After! Our Landscape Makeover

Finally! We finished our major landscape makeover this weekend!

It has been an ongoing project for at least a month now. Was it necessary? Absolutely. We started with a half-dead leaning evergreen, enormous overgrown barberry bushes, and an odd mishmash of lilies planted willy nilly that the deer were eating before they could even bloom.

 The entryway felt tight and dark and uninviting. So we removed the giant bushes, took out all the useless black plastic edging in the gardens, and reworked the stone for a hardscape garden border. Then the fun job of replanting could begin.

And here's the result of our labors!

It's always a good idea to add some evergreens for all year interest. I like to have them at the back of a garden because they will provide a nice backdrop for showy spring and summer annuals. Here, we planted a row of boxwood flanked by two lime green arbor vitae.

We planted three Let's Dance Moonlight hydrangeas around a pink dogwood tree.

I added some carpet drift peach roses for long lasting color.

I love spirea bushes for all season interest. These Magic Carpet spirea are low growing, and look at how beautiful they are in their fall foliage!

I can never have enough hydrangea! Annabelle hydrangeas are some of my favorites for their large white blossoms and easy care. They add a nice golden color in the fall, too.  And behind it, I transplanted a clematis to grow along the back wall.

The dogwood tree has a lovely leaf that changes color, too. This is one reason I like to plant in the fall. You can see firsthand what the foliage will look like in the late season. It's also a great time to get fantastic deals. We got most of our bushes for half off!

So much better!

At the island, where the evergreen was leaning, we planted a star magnolia, a nice ornamental flowering tree which will grow to about ten to fifteen feet. We surrounded it with some low growing juniper. I love the lime green color! I also planted some pink carpet drift roses here for color in spring and summer.

A butterfly bush sits in one corner. I plan on adding a lot of perennials next year to attract the birds, bees and butterflies.

And here's the house view from the sidewalk and street. So much friendlier. The neighbors have been very encouraging. Everyone stops and tells us how much they like the changes.

We have such a lovely view of the woods next to our house. I really wanted the landscape to reflect the natural environment, and I think it does.

By the way, there are a lot of additions to the garden that you cannot see. That's because I planted over five hundred bulbs for spring blooming. Daffodils, hyacinths, and so many others. Basically, if the package said that it was deer resistant, I put it in the ground. Now I just have to hope that the squirrels don't dig for buried treasure!

I'm also trying hard to grow some grass in the bare patches. The destruction phase of landscaping probably didn't help. I've been over-seeding and hoping that the autumn rains will work their magic. Perhaps that will be a job for the spring. But for now, I'm happy to have the yard and gardens nice and tidy for the seasons ahead.

Thanks for visiting the cafe today!