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| I usually lurk around on the Trees or Shrubs forums asking questions of questionable merit, LOL. But now I'm getting closet to another stage in my never-ending yard work.....working on the flowers. I've had a couple of boxwoods flanking the front walkway to my house for a while, but they were really hit hard by the past winter's cold temps. They are now about 1/4 of what you see in the attached picture taken last Halloween, in the lower left and right corners. So it's time to replace them with something that looks a bit more attractive. I would like to do something with perennial flowers where the boxwoods are rather than shrubs. Eventually, I'll probably run perennials all the way to the stairs. I like color, and the less work they need, the better as I have a lifetime of work ahead of me with this place and the half acre yard. Butterfly and insect friendly are good as well. I have a couple of large Salvias in my back yard that I was considering, but am rethinking that as they have gotten a bit unruly and their centers are not as attractive as they were. The front of the house faces east, and this location does not get blasted with the hard, long summer sun that the back yard does. They will get plenty of sun and filtered light. Comments and suggestions welcome! Thanks, vince |
This post was edited by farmboy1 on Wed, Jun 25, 14 at 1:17
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| What a beautiful place! And, yes, you have your hands full. Native perennials and/or native shrubs are best for the butterflies and insects. Perennials usually only bloom for part of the spring or summer, so a mixture of plants that bloom at different times is ideal. I also include some annuals in the mix to guarantee blooms most of the summer. As far as specifics, coneflowers, snapdragons, salvias, penstemon, milkweeds, dill and parsley for black swallowtails, lupine, rudbeckia, liatris, columbine, anise hyssop, monardas, lavender, asters, etc. Shrubs, which it looks as if you might have room for, could include Spicebush, viburnums, high bush cranberry, blueberries, and more. That's a decent start off the top of my head. I'm sure others will chime in with more suggestions. You will have a beautiful spot, even if you do absolutely nothing. Good luck. Martha |
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- Posted by gardenweed_z6a N CT (My Page) on Wed, Jun 25, 14 at 7:56
| My house faces east as well but is shaded by mature oak trees and a crabapple. I've planted a dozen or more hosta varieties under the crabapple along with variegated Solomon's seal, astilbe, globeflower, lady's mantle, coral bells, toad lily, columbine, carnation, bleeding heart, black snakeroot & turtlehead, none of which require any attention from me whatsoever other than admiration. All are planted with the benefit of pollinators foremost in mind. With sufficient sun, coreopsis, Shasta daisy and perennial geranium could be added to the list along with butterfly bush, blue mist shrub & catmint. |
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| I would suggest a mix of smaller shrubs and larger perennials for less maintenance and 4 seasons of interest. Like gardenweed I recommned the buddleia bushes & caryopteris, plus spireas 'Galen', 'Lemon Princess', 'Ogon', baptisia australis, tancetum 'Isla Gold', taller siberian iris cultivars, salvia 'Caradonna', penstemon 'Dark Towers', herbaceous clematis 'Roguchi' which you can grown through a 3 ft obelisk, iris pallida 'Vareigata', geranium sanguineum which make neet little mounds. The list is endless. |
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| Thanks for all the great info! I am trying to avoid most shrubs as they will eventually become larger shrubs, and be too large for the location without a lot of pruning. Example, one 8' tall Buddleia died back to the ground and was slow coming back. It's already 3' tall. Likewise, I have 250+ hostas already (closer to 300 if I divide them) in shaded areas. They could also get sunburnt or pretty big in this location unless I get some minis that stay mini. I would like to add some color, and also some texture that isn't easily found elsewhere in the yard. I'll be looking through the suggested ones carefully.... Again, thanks! vince |
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