Central Midwest Gardening: Hi I'm very new in MO and need gardening advice!, 1 by virmargardens

virmargardens wrote:
We are rehabbing a historic building in a lovely part of Mexico, MO with lots of old historic homes. Its an apartment from the 1920s, a mix between Spanish (think KC Plaza) and Arts & Crafts. It has a large lot behind it that we plan to fence with iron fence and then plant. We also have the landscaping around the rest of the building to do.

So far I have put out 6 variegated rose barberries in places where they should fill in over time, and also have put junipers and daylillies and a yucca looking red grass in the formal planters.

In order to discourage people hanging around who shouldn't be near basement windows I want the plantings to be thorny but also attractive. I'm thinking of conifers for structure, rambling roses for ground cover and blooms, various kinds of yuccas, golden and red barberry, and maybe some ornamental grasses. For seasonal interest I envision various wildflowers springing up and reseeding.

That catch is that the landscaping that goes in must be pretty hardy, drought tolerant, and tough. I live and garden primarily in Texas, and although we are up a great deal, I really want to put the right plants and textures in place in the first place, and get them established, then let them grow without needing too much care.

We will be there next summer to live and work on the whole thing (and do some gardening of course). And we have great neighbors who have been kind enough to water in those barberry plants and keep the planters going when it was dry this past summer. . .

This building was gorgeous in its heyday. I want it to be lovely in the community again, and I think the gardens are a big part of that. I already have 3 established trees planted across the back, 2 maples and a cedar. Also lawn (albeit with some dandelions) some mature hedges (that grow fast and needed lots of trimming this past summer.) I have a yard guy that does the routine mowing, but I want something to really pop with lots of structure, and red and yellow blooms to set of the place.

Part of why I'm asking now is I wonder what site prep I need to do for foundation beds as we head into the winter. The building has a long side facing north which gets morning sun and then afternoon shade, and the long south side gets morning shade and then afternoon sun except for the dappled shade the trees provide. The ground is pretty hard and barren right up against the north side of the building and of course I don't want to encourage water getting into the basement either by loosening the soil at the foundation too too much. . .

I want to use the trees we've already got if possible, and once the fence is up, plan to plant ornanmental grasses and daylilies along its base so the mower won't need to mow right up to the fence. . .anyway lots and lots of ideas!!

Hope a long post is OK. Just excited to find this site and learn from ya'll. We don't have WINTER like ya'll do in central Texas, so I know the garden is another animal up in central MO!

Here's the building so you can see what we are working with. We want to make it lovely again, inside and out. Thanks SO much!!