Perennial Ideas Wanted

This is a bed where I want a fresh start. I'm looking for suggestions on Perennials that will give me attractive color from Spring to Fall and be low maintenance. The bed is in full sun til late afternoon. I'd also like your thoughts on the number based on your recommended spacing in this 7 1/2 foot bed. Obviously, I want something that will do well in Zone 5.

I was going to rummage through the clearance tables at Lowe's but decided that would be penny-wise and pound-foolish. So, I'm making this post to get some creative ideas from you experts.

Thanks a lot,
Dave

Wow! a fresh pallet. I'm not the one to advise I like everything and more a collector than a show gardener. You should look at gardens you like and borrow ideas.
What colors do you like?
Style ?simple or crammed together, or somewhere between ?

You need a point of interest , Bird bath ? large pot ? or interesting bush/tree .Then plant around it. Remember perennials need room to grow so the first year or two fill in with some annuals.

do you want to see it from all sides or are perhaps the street and your sidewalk side the most important?

Keen eye! It's the curb appeal I'm after - hence the less maintenance the better. I'll have more time to spend on my stuff.

Well - just for starters - and looking at it from the street - I would put a medium shrub in the back right hand corner. Something with color that blooms and/or has berries rather than something that just stays green all year. I dont know what you grow in your area though. And maybe in the front some low growing juniper or maybe a birdsnest spruce so you have something green in the winter.Oh something that would be gorgeous if it is available to you is a Procumbent Spruce.(see pic)
I would bring the height from the back right corner to the front left and also from the back right corner down the two sides ( your house and your neighbors yard I presume)) is that clear as mud? - sort of a fan shape.
Do you have favorite colors or perennials that you see growing in your area?
And yes I could see an attractive bird bath in there too! or a small statue.

The Procumbent Spruce is striking. I'll need some time for all this to incubate. I can say that a bird bath is a no no due to the nearly constant maintenance. Also, a statue is too ornate for my bachelor tastes. I do like (and greatly appreciate) the concept of "fanning" that you described.

I'll give all this another look in the morning. Thanks for your interest and expertise.

Later.

You don't have to actually fill the birdbath, I have one in my yard that I try to keep full, but another one that I just leave empty as garden art. Throw a few mosquito dunks in there if you get rain (I don't have to worry about that!) and you should be fine.

I need to rephrase my bachelor tastes - I want a modest but attractive all natural look with no inanimate ornaments.

OK no inanimates! :-)

For anyone giving this any professional consideration at all, I thought this recent post might provide some useful insight.

Thanks!
Dave

http://davesgarden.com/community/forums/t/762892/

Edited for typo.

This message was edited Aug 29, 2007 9:44 AM

In the absence of further suggestions, I've decided to fill the bed with this giving me a year around look that I (and passer bys) should enjoy.

http://www.monrovia.com/PlantInf.nsf/08510e01e61cc962882571a9005a9153/f1e457e48cfccf0a8825684d00710cd4!OpenDocument

I realize that my request for help became somewhat of an imposition so thanks for putting up with me.

Dave

That Is a nice bush I have one in my front landscape . This being fall might I also recommend some bulbs. They are carefree and easy and are always a welcome sight in the spring.

Ecrane, what are mosquito dunks ?

They're little disks that have Bt in them to kill mosquito larvae, you toss them into ponds, birdbaths, any standing water and it kills the larvae to help keep the mosquito population down. I don't know if they're available in Europe or not, here they've been popular ever since West Nile virus started spreading around the country.

No imposition Steve. That is very pretty

Still wanting to hear if you have favorite colors and what others are growing in your area.

fancyvan,

If that was intended for me (Dave), I'll say that I lean towards reds as it seems to be the favorite for Hummers. My only "serious" gardening is for Wildlife.

Therefore, I know very little about the beautiful variety of plants that conventional gardeners know and enjoy.

gardengus,

Is yours this specific variety? I couldn't find it in PlantFiles but got it in a Google search.

