{{gwi:327571}}

Gee, evie, I wish I could help, but I don't have/don't know how to use a photo design program and I have never heard anyone on this forum talk about such a thing. Possibly someone does have it and will respond, but possibly not.

Just didn't want you to think that you were being ignored--just can't help you out. Sorry.

Kate

Me neither, sorry. 100 per cent behind Kate. But boy, I wish I could! Computer skills, even though I know a lot more than I used to, they are not very good, really

Anyway, Hopefully, there is someone around that can help you out, Good Luck!
Pauline - Vancouver Island

{{gwi:327573}}
There ya go.

Hi Evie,
I don't have the software either, but just thought I should suggest that maybe someone in the landscape design forum will have the software. I know that a few people in the cottage garden forum have posted using the software. I think a white picket fence with the roses would really go well with your house, if you are open to more work an arbor in the middle with a walkway to the front door would be so pretty, and you could have a flower bed on each side of the walkway.
Diana

Re white picket fences and deep south humidity.
Do you have to wash your home two or three times a year because of mold on the north and sometimes east side of the house?
If so, a white picket fence will have the same problem. Which would be worse if there were roses growing where you were going to need to be scrubbing.
I talked to a friend in New Orleans last night and he said this year is the worst for mold in at least 20...which reminded me of the problem that most folks don't know about until they notice that one side of their home is a lot blacker than the others.

{{gwi:327574}}

Here's a pic one of my garden friends came up with. Now I'm waiting for some color:) I'll do a fence not quite so wide and probably 2 rows of roses instead of 3, only one for now though. Not sure if the chain link fence will stay but she sure is on the right track, my vision is coming to life.

Thanks all. I may post this at the other forums as mentioned too.

TTYS,
~Evie

They are just too crazy for DH to cut at this time. A landscaper will do them Sunday, then DH will continue with the trimmings.

Evie, JMHO, but how about some changes in elevation of roses and fence? The design you posted brings the eye into too many horizontal lines and makes the house appear shorter and the lot smaller. Instead, why not consider a plant grouping around a new cascading 15-30' tree on the left corner of the lawn, something with curves instead of straight lines? That would bring the viewer's eye up and also balance the weight of the roofline at the right carport area. If you extend and reverse the curve that exists now with the boxwoods, you could bring it all the way down to the front of the property near the mailbox but more to the center. That creates some mystery and interest plus lots of intriguing planting area.

Sue

Something like this?

{{gwi:327575}}

ps I hang out in the landscape forum and youtube

The design above by pls8xx looks good, but I also like seattlesuze's idea of breaking up the horizontal lines by making a "grouping around a new cascading 15-30' tree on the left corner of the lawn." Personally, I like a little variety. Seems to me both these ideas could be combined into one larger design.

Kate

Wow, it's looking good:)

I like variety too but no trees please, hurricanes are their enemy down here and sometimes they swing right through a house roof.:) We freecycled a large palm that was in our front yard 2 years ago and replaced it with the small one (it will remain small enough to not take-over the house).

The bottlebrush tree you see to your right is related to the weeping willow and produces lovely red cascading blooms a couple times a year, they look like bottle brushes:) That tree is safe for now but may be replaced with a smaller one in a couple of years.

The hedges on the left side of the house will be trimmed using a chain saw this coming Sunday, half the width will be gone and trimmed to just under the window frames.

The round hedges in the front may get a haircut too but not much taken off.

I have 2 new roses I planted this year, one is a Gold Medal you can barely see it in this pic, near the window on the left side and I have a Double Delight in a small bed to the right behind the Monte, 2 more roses will be planted with it, I'm thinking Veteran'sHonor and Tiffany or equally as beautiful.

The 2 rose trees are inbetween flushes but look nice in full bloom, they have a red/orange color. will plant a mini rose named X-Rated in back of the mailbox post, it's being shipped out the week of 9/17. You can see what that rose looks like by clicking on the link below:)

I love the look of the fence Pls, just the right height and design:)

Thanks, am looking forward of seeing more artwork, you are helping me see my vision in true computer reality:)

Here is a link that might be useful: X-RATED ROSE

Evie, if you have "hurricane issues" there's no need to spend a fortune on a tree; it could as easily be a shrub, just something fairly large compared to the other plantings and off to the left side of the property to balance the 'corners.' If you count up the number and weight of the horizontal and vertical lines, you can see that the house is too heavily weighted on the horizontal. That squashes the image. Increase the verticals and you have a spacious, elevated feeling looking at a very pretty property. Good luck with your plans!

