogwood tree. I copy my blog here, so that you might able knowing wht it is. http://davesgarden.com/community/blogs/t/betra/9866/
Oh, I wont actually plant in straight row, but will do a zig zag, so that they will have enough room to grow and fills the empty space between the two plants.

For somebody who doesn't know much about plants, you've done a wonderful job on your yard! Everything is beautiful. Sounds like you're headed in the right direction with your bed in front of the fence. Carolina jasmine is very pretty. We have it growing all over the woods around here and I just love seeing it in bloom every spring. I think it would be a very pretty addition to your flowerbed.

Hi Betra,

Just browsing through the forum and saw this post...I'm struggling with trying to do something with a very similar area in my yard...also wondering what to plant.

I'm in Mt. Juliet, so I have the same type of rocky, clay soil filled with gravel. I realized that every time it rains, more of the soil is getting washed away and more gravel appears so it seems to never go away!
But, what I've decided to do is collect it and use it as part of my fill gravel a base for the stone wall/edging I'm going to put around the flower bed. Now, I don't mind it so much that I have a use for it!

I enjoyed seeing your pictures. I noticed that you have some bamboo. Where did you get it from? I've been looking occasionally for some, but haven't seen any in the area...

Hope you can post some more pictures!

I think an evergreen shrub that is pretty is Chinese Fringe Flower (loropetalum). It has pretty, fringy magenta flowers in the spring. The foliage is a pretty mauve-tinted green year round. It has pretty, arching branches, so it's not formal-looking and fits into a perennial garden nicely. I'm in GA and have a full-sun perennial garden, so I'm always looking for those drought-tolerant plants, too. Rudbeckia, coneflowers and Shata daisies work well. Those are all around 2-3'. I also really love May Night salvia, which for me is very drought tolerant and puts up with average soil. It's only about 12" tall, so works well in the front of a border, as would daylilies, as someone mentioned. A good back of the border plant is Joe Pye weed. Good luck with your project!

Hi all, sorry for not posting for long time. I was so busy. School already started since Aug 25, talking 16 hours credit this semester. So I am a full time student, full time wife and half full time mom (because one of my two kids is in Australia) and part time worker. Oh forgot to mention, a gardener too. LOL.

Naturelover,
Thanks. Two weeks ago I found quite big (3 gallon) carolina jasmine insidently. Before I found it I actually just said to my husband that I have to wait until spring to get this flower due to nursery seem like only carry spring flowering flower during spring or early summer. But, when I went to farmer's market to get fresh produce, I went to nursery next to it, it's my favo nursery anyway. They have one carolina jasmine at discounted price ($34). I though that quite a good bargain, because their vine already so long. So i bought it. Plant it on this project bed.
This I what I did couple of weeks ago.
Went to McMinville to get cheaper plant (I am a bargain person)LOL. Bought coral bell, yellow coreopsis, butterfly bush( pink & purple), lantern roses, double decker corn flower, seezeweed. Plant them all in tha bed, except lantern roses. I kept my lilac, rhododendron and hisbiscus. Moved clematis from mail box area (did not do well there) and doing great in this area now. I ordered a lot of bulbs (tulip,daffodil,hyacinth, anemone, 3 different type of iris, cannot remember what else did I buy). These bulbs will be planted on this bad. Now I guess I just wait. It said will be delivered end of Sep.

Gaijingirl,
Good to know someone from same area! But I think I never been to Mt. Juliet before.
The gravel next to our fence was from our old neighbor when they had gravel driveway. At that time we have not married yet. My husband bought this house before we get married.
According to my husband, their truck always splash away these gravels to our yard, which make difficult to mow the lawn. So, he built this fence. Anyway, two years ago, they old neighbor sold their house, and new developer torn that house, build a new one.
So that the story of our gravel.

Speaking about bambo, I got it from Babylon Nursery last year. It next to farmer's market on 8th avenue. You may check with them if they still selling it.

Erdooley,
I agree, the chinese fringe is very nice flower. I have 2 of them planted on the curb infront of the house. Mine is not so much flower during last spring. I planted them last year from 2 gallon pot. Maybe I have to wait few years until the fully bloom.

Naturelover1950 said.....space them out and put your flowers in between and in front of them. I did that in my front flowerbeds and it looks nice. I put tall shrubs on both outside ends and dwarf shrubs in the middle. On either side of the porch stairs I put tall day lilies. If you purchase plants, try sitting them out in the pots first. Play around with your arrangement until the look pleases you......

Naturelover1950, what a great suggestion! I'm brand new here and hopelessly incompetent at gardening, but I want to learn. I have a front bed that is very sad and has several medium sized shrubs and a few BIG open dead spaces (me and Roundup). The shrubs that survived look OK, but nothing special. I wanted to sort of raise and slope the beds and add flowers for color. I live in a subdivision where everyone has beautiful front flower beds and I want mine to look nice, too. I love day lilies and they are available everywhere here in Louisiana, so your idea sounds ideal to me.

I also want to establish something pretty and carefree along my wooden fence in the backyard and I bet day lilies would work there, too. What would you suggest? I plan to to try and sell my home next year after retiring and in this market, I'll need all the help I can get. Do you think I can get it looking nice in a year to a year and a half?

I love Better Homes and Gardens for their garden plans.
You have to register but it's free.
http://www.bhg.com/gardening/plans/

Bluestone has a great advanced search to find plants suited for specific area
http://www.bluestoneperennials.com/b/bp/adv_search_mod.html?id=HMepdLn8

HI all, thanks for the feedback last year.
Now I want to share what is the area look like now. I should have taken the picture when the tulips were blooming. This picture taken today when daffodil has started to fade.
Last year this area was nearly empty, but now too crowded. I planted about 100 tulips, 100 daffodil, coral bell, coreopsis, and many others. Waayyyy too many!. I guess I have to redo this area again.
Thanks again for the help!
Happy spring
Betra

Another picture from different angle

Wow amazing difference.

Thanks Flowerjen,
That's why I really love about Dave's garden. I learn a lot from the fellow gardener here.
Betra