Home landscaping around house

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Dec 7, 2012
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Home has gardens on 3 sides of my home. It is a lot of upkeep and I'm just not super into them. This spring I want to tear most of them out and add fill to build up around my foundation. I am trying to decide what to put around the house?

Topsoil and seed it?
Put down decorative stone and either edging or maybe a brick wall up to the lawn? For stone, I believe you put down a plastic or fabric layer?

What would you put around your house?

If anyone has some pictures, that'd be great.
 
Suggest you post an image of the area(s) looking to scape. WIll help anyone who may have ideas get a visual. I'm in the eastern part of the state so some info on your soil type, climate zone, and if you have any deer issue or mitigation for plantings.
 
If I wanted low maintenance I'd just plant grass.

Stone with a barrier is fine for a while but it's going to get weeds in it unless you're very careful about keeping lawn clippings/leaves out of it. A couple weeks of "I'll deal with those weeds next time I mow" and you'll end up with a real mess.
 
What would you put around your house?

Maybe something like this

moat.jpg
 
Good call @BISCUT

Some of the pics could be better. Here's a pic of the front and side:
IMG_1054.JPG


Side:
IMG_1047.JPG


And other side:

IMG_0911.JPEG
 
I once had an oldtimer tell me to stay away from flowers and just deal with bushes and trees... a lot less work.

Otherwise I would just rip it out, prepare the soil and reseed... no more work after that.
 
Might depend on your budget...rock is more than mulch. Either way use a good weed barrier, and elevated beds are ideal to keep grass out but that means potentially hauling in dirt plus the cost of blocks. I wouldn't plant grass...IMO grass up to the foundation is tacky and it just adds more to mow.
 
Home has gardens on 3 sides of my home. It is a lot of upkeep and I'm just not super into them. This spring I want to tear most of them out and add fill to build up around my foundation. I am trying to decide what to put around the house?

Topsoil and seed it?
Put down decorative stone and either edging or maybe a brick wall up to the lawn? For stone, I believe you put down a plastic or fabric layer?

What would you put around your house?

If anyone has some pictures, that'd be great.
Different strokes. If they ain't broke; Don't "Fix" 'em. Work with what you got. 02 PS Just saw your pic. Very nice, natural look, as is. Trim or add plants as you like. Losing your landscape loses your property value.
 
I once had an oldtimer tell me to stay away from flowers and just deal with bushes and trees... a lot less work.

Otherwise I would just rip it out, prepare the soil and reseed... no more work after that.
Bushes and trees are great... until they get too big and need to be cut down or pulled out. Most require trimming. I would look into some smaller bushes and perennial flowers, then put mulch around them with a barrier between the edge of the mulch and edge of the lawn to make mowing/trimming easier.
 
Bushes and trees are great... until they get too big and need to be cut down or pulled out. Most require trimming. I would look into some smaller bushes and perennial flowers, then put mulch around them with a barrier between the edge of the mulch and edge of the lawn to make mowing/trimming easier.
That is a great idea.

I do have some small bushes already and some perennials. I think what I forgot to add too is that I am keeping part of the front garden by the deck and walkway. The side ones though are good as gone. I have a lilac out back that I am keeping (by the rear of the house), but near my AC unit, I am going to make sure thats cleaned up a lot.
 
I think your decision is going to be more heavily based on location, what is native/natural to your area, and what is popular for your market...and well, your level of upkeep you are willing to maintain.

My bride and I are a fan of rock gardens with carefully chosen roses and other difficult yet beautiful flowering plants spaced in between. Make sure you add a osmotic layer that will allow water to pass through, but not weeds to grow. We have gathered rocks from around the world through our travels to spread through the gardens. We recently moved, and while we took a few special rocks with us, we are just now rebuilding what we used to have.
 
Grow grass up to the foundation if you dont want to do maintenance. If you put down stone you will constantly have to weed it and/or use weed killer on it.
I enjoy landscaping and always have had greenery around my foundation.
 
Do you have a basement or crawl space and are there any issues with water drainage away from the house vs. seeping into the house?
 
Do you have a basement or crawl space and are there any issues with water drainage away from the house vs. seeping into the house?
I do get some water in during heavy rains in two areas that are low that I know I want to build up. Also, in these two areas, the gutters dump right at the foundation, so I not only want to built it up, but exit them away from the foundation.
 
I do get some water in during heavy rains in two areas that are low that I know I want to build up. Also, in these two areas, the gutters dump right at the foundation, so I not only want to built it up, but exit them away from the foundation.

If you can swing the $$ I'd start by re-doing the curtain drains to end the water issue. Looks like you could do it yourelf with what looks like a tractor. TO me that is most important. Then I would lay out a rough sketch and tackle one zone at a time. One thing I would consider is hardscape for the cement stair area. I'm a fan of Pennslyvania Blue Stone. Weeds were mentioned but if you do it correctly they are rare. Stone on top of cement gives no weeds UNLESS you have a compromised area like a cement joint where a spore takes hold. Pretty easy to deal with.

I'd look to start with stairs and rip out all the existing plantings. Digging all the roots out. And I'd get that large stump drilled and some commercial product in the holes to kill it quicker. I went with a rental grinder and it was ok but work and not a perfect solution.

Consider wind direction(s) and sun exposure. Nice to have a deciduous tree/shrub of size and height to help block windows that get sun in summer but allow sun in during colder months. I'm not a planting guy so I lean shrubs and dwarf trees. Many magnolias can be found to be 8ftx8ft (love mine) and hearty in my zone of NY. I've had 14 dear daily for years in the back and they never ate the Magnolia. Always remember spacing is critical!! When figuring out what to plant try and think of tall and thinner shrubs (I like evergreen for this) help to break up and sharp corners or areas of transition your home might have.

I used a mix of burning bushes, different hollies, walking stick, magnolia, dwarf Alberta, weeping evergreens do well at corners. Lots to think about. Lay it out on paper and take your time.
 
I do get some water in during heavy rains in two areas that are low that I know I want to build up. Also, in these two areas, the gutters dump right at the foundation, so I not only want to built it up, but exit them away from the foundation.
Foundation planting beds can be bad for proper water drainage away from the home. There's tons of interweb information for proper drainage fixes without hiring a contractor or spending a ton of money.

This picture shows the obvious: People invite water to drain towards and down the basement wall
downspout-1491398160-9298.jpg


I had to do something similar to below to get water away from the home. Not pretty, but clean, neat, low maintenance, and it effectively stopped our basement leaks. I put rubber pond liner under the top material to form "flashing" around the basement walls. That, and a bit of grading to move everything away. We put some potted plants on the edge to soften the looks and there's plenty of honey-do planting bed space away from the house, where it belongs.
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We have something similar to the above except it has been neglected and is an eyesore. I’m planning on removing it entirely, raising grade and either just planting grass along the house or perhaps something like hostas or ferns as that area faces north with little to no sun.

I’m also adding a drainage tile for my gutters to drain them into the pond.
 
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