Sue

Thanks, you lost me though with all the vertical/horizontal talk...lol

I'm so new to this, trying to understand though:)

Just trying to picture in my mind what I'd like and see it in color. living color through the computer looks great:)

The white section on the front of the house, I've not liked since it got painted. I'd like to have a faux gray or red stone/brick up there.

Please feel FREE to play around with that as well:)

TTYS,
~Evie

Strongest horizontal lines are the bases of the two triangles that are the accented facings of the house (one white, one yellow), the fence lines, the window bases, windows and shutter bars. Vertical lines are the pillars, fence posts, and shutters. For maximum 'lift' of the house (to make everything appear expansive and spacious), you would increase vertical elements.

There's also a need to move away from geometric straight lines and that's why I recommended the tree and curved plantings. They add an element of restfulness, letting the eye flow forward over the harsher lines. Does that make any sense to you? I know what I see but it's sometimes difficult to pass it on. Wish I could draw it out for you.

Sue

Thanks for explaining, I think I understand better bow:)The mailbox post is a vertical line then.

I'll add some taller roses near the chain link fence and am thinking of removing the palm all together and replace with a ornamental vertical such as a tall statue, bird bath, etc.

I played around a little with a FREE software download earlier, is fun but they only allow you to do so much. My drawing is faint becasue I printed it out with very little colored ink, then scanned it into Photobucket. Since then I played some more and have the rose trees blooming and the tall (vertical) Gold Medal is in bloom under the window.
{{gwi:327576}}

I also changed the pant under the mailbox, have the rose I ordered there now in my edited version:)

I know it's difficult to see but beind the car where the post is, I have a white star jasmine vine climbing up. So that will even out the side in regards to the taller roses along the chain link fence.

Am I undestanding this right?

Vertical I've had my eye on for some time:)

I'll stop now but you're opening my eyes slowly but surely:)

Here is a link that might be useful: PVC Heron Bird

{{gwi:327577}}

This is just a little playing around, the pc is faint becasue my printer is low on colored ink and I scanned it but you get the idea:) Will add more of sue's design and change colors over time but this is a rough vision.

Evie, that's looking good. I like the taller roses along the left-hand fence. The other roses you've named are hybrid teas and grandifloras--some lovely choices. However, I was thinking for that left-hand fence, shrub roses might be more appropriate since they would be taller and wider than the hybrid teas. Since I'm not from your region, I don't know which ones would be best for you, but there are many beautiful shrub roses--modern and old garden roses--to choose from. Why don't you solicit some ideas from our GW posters? I'm thinking shrubs that get about 5 ft tall and 4 ft wide, let's say.

Just an idea. Scrap it if it doesn't fit in with your own vision of your yard--OK?

Kate

Thanks Kate, I'll listen to all ideas and would love to see more pics of visions:)

Evie, I agree with SeattleSuz and Ann. If I were you, I would drop the idea of the picket fence.

1.)The picket fence cuts the space into half and makes your yard look like if it were much smaller as it is.
2.)The fence makes the plan flat by overemphasizing the horizontal lines. Although the mailbox post is vertical, it cannot counterbalance the house and the picket fence because the picket fence is reinforcing even magnifying the horizontals.
3.) Since in the elevation of the house everything is square or linear, curved bed(s) would soften and counterbalance these lines instead of expanding it as the present plan would do.
4.)White Picket fences will become an unpleasant sight or chore in your climate (similar to my coastal southeast climate).

In my humble opinion, curved bed(s) starting along the chain link fence and curving to the front would look so much better.

The white fence will be vinyl so the probelm with it becoming unsightly, I really don't have a concern about.

I am a little hesitate about planting so many roses though, don't want it to be overpowering either.

Last night I was thinking of verticles that could be added, wil lthink of something:)

ceterum, I appreciate your comment. would you by chance have a design sketch you could post?

Evie, Who knew when you asked your questions that you would be taking design lessons!! LOL You're a good sport taking in all this information and I think you continue to move toward something that will be spectacular. I encourage you to take plenty of time and keep this thread going. We're all learning something from it. What a pretty property you have.

Sue

Being from a prairie state, I don't particularly object to horizontal designs. After all, Frank Lloyd Wright got rather famous for his horizontal prairie style. So, evie, if you like the white fence/row of roses, go with it and just tell people you were inspired by one of the all-time great architects!

But I would still put taller and wider roses along that left-hand fence. However, not mentioned by anyone, you could put several climbers along that left fence instead.

Kate

WOW----I know nothing about computer design .these pictures amaze me-----

Your house looks so cute with the picket fence-----

Florence

Evie, I am so sorry but I do not have a program to draw. I downloaded the program you mentioned in another thread but so far it does not want to open on my computer.

