Pacific Northwest Gardening: New front yard garden, 4 by Pistil

Pistil wrote:
I finally got around to this thread-I wanted to give it a few minutes. The project is already looking great!

Choisya- The first pic is the yellow one \'Sundance\' Surprisingly, it has turned out to be a fabulous shrub for-Dry shade! This one is perhaps 6-7 years old and it is blooming now. The second one is the regular species, in about half sun, I also have one in almost full sun that does fine. All will rebloom a bit. Totally easy. When one got knocked a bit over in a big wind, I cut off the ugly part, it grew back fine. However-this spring I notice a LOT of suckers? seedlings? around my \'Sundance\'. This could make it problematic over time.
The third pic is a winter interest plant- a Witch Hazel. This one is not mine, I do not know the cultivar, it is planted where I work in Seattle. I have been messing around with Witch Hazels a bit. I planted a Hamamelis \'Pallida\' which sadly holds it\'s leaves until after it blooms, so I do not recommend it. I have planted another one I think will be better, but to save on costs these are usually sold as grafted plants, and there is a problem with hideous suckers from the rootstock, and ugly graft unions. I am currently trying layering to make some \"own-root\" plants.
The 4th pic is a close up of another winter interest plant, a Hellebore. I recommend getting a few. They are not terribly showy in general as the flowers are mainly down-facing and in muted colors, but in January it gets me out in the garden to look at them close up. I have a patch of yellow ones in dry shade under a big pine tree that is super cheery in January. This one I chose because the backs of the petals are the same yellow, so it can be seen from a distance.
Last pic another winter interest plant- it is Edgeworthia chrysantha, a tender shrub, but I think you can grow it. Very showy, and I really like the leaves too.
I had to try lots of different crocus, finally got some established, they are good for late winter interest.
Skimmia japonica shrubs, have big red berries and even some not real showy winter flowers, but you need a male to pollinate the females that make the berries. Mine are trouble free shrubs.
Mahonia \'Soft Caress\' has the usual Mahonia bright yellow flowers in winter, but without the prickly problematic leaves. Seems very drought tolerant, as expected.
Keep us updated.