Frame it With Flora

This handsome house, with boxed bay window, was hidden by overgrown shrubs and tall arborvitae.

By Chris Cohan

This handsome house, with boxed bay window, was hidden by overgrown shrubs and tall arborvitae. The first thing was to transplant and reuse all of the arborvitae and shrubs in better locations on the property. Once completed, the front foundation was prepared for new, colorful plantings that would be in scale and flatter the home.

We added medium-height blooming shrubs, from purple flowering PJM rhododendrons to white flowering azaleas to blue flowering hydrangeas. Right around the seating area we planted Summersweet and fragrant lilac for all to linger near and enjoy.

Russian sage, astilbe, re-blooming dwarf bleeding heart, and day lily were added to provide summer-long flowering perennials.

A multi-trunked river birch was placed off the corner of the house to extend the edge of the garden, provide afternoon dappled light against the house, and offer year-round interest with its handsome peeling bark.

The project was completed with a new lawn and a walkway connecting to the front stoop. A white picket fence was later added at the street with plantings of roses and summer flowering perennials.