Kate, my area is as flat as any place can be. In addition, our two-story house is very square and has too many stressed horizontal lines. Therefore I took pain to use curved beds, circles, ovals and so forth and tried to avoid straight lines, especially in the front yard. Mine was just an opinion that can be considered or discarded as Evie wishes. No offense taken.

By the way, I agree that a few climbers well placed would be very enhancing and enchanting.

As to Frank Lloyd Wright, I agree, at least partially. I am a great admirer of his works although I saw most of his works only in various albums and art history books. But he is also the world famous architect of the Guggenheim museum, if I am not mistaken.

ceterum--I'm like you--hard to find a straight line of plants in my yard. I really like the suggestions you so generously gave for Evie's yard, but I didn't want her to feel pressured by our tastes which may not match her tastes. If she has her heart set on a white picket fence/row of roses, so be it. It may not be my style, but it is a perfectly good, although different, style, and that's all right. After all, as several posters have mentioned, the neat thing about a garden is that if you later decide you don't like it, all you have to do is dig it up and re-design.

Yes, Wright designed the Guggenheim--lots of horizontals (though none in a straight line, it is true).

To Evie: collect all the ideas you can, and then pick out a design that YOU like. I fervantly believe that the first job of any garden is to please the gardener.

Kate

Nobody has mentioned what is obvious to me ... Roses aren't going to stay that small in Florida. My minis here like to grow 5 feet tall. I chop them down 3 or 4 times a season, but they don't bloom until they grow really tall again. Gold Medal is 8 ft tall in my yard. I chop about 3 feet off of it every couple of months just to keep it at my height, plus I cut it to hip high during spring pruning. And Evie is in zone 9, so it's not like winter will slow them down!
My advice would be: If you want the picket fence to be visible from the street then either A) plant the roses on your side of the fence, or B) plant perennials along the fence. The fence does look really cute with your house.
If I was going to hide the chain link side fence then I would plant climbers along it. Grandifloras and Hybrid Teas are going to have "knobby knees" that leave the first 2 or 3 feet of the chain link fence visible unless you underplant them with small shrubs or perennials that grow 2 feet tall.
An example of how fast and tall roses get in hot zones: over half of the roses planted this spring, as in 07, are already 5ft tall. Some of them are 8ft wide already. Imagine the maintenance involved in keeping them low enough for that fence! And then imagine how many blooms you will sacrifice by having to chop the rose bushes down every 2 months!
I'm just trying to be practical here, I would hate for you to plant and then realize later that plants on CD do not look like plants in Florida.
I don't have any way to draw this on your picture, but if it was my yard I would look long and hard at this: Climbing plants along the chain link, then stagger them along the front yard all the way to the driveway. Don't make it a 90 degree angle, but a flowing curve. Kind of make the flow of the curve duplicate that cute row of evergreens that you've got angled across the front. I think that I would even make a complete C out of the flowy curve and make the bed end 5 feet away from the evergreens. I would keep the picket fence going straight across the yard, but at the left hand corner of your side of the fence the flower bed would be wider there because it would be in the middle of the C.
But I'm no garden designer so take that idea with a grain of salt. You would have to mark it out with a garden hose to see if it would even work. Then you'd need to figure out how big some of the roses you want will get in Florida and see if they will fit in the space you want them in.

{{gwi:327578}}

I'm thinking Joseph's Coat:) Will be back tomorrow to answer more posts, half asleep rright now.

Here you can see it from a different view. I went out last night and measured the length, it's over 50 feet long. When I plant the high HT's (probably Climbers), should I go only to where the hedges are planted? With roses on one side and hedges on the other, it doesn't leave much space for walking. Our hedges are going to get a major cut-back this coming Sunday, half of the width and cut down below the window frames. I'm getting so sick of watching my neighbors use their yard as a parking lot and when they do back something in, they always manage to hit the fence, pushing it out a little more every time:( Thanks, ~Evie

Well, even the picket fence could be used in a way that it does not cut the front yard into two and by doing this dwarfs the vista.

Evie, I cannot draw due to lack of program but I can post a few picks of my yard if you are interested.
One picture would show the mistake we did when in haste we set up a very long and very narrow bed planted with throny climbers. That time we were concerned about our horrid neighbor and his untrained attack dogs jumping over the fence and run me over) but now I am frustrated that we cannot change the setup - it would cost a lot of money and too much energy.

Other photos could show some curved beds: some are better, some are far from being perfect.

Evie, I am so sorry but I do not have a program to draw. I downloaded the program you mentioned in another thread but so far it does not want to open on my computer.

