Flower bed Landscaping ideas

March 31, 2014
1+ images about Flower bed

Upon arriving at the entrance of this residence, you are met with the unsightly view of electrical controls of the next-door neighbor’s gate. On the opposite side of the driveway, a woodland, although promising, was filled with briars and poison ivy. In the shaded front-yard bed, sun-loving plants had died and those left were not thriving in soil that had become worn and thin. The owners want a design using shade-loving plants to give a fresh look to a shade bed in the front yard. They craved a woodland wildflower walk that would provide nectar for the bees they keep. And they had to do SOMETHING about the neighbor’s exposed electrical controls at their entrance.

To mask the next-door neighbor’s electrical controls, five Ilex x ‘Nellie R. Stevens’ (zones 6-9) were planted to form an effective hedge, flanked on each end by Illicium floridanum, (zones 6-9).

On both ends of the hedge, curving toward the driveway, drifts of six red stemmed dogwood, Cornus sericea ‘Arctic Fire’ (zones 2-7), were planted for winter interest. To provide color during the summer and to provide nectar for bees, five butterfly bushes (Buddleia davidii ‘Black Knight’ zones 5-9) were spaced five feet apart, in front of the holly hedge. For foliage color, a skirt of 13 Abelia ‘Kaleidoscope’ (zones 5-9), a compact variegated shrub whose colors change through the seasons, completed the bee-friendly planting. Now guests feel welcomed when entering this landscape.

Tucked back 25’ from the path, Cornus kousa (zones 5-8) and Cornus florida (zones 6-9) dogwoods have been staggered along its length for texture and color. Shrubs that will tolerate some shade — like oak leaf hydrangea (Hydrangea quercifolia zones 5-9), willowleaf cotoneaster (Cotoneaster salicifolius zones 6-7), leatherleaf mahonia (Mahonia bealii zones 4-8), and various rhodendron cultivars(zones 4-8) — have been planted in drifts of five to seven along the path.

To provide color and nectar for bees through the spring and summer, drifts of 21 different wildflowers and perennials will be planted along the path in pockets of shade or sun, moist or dry soil, as appropriate, including: Black Cohosh (Actea racemosa zones 3-8); Butterfly Weed (Asclepias tuberosa zones 3-9); Swamp Milkweed (Asclepias incarnata zones 3-6); Fleabane daisy (Erigeron pulchellus zones 3-10); Geranium ‘Roseanne’ (zones 5-8); Columbine (Aquilegia canadensis zones 3-8); purple coneflower (Echinacea purpurea zones 3-8); Joe Pye Weed (Eupatorium fistulosum zones 3-9); gray headed coneflower (Ratibida pinnata zones 3-8); foamflower (Tiarella cordifolia zones 4-9); dwarf iris (Iris cristata zones 3-9); cardinal flower (Lobelia cardinalis zones 3-9); Blue Cardinal Flower (Lobelia siphilitica zones 4-9); Black & Blue salvia (Salvia guaranitica ‘Black & Blue’ zones 8-10); Heliopsis ‘Golden Glow’ zones 3-9; Cabbage leaf rudbeckia (Rudbeckia maxima zones 4-9); Amsonia zones 4-9; Indian Pink (Spigelia marilandica zones 5-9); Virginia bluebells (Mertensia virginica zones 3-8); Beard’s Tongue (Penstemon tenuifolius and Penstemon laevigatus zones 3-8); white wood aster (Aster longifolius zones 3-10 ); and blue wood phlox (Phlox divaricata zones 3-8). These plants were chosen for bee-friendliness and beauty. From spring to fall, there will be color along this woodland walk.

Source: www.diynetwork.com



Landscaping Tips

Though your home is your castle, there is no necessity to surround it with a moat. Here are 5 tips that will help you to make your landscaping feel more warm, welcoming and cozy.

1. Put some flowers nearby your entrance. Flowers make any area look more welcoming and attractive, so greeting your guests with Petunia, Snapdragon, Lily-of-the-Nile or some other garden flowers is always a great thing to do. What is more, to add some space between your house and the entrance, you can consider adding a little white fence. It will create an illusion that your front yard is bigger than it actually is. What is more, adding fence will create a great space for planting flowers to add some color and coziness.

2. Add rambling vines to make your yard look absolutely lovely. You can not deny that rambling vines always create romantic and even magical atmosphere. So why not to use this tip while decorating your yard?

3. To hide the unattractive driveway, consider adding some color, texture, and height. You can easily do it by adding various sorts of flowers. To start, create an island of green lawn right in the hub of a drive. Then add a couple of low boxwood hedges with flowers toward the back of your island.

4. If you want your yard to blossom and flourish bust still do not have enough time to maintain it, consider planting low-fuss lilies. Such flowers look absolutely gorgeous and come in the variety of rainbow hues, so you can pick the one you love most. What is more, low-fuss lilies do not care about the sort of soil, they love the sun and welcome hot, they do not afraid of drought. In other words, Crinums is an ideal flower for all those who are looking for low-maintenance solutions.

5. The last tip also touches the low-maintenance aspect. To make your life easier, group plantings into beds and islands. This will help you to avoid mowing and trimming around each individual plant, save a lot of time and even money.

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