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nicholas_scilingo

Clean Slate in desperate need of help v.2

Nicholas Scilingo
11 years ago

My wife and I recently (2 years ago) purchased a home where the landscaping was really neglected. Last year we started removing all of the overgrown shrubs and will be removing the rest this weekend.

We will now have a clean slate to start from. And would love to see and see and hear all of the suggestions.

1. We have a lot of deer activity.

2. My wife would like to include azaleas in the mix some how.

3. While the walkway will be changed sooner than later. It has to be in the same general area as to the right we have a septic system.

4. The second picture is of the left side of the house where our sun porch is located. In this area we would love to have something nice to look at while we drink our coffee in the morning and eat dinner in the evening.
{{gwi:22935}}From landscaping
{{gwi:22936}}From landscaping

Comments (13)

  • PRO
    Yardvaark
    11 years ago

    I suggest you also post a picture that looks outward from inside the sunroom.

  • Nicholas Scilingo
    Original Author
    11 years ago

    Yardvaark ... Will do! - Thank you for the suggestion.

    I will post a panorama of the view from the sun porch later once I get home.

  • designoline6
    11 years ago

    I like azaleas too.but it don't need sun light so much.add some trees.
    {{gwi:22937}}

  • designoline6
    11 years ago

    I continue.Maybe you get much response.
    {{gwi:22938}}

  • karinl
    11 years ago

    What resulted in few answers to your last post was probably not design-o-line's responses but the nature of your question. It sounds more or less as if you are looking for someone to design this for you. In fact, the forum functions more as a support for designing it yourself - there are exceptions, and sometimes a challenge will particularly interest one or two people.

    The forum is not meant to be a design service, but rather to discuss issues and problems, and often principles, of landscape design. If you have no issues, no complicated objectives that you can't see your way clear to, then very few people will see much scope for discussion.

    Finally, landscaping is done not only for places, but for people. Three consecutive owners of this house might have three completely different ideas of what the right landscape solution is. That will depend not only what their vision is, but also what their capability is to design a space, select plants, and build, tend, and maintain what they envision.

    And in fact, you've somewhat shared what your vision is, and if all that is left is the plant selection, you don't really need the forum anyway. What you need is spending time at your local nurseries seeing what is available and learning about it. And maybe, figuring out where you will put a fence to dissuade the deer :-)

    If you are not sure what you want, other landscaping resources besides this forum may be much better for you, such as books and magazines (buy used, the principles don't change) because they present the material in a logical and often seasonal format.

    Karin L

  • catkim
    11 years ago

    Focusedonsound: Please feel free to continue your discussion.

  • tanowicki
    11 years ago

    For your sun porch, you have a lot of grass leading up to a mass of shrubs around the house. I would thin out some of the shrubs and create some open areas/planting beds in the vacated shrub area and expanding into the lawn. As for plants, I would suggest two areas to ask - one is a local nursery which should have some advice as to what grows in your region and what may be more deer resitant.

    The other would be a local native plant society. The reason I'm suggesting the latter is that if you increase the native plants, you'll likely increase the native bugs leading to an increase in bird activity. You may also want to add some bird baths or other water source. The increase in birds will give you something additional to look at from the porch.

    Do you have a door that exits from the sun porch to the yard? If it does, you may want to consider adding some paths or a small seating area with a chair or two to enjoy a bit of time outside if the weather's warm. designonline's second sketch is a more exuberant version of this idea.

  • reyesuela
    11 years ago

    I've had good luck with the Williamsburg deer-resistant plant list, though I'm in MD.

    You have to be really careful about azaleas. Some deer won't touch. Others, they eat to the ground.

  • IowaGma
    11 years ago

    KarenL - pretty much confused by your answer - it seems to me that the things you're saying this forum isn't for are exactly the things discussed/advice given/suggestions made I've seen in nearly every thread I've read. When I read the original post, I was thinking, "Yes, this guy has outlined his desires & goals, etc., just like everyone is always asking the posters to do." So I was doubly surprised by your answer. In the past I've always thought your posts have been thoughtful & courteous, so maybe I'm missing something here.

    This forum tends to be blunt, compared to some of the others I've read, but it's disappointing that the OP, who appears to have joined specifically to ask for this advice, ended up not even returning.

  • deviant-deziner
    11 years ago

    I like the subject matter that tanowicki has brought up : attracting birds to the garden.
    I've got this like vs. dislike thing going on with the birds in my garden.
    The birds in my hood have terrible singing voices. No disrespect meant to my neighborhood birds, if they're reading this, but they squawk like that woman who played The Nanny in that 1980's TV show. Horrible.
    And they poop all over my outdoor furniture and shiny new red truck.
    I don't care for them too much.
    They annoy my Jack Russell dog too by dropping fruit pits and nuts on her as she naps outside . It's some kind of weird Mutual of Wild Omaha game that has me baffled. They squawk, she barks. I shout 'shut up'. It's not pretty.
    They are obviously getting a laugh out of this.
    So I'm not really all that up for inviting the birds - at least the kind of a feather that come into my hood.

    On another note, No one here is the abiter of the forum.

  • deviant-deziner
    11 years ago

    duh, meant to write
    ... arbiter.

  • designoline6
    11 years ago

    It are enough that We obey this forum's rules.I wish the forum have 50 millions members ,more people know and like the forum,have enough different opinions,free.I don't think the forum need a arbiter or a leader or add other rules.

  • tanowicki
    11 years ago

    d-d, we also have crows which squawk horribly but they tend to be more on the street side of the house. The blue jays also have an awful singing voice.

    By adding some little bird food in crow proof feeders in the backyard, we seem to have increased the number of little chirpy birds which are more amusing. Except at 5 am when little chirpy birds chirp endlessly. Our cats are indoor only so they are amused by the bird activity through the window.