Landscape Plan: Front Porch

Posted at June 28, 2010

These old-school evergreen shrubs were all that adorned the right side of our front porch when we moved in. And there they sat for three years. I was never a fan, but replacing them just wasn’t high on the list of priorities.

We called in some professional help to remove the bushes and change the shape of the border. Here’s what it looks like right now:

We hope to fill the new bed with shade-loving plants like hostas and ferns. Here’s my (novice and not-to-scale) plan:

And for those of you (like I was before my research) who have no idea what those plants are, this photo guide will be helpful:

 Am I on the right track? Any advice to make my green thumb greener?

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  • sarah

    Emmy – I have some ferns that I am looking to get rid of. You can have them if you want them. But be forewarned – they will spread like crazy. Let me know if you want or need any more. I’ll just toss them if you don’t.

    Maybe some lily of the valley tucked in certain spots would be nice. It’s my fav plant. Doesn’t bloom for long but smells so good. Plus it has attractive looking leaves and stays low to the ground.

  • mat

    Nice Plan! Something else to think about would be adding native plants. We have some Jack in the pulpits growing in our side garden and I’m sure I could get you some Corms (the little tubers) this fall. They do great in the shadiest parts as long as they are watered, and can grow pretty big. I’ve got a bleeding heart that seems to be doing well and it adds some nice spring color. They are pretty easy to find at the farmers market, too…

    there are a few others like trilium, wild columbine, and helpatica, that are neat but take a bit of a search.

    • Emily

      Good idea! We have Trillium in the back that I could use for the front. We have one Jack in the Pulpit too, I think. We also have a bunch of hostas and ferns growing randomly in our back yard that I’m hoping to move.