Thanks,
Dave

Sorry Dave - dont know where the Steve came from!

When I finish my morning gardening - I am still digging and planting and shifting - I will give a little more thought to some good perennials for that space. Good to know you want plants that attract birds too.= lots of good stuff for hummers.

HOw do you feel about bulbs - I am thinking spring bloomers that will naturalize like alliums.

OK Dave here is a suggestion.
I cant draw worth a darn on my computor so I hope you visualize well.
Standing at the street side of your square(looking towardsyour house I presume):
Starting in the upper right corner and coming towards the street:- and around.
1. Dart's Gold Ninebark ( bright yellow green, white flowers red berries) or a Diablo Ninebark ( dark wine, white blooms, red berries-)Diablo is taller, Darts Gold more spreading

2 In front of the shrub a Peony - red bloom - suggest Dandy Dan because it is very sturday and support shouldnt be a problem.

3. In front of the peony a mound of Blue Oat Grass.

4. Turning the corner a Daylily.

5. Procumbent Spruce in the corner (opposite the Shrub) or a low spreading evergreen shrub for winter interest ( depending on how much snow you have!)

6. Going up the side another Daylily

7. In the top corner another blue oat grass.

6.within the middle a mix of Bee Balm,ConeFlower and Phlox, and Maltese Cross in shades of red and pink - most of these attractive to hummers I think.

7. Also clumps of Iris and Sedum Autumn Joy behind the evergreen and in other spaces

8. Lots of spring flowering bulbs which will be covered up when the perennials come up.

Upkeep: Peony, Day lily other flowering perennials cut down in the fall.
Iris stays up, needs splitting every 3-4 years and give away excess.
Oat Grass only needs to have some dead bits pulled out in the spring, forms a lovely mound.
Sedum can be left up all winter then trimmed.

First ideas! Bear in mind that I have no idea what grows best in your zone!

carol

My oh my, Carol,

There's a ton of ideas for me here as well as for many other people, I feel, who may have already read your post.

As for me, it will take me time to digest all this at which point I will D-mail you because there are so many specifics involved.

Thanks for your interest and enthusiasm. I'm sure that I'm not alone in thinking that you should be in the business of landscape design.

Dave

Hi Dave,

I just wanted to suggest that if you decide on Phlox--you might want to consider David Phlox. My neighbor gave me three sprigs from her garden last Fall and I did not expect it to do much the first year but it has really taken off. I am going to divide it this Fall and move some to my new daylily garden. The David Phlox will be right in the center. David Phlox is mildew resistant and tough and vigorous. It is now in its second flush of blooms and the second flush looks just as beautiful as the first flush and I will post a picture of it. I feel that all flower beds need some white flowers to bring out the ones that have color.

Hi Dave,

Here is another picture of the David Phlox, showing it next to one of my Indian Summer and you can see how the white brings out the yellow in the Indian Summer.

Hi again,

I just wanted to make one more suggestion for you to consider. I love begonias and they are low maintenance and I put them across the front of my garden in the front yard as well as around my beds in the backyard as you can see in the previous picture. If you like red--red begonias would make a nice border annual around the bed. I just plant each one with Composted Cow Manure and I put a little Osmocote around each one at planting time and that is all. I had topsoil brought in when I made the raised beds in the front yard and then added a lot off Composted Cow Manure and the soil in my gardens is very loose ..

Hi Dave,

I'm brand new to Daves Garden so my info is coming a little late I suppose. Last year we moved into a new house that had absolutely no lawn, trees, flowers or bushes.

I planted as many roses, perennial flowers, bulbs, bushes, vines and trees that I could in one season.

Over the winter I tried something that I have never done before. I started seedlings indoors: tomatoes, morning glory, coneflowers, petunias, blackeyed susans, monarda,
hollyhocks, forget me nots and etc.

