One More Eyesore Gone

So if you turned your back to the lovely terraced flowerbeds in front, this is what you used to see:

 

An eyesore of a flowerbed with many problems:

1. It was too narrow, so all the shrubs lay directly beneath the overhang of the house.

No water = unhealthy shrubs

 

2. Chock-full of grass and weeds

 

3. The water faucet leaked right here all the time, causing a muddy mess on the end near the stairs.

 

 

It was time to DO something about this bed.

I had pretty much ignored it for the past 3 years, other than to prune the spirea on the corner.

  

First things first: I ripped out all the dead, ugly bushes.

The spirea on the corner stayed, as did the euonymous under the window.

After we got the bricks pulled up, and the bed widened a bit, it was time to add soil, compost, and give a good tilling.

 

Then came the fun part--adding the new plants!

 [These pictures were taken October 20.]

 

 I put in an Oakleaf Hydrangea 'Ruby Slippers' between the 2 existing shrubs.

 

To help soak up the extra water from the leaky faucet, I planted a hosta 'Guacamole' (apple green with darker streaks) by the front steps. It's supposed to reach up to 36" high.

Close by is a fern, Polystichyum munitum 'Western Sword.' I was impressed that it's supposed to be evergreen and naturalize well.

 

 

To either side of the hydrangea, in the back, I added 2 Astilbe chinensis 'Visions,' in a raspberry pink shade. Also filling in around the shrubs are two heucheras, 'Sweet Tart' and 'Lime Marmalade'; a second fern: Polystichum 'Soft Shield'; and one more hosta: 'Aureo Marginata' (deep green with yellow margins.)

 

The final step was to add bark to everything.

I'm so pleased with the change.

 

 

Apparently there was a big hailstorm while we were on vacation, that threw down 1" hailstones. Some of the hosta leaves were shredded, but they both seem to be bouncing back.

Now if I can just keep it watered through August!

(We're looking at a solid month of 95+ temperatures.)