Kate, my area is as flat as any place can be. In addition, our two-story house is very square and has too many stressed horizontal lines. Therefore I took pain to use curved beds, circles, ovals and so forth and tried to avoid straight lines, especially in the front yard. Mine was just an opinion that can be considered or discarded as Evie wishes. No offense taken.

By the way, I agree that a few climbers well placed would be very enhancing and enchanting.

As to Frank Lloyd Wright, I agree, at least partially. I am a great admirer of his works although I saw most of his works only in various albums and art history books. But he is also the world famous architect of the Guggenheim museum, if I am not mistaken.

Evie, how about considering clematis for the area across from the hedge? They'll provide screening, flowers, color and won't impede your pathway. Viticellas could be wonderful and very easy care.

Sue

Thanks Sue,

Madame Julia Correvon caught my eye, Digger Dave's Photo at helpmefind.com is fantastic. I've also thought of jasmine too but at this time I really have my mind set on roses.

The next Tampa Rose Society meeting is this coming Tuesday evening but I may call my rosarian local friend before that and have him stop by.

Would love to see pics of everyone's gardens too:)

Once again, I want to thank everyone for your help and keeping this thread alive:)

I'll take this project one step at a time, guess the first thing is to decide what will be planted at the chain link fence. I had that fence ready to give away 2 years ago but they asked that I keep it up for 2 months, until they would replace the entire fence surrounding their property. You can see what happened there:(

If I plant roses there, then DH won't have to trim them, I will. If I plant clematis or jasmine, that's added work on him so I'm thinking about doing the roses. I need to make sure they're the right ones though, don't want them to trail 20 feet...lol I'll be underplanting with lily of the valley and daylilies, at least that's what I have in mind for the time being:)

The Grandiflora Gold Medal is a baby, only been in the ground since the day after Mother's Day, I'm trying to shape it now. It's been cut back a few times, 2 canes have recently been cut back about 3 feet to promote new canes. The plant is coming along nicely.

The mini X-Rated will be planted behind the mailbox post in a couple of weeks, it's on order from Nor'East. In front of the post, I'm planning on planting a few bulbs, not sure what yet.

The 2 rose trees in the front near the center window are growing new leaves, getting ready for the 4th flush. They are Trumpeter and very colorful (red) when in bloom.

Anyways, this is fun and I'm really enjoying all of the suggestions, each and every one.

TTYS,
~Evie

http://www.prizmvinylcorp.com/gallery.asp

http://www.daniellefence.com/picket.html

http://www.bravofence.com/others.php

Thought you'd like to browse:)

Well, just got off the phone with a fence company. Mind you, this isn't Home Depot, prices are no where near the same.

Next Monday, a rep will be visiting my home, scheduled for an estimate. I just want to get an idea, cost wise. PVC (vinyl) fencing is expensive...

Will modern curved fencing help with adding interest to the design, instead of a straight across effect?

Here's the company website.

Here is a link that might be useful: Fence Outlet

Quick boot to the top.

I haven't continued this project yet but also haven't discarded the idea either. The estimate for the fencing was totally out of the question so I've been working on a different curved rose bed for now:)

Thought I'd bring this thread back to the top since reading other discussions about fencing:)

Evie,

If you really want the white fence why not just use it in the corners. I did this at my old house and I had a Buff Beauty spilling up and over the fence. This would allow you to use curved beds everywhere else and yet still allow for one rose in each fenced corner to grow to the sizes expected in your climate.

I don't have a pic of my old set up but here is one from the internet as an idea:

I would plant the rose behind the fencing and maybe put perennials in front of the fence (street side)

Here is mine at the old house....of course you can see that in this picture I havent planted the Buff Beauty yet. On the other corner (not seen here)I had Mrs Dudley Cross. {{gwi:327580}}

That's a great idea, Rhonda!

Carol

Evie, looking at your picture there are several things that come to my mind:

1. I like your idea of taking out the palm tree. It gives a tropical look which doesn't go with the roses and the boxwoods.

2. The boxwoods have very solid green, sculptured shapes compared to the relatively shapeless, more open roses. Perhaps you could have some more boxwoods near the roses to integrate the two ideas.

3. The hedge under the windows seems to have no purpose and is much too wide. Would it be possible to take out some of those bushes and let the others grow into a more natural shape?

4. Roses just by themselves often look boring. You have a really cute house that would lend itself to a cottage style yard. In other words, among the roses plant irises, lavenders and other perennials that do well in your area and that you like. The effect will be much softer and prettier, and you'll be able to incorporate purples, blues and other colors and shapes to complement the roses.

I hope this is of some help for you. Everyone has different ideas but one thing to keep in mind is that everything should look integrated and harmonious in a garden, both in terms of color and size and density.

Good luck!

Ingrid