I wound up with enough plants to supply my 4 raised beds and the beds around the house and shed.

One of the plants (not my favorite because I have too many favorites) is the one pictured below. It is Echinacea Razzmatazz. Not too tall so it can be close to the front and very hardy.

Have fun with your garden and I will look for a picture of your finished product when it posts.

Regards,

Teri

Thanks BettyFB and ROSES_R_RED for your beautiful and practical suggestions. I'm reminded that nothing is better than actual practical experience.

Needless to say, if I can't make something nice out of all this, I need to hang up my gardener's hat.

Dave

I don't know if this is hardy for you there, but maybe you could squeeze a Crocosmia "Lucifer" in with fancyvan's great list. Red blooms, and hummers love it. It's the plant in the Dave's banner right "above" us. Blooms for about 2-3 weeks, about 3-4 ft tall, Straight, bladed leaves. It's a bulb, can be planted fall or spring and dies back in winter.

And I had another thought in the middle of the night!

Along the house side: another lovely grass with great winter interested is Calamagrostis (Feather Reed Grass) Karl Forster or there is a variegated one which is a bit smaller. Mine is almost 6 feet tall and I leave the stalks up all winter.

Steve, I've only recently found the perennial forum (don't know how I have missed this for the entire year). Interested on how your new bed is coming on - any update pictures?

That may not be til Spring.

BTW, I'm Dave not Steve.

...til then.

BettyFB. I have to tell ya I ordered the David phlox about two weeks ago. I got the plant and it was beautiful. And I already have a bloom on it and it is exquisite. I rarely go for the white plants but then when I do get one I wonder why I have not gotten more. They are always so pristine and bring out all of the other flowers. The white is always really striking to me in a garden. I am so pleased with the plant so far but if it gets to looking like yours I will be thrilled.

Leslie

The cottoneaster is beautiful but it does spread 8-10 feet...so that may be a lot of maintence.

Betty, your gardens are just lovely!

Dave, I'm so sorry - just typing too quick. DAVE, remember, Dave.

Okay, got it.

Still would like to see the updated photos. I always find people's solutions interesting.

Hi Dave,

I am in the process of moving some plants around in my beds and I think that this "Black Cherry" floribunda rose (very disease resistant and gets lots of flowers without growing too large) would make a beautiful centerpiece for your garden without taking up too much room.

You will have flowers on it from spring to fall without too much trouble.

Teri

Hi all,

I have taken delivery of my two Cortoneasters. I got two to get quick full coverage of the bed. I want to hold off to see what a bed of it alone (neatly manicured) looks like before I go further.

Granted that look may look boring to most but I'm a simple old codger who just might settle for that look.

Aside from some prized brugs I baby, I do absolutely no ornamental gardening - just gardening for Wildlife. Tho I have the pride to want an attractive curb appeal, folks may just as well know who I am as well i.e. I'd rather capture a picture of a Red Headed Woodpecker than to have my home on the cover of Better Homes and Gardens.

Thanks for putting up with me. Nothing set in stone yet. I'll post a new planting (not done yet) pic when I get a decent one.

Dave

...let me add that the Wildlife gardening I do is in the back yard where I spend 99% of my time.

I feel I've left you with a wrong impression...here's a pic of one of my Brugs (in the front yard no less) from last October. It's the 1st US double pink named Day Dreams. The fragrance is terrific.

...so don't give up on me completely.

Wow that is beautiful and so many blooms.
Sooo... what kind of wildlife does that attract ?

None. My big concession to convention (to show you I'm capable). However, I think I made a mistake in over feeding it as it esthetically seems out of scale as too big. Oh well...at least I'm aware of those fine points even tho I'm a die hard wildlifer.

I'm watching the Bear's game but keeping an eye on this thread as well.

Dave,

Your trumpet flowers are beautiful. How do they survive the winter?

Teri

They are Brugmansias - a tropical shrub - and must either be dug up and over wintered or restarted from cuttings.