Are you allergic to bees? If so, I understand your concern, however if you are not allergic, the bees won't bother you if you don't bother them :-) They are focused on the plants, pollen and nectar and could care less about what you're serving for dinner. And they tend to be early fellows, about their business first thing in the morning and through the day and retire in the late afternoon and evening, just when you are most likely to be using your patio.

But if they are a sincere problem to you, maybe something like Lonicera nitida 'Lemon Beauty' would work (as would other cultivars like 'Baggeson's Gold' or 'Silver Beauty', but LB is the best of these). To 3-4' and as wide, although easily pruned or sheared to size. And there is always boxwood or Japanese holly or even a row of dwarf conifers. Santolina is also a nice choice and a bit different. It can bloom but these are easily sheared off.

btw, that's a killer view!! You are very lucky to have such a scenic setting for a patio.

Definitely a view of views.

Maybe a hedge of dwarf variegated Holly would coordinate with your existing feel. Beautiful rock garden below as well.

Another nice soft feel would be to use a hedge of Tsuga canadensis 'Gentsch White' which is a very common and underused plant.

Dax

Thank you! I love the view!! This will be our 3rd summer living here and all the landscaping we (mostly me) did from scratch!! My rock garden is my favorite this year. I can't wait to add to it!

It's not that I'm allergic to bees, in fact, generally I don't mind them at all, but these shrubs attract tons of them. And I have a little 2 year old granddaughter who runs around the patio and my dog chases the bees. The bees are ALWAYS there, too.

The Lonicera nitida 'Lemon Beauty' is nice, but I think it's too small. I really wanted something that grows about 4-5 ft. Don't most hollies have thorny leaves? I don't want prickly leaves around the patio.

A soft needle dwarf conifer might be okay. Maybe even a variegated type. What do you think of some shorter types of Rhododendrons or evergreen Viburnums or possibly Mexican Orange (Choisya) shrubs? Or maybe an Euonymus?

Let me know what you think?

You're in the land of rhododendrons of course. I think they're wonderful. Believe it or not, I would have recommended Escallonia from the get-go. That was on my to do list when I worked as a nurseryman in Portland, OR each day. Loved em.

Euonymous are a dime a dozen so maybe you would like something else. Viburnums will produce berries which I don't know but assume could stain your patio so that's to be considered by you. You'd have to look into that a little further.

Daphne's are a great option. Lots of variegated or non-variegated selections for your neck of the woods. The Dapne odora's, and burkwoodii's would look fantastic. Here's a short list of Daphne's I've collected over the years here on GW that caught my eye:
Daphnes to look into and see what they look likeÂgiraldii, mezereum, cneorum, ÂBriggs MoonlightÂ, caucasicum and arbuscula; ÂSummer IceÂ
ÂSummer IceÂÂrepeat bloomer all summer z5.

Also, here's an online nursery called 'Variegated Foliage Nursery'. Although completely across the country, they have a lot of nice stuff. Semi-Evergreen Abelia's, etc -
Variegated Foliage Nursery

And here's a Garden Web members photo albums of a lady who is an exceptional gardener, has similar colorful layouts as you, and she has a lot of Daphnes. You'll thoroughly enjoy all her photos.
Monique Gallery

Enjoy! Good luck!

Dax

Thanks Dax for the links. My garden should only look as beautiful as Monique's!! Ahh..maybe someday. I really liked the Escallonia's but with the bees...and the fact that they keep flowering all season, the bees are constantly there. I'll find someplace to move them were they will thrive and the bees won't bother anybody.

You are right about the Euonymous, they are quite boring. I was looking into the Daphne's, but saw that they are frost sensitive. I live just west of the Cascade foothills and we do get snow, ice and frost here during the winter. My climate is more severe than the City of Seattle. I'm not sure they would survive here.

I was looking at some varieties of Azalea's and Rhodes and I think I will concentrate on those varieties. We have lots of deer and elk around here and they come right up on the patio. They have nibbled on the Escallonia's quite a bit, but I'm sure they will come back. But, I believe, they don't particularly care for Rhode's or Azalea's too much. And, you are so right, rhododendron is our state flower here, I should have a few in my landscape.

Also, I see that your specialty is conifers. I love conifers, too! We have lots of different varieties, although, mostly large douglas firs, deodor cedars, australian pines, weeping AK cedar, and more. But, I don't have too many drawf varieties. What do you think of the Drawf Japanese Cypress "Sungold" shrub? I think they are pretty cool and might be a good choice for the patio border.

Thanks for your help!
Judy

They're nice Judy. Bold!

You got it all there. The Euonymous to rid myself of calling any shrub 'typical' really are attractive though! However, they're prone to disease and bugs it always seems. They are a broadleaf evergreen though and your climate is king for these.

Rhododendrons. There never could be too many of these planted anywhere. At first I thought the large-leafed varieties might not fit your vibe there and then I thought the little leaf of the Azaleas would be a better choice... then I thought 'PJM' or any of it's hybridized neighbors would be a great choice. Fall color being another asset of these. Now I realize I've given this far too much thought and the large leaved varities seem like the likely choice.

Cut me off, I can't smile anymore!

And oh yah! I miss out of the conifers you mention, most, The Deodar Cedars. Every so often I awake and I've been dreaming about the landscapes of the neighborhoods I've lived in or the natural beauty of Oregon. My current job as a conifers man is to create my own setting for 1/10th the price here!

No mountain view though! lol

Best,

Dax

Thank you for all your suggestions!! I think I'm going to concentrate on the Rhodies now. I'm going to go look for the PJM Elite around here. That may just be the one!!!

I'd really miss my mountain if I had to move away! Before we lived here 13 years ago, we lived in Florida for 9 years. Ugh, talk about flat. We had to travel 11 hours to see a mountain.

Take care,
Judy