Gardening Design, The Make Over - Before and After

These gardening designs, the make over before and after allows you to throw out the those woody shrubs and flowers and create a new look. People who have lived in a house for years are finding the trees, shrubs, and flowers aging right along with their owners. Also, families moving into an existing home decide they want to change the landscape.

Make overs in the landscaping business are increasing in numbers over the last few years. There is a larger selection of plant specimens available. Many growers are producing more and more varieties of certain trees and shrubs. More wholesale and nurseries are providing you with the latest in variations of plants. Gardening can be a chore or it can be very rewarding. Doing a make over can be simple and not time consuming if planned right. This design is a design I did for a client. She lived alone and wanted a different variety of plants in her front yard.

1. Fire Power Nandina - evergreen shrub growing in zones six through nine. This shrub will grow one and a half to eight feet high and three to four feet wide. The Nandina is adaptable to full sun or shade.
   
   This shrub is a great plant to have in a garden or along the house as in the winter the leaves turn bright red and some varieties have berries on them. (Nandina Domestica) Looks great next to an Indian Hawthorn, Globosa Nana, or any other solid green evergreen shrub. Nandana should only be pruned if it needs some thinning. Don't cut straight across. Trim at various heights for a much fuller plant the following year. Great for small beds.
2. Helleri Holly - evergreen shrub - many people like to trim this holly to use in a hedge row and also to prune in a round or square shape. Shrub can grow four feet high and four feet wide. Grows well in zones five through nine and can take full sun or partial shade. This shrub tends to get woody in time.
3. American Boxwood - a classic evergreen shrub that was planted in gardening styles back when formal landscaping was dominant. The Common Boxwood grows in zones five through eight. It is three to fifteen feet high and three to fifteen feet wide. Partial sun works well for this plant. Boxwoods will tend to become leggy after many years. Other varieties include the Japanese Boxwood, which only grows three to four feet high and three to four feet wide. There are also the Korean and English varieties. Azaleas also make a wonderful accent plant near the Boxwood shrub.
4. Azaleas - There are hundreds and hundreds of plant specimens of Azaleas. This shrub can be evergreen or deciduous. Their height can be anywhere from three to fifteen feet high and three to ten feet wide. Azaleas need some shade as the summer heat in full sun is too much for the plant. A goal in having a mass planting of this type of plant is to find varieties that bloom at different intervals of in the spring.
   
   Most of your deciduous Azaleas grow in the eastern part of the United States. The evergreen Azaleas are becoming more readily available and are wonderful as some will produce blooms twice a year. The Encore evergreen comes in many colors and will accent any house color or hard - scape feature. Azaleas do well with most any other plant. These plants will enhance your gardening experience.
5. Maple Tree- deciduous large tree providing wonderful shade. They can grow thirty to forty feet high and ten to twenty feet wide. There are thousands of varieties available and will grow in most zones. Green leaves appear in the spring and in fall the leaves take over the beauty of spring and summer flowers. Maple leaves turn bright red, orange, and yellow colors and make some of the most spectacular scenes in the fall season. There is nothing like fresh Maple Syrup!
6. Spruce Tree- Large evergreen tree with long skinny leaves. Can grow thirty to forty feet high and ten feet wide. Does well in the sun or shade and grows in many zones. This is what she had in her existing front yard.

1. 1. Dwarf Hinoki Cypress - is one of the smaller members of the family. This shrub will grow three to four feet high and two to three feet wide. The branches are shaped in a pyramid form. The color is a solid green and grows great in zones four through eight.
   
   The Variegated Dwarf Hinoki is exactly the same, except for variegated leaves. Either one of these plants act as a nice accent plant. They will show off their texture and color if planted in the front part of any landscape bed.
   
   These two specimens are nice to put in the middle of a large planter. Surround the shrub with annual or perennial flowers and put a few ivy pugs on the outside of the planter. Container gardening can have a great look also.
2. Golden Pfitzer Juniper - great ground cover as well for a hedge or wind breaker. It grows four to six feet high and three to four feet wide. Excellent shrub for sandy areas such as the coast, and can survive in clay base soil. Takes full sun but will also do well in partial shade. In the summer months the leaves are a bright yellow and green tones and in fall they turn to a bronze color. Great shrub to use as an accent with deep rich other evergreens.





3. Chinese Pizazz - Loropetalum - evergreen shrub with purple and green leaves year around. Pink/red flowers will bloom in spring and summer. The Ruby Loropetalum is a dwarf and will grow 3 to 4 feet high and 3 wide. The larger versions will grow 8 to 10 feet high and 4 to 5 feet wide. The larger variety will need to be trimmed, unless you have it in an open area and want the shrub to grow naturally. Grows well in zones five through eight.
4. Indian Hawthorn - evergreen shrub with pink or white flowers in spring. Blue berries will appear in the in fall and winter months. Indian Hawthorn minor is a bigger shrub and will grow four to six feet wide. The major is a little smaller and will grow three to four feet high and two to three feet wide. Very durable shrub. Variety of zones but most will do well in zones four through nine. Popular for along your front of the house or simply divine with any variegated shrubs.
5. Viburnum - deciduous shrub growing well in zones five through eight. The Doublefile will mature in height five to fifteen feet and ten to eighteen feet wide. Tiny yellow flowers appear in spring turn into seeds after they bloom. In summer the Doublefile bears red fruit and birds love to eat them. Other varieties of the Viburnum are the Linden, Pink Beauty, and Spring Bouquet.
6. Lemon Thread Cypress - or False Cypress - evergreen with variegated yellow and green leaves year around. Grows six to eight feet high and three to five feet wide. Grows well in zones four through eight. Can take full sun but will do fine in some part sun. This is a great shrub for birds as they like to nestle up in the branches during the colder months is a great addition to any garden.
7. Elegan's Nan Cryptomeria - evergreen shrub - smallest of the Cryptomeria family. Grows three to four feet high and three feet wide. Tiny needles make up the leaves. This plant has a natural look to it. Little tiny pine like cones appear in the winter months.
8. Dwarf Rhododendron - P.J.M. - evergreen small shrub with pink flowers in the spring and summer. Grows three to five high and three to four feet wide. Likes partial shade. Rhododendron varieties can grow three to fifteen feet tall and three to twelve feet wide.
9. Camelia - Yuletide - evergreen - this shrub is a dwarf and grows four to six feet high and three to four feet wide. Beautiful red flowers appear around Christmas time. There are many different varieties of Camelias. This is a southeastern shrub in the United States and one of the prettiest. Grows well in zones seven through nine.
10. Azalea - Encore - evergreen - this is the azalea that blooms twice a year, once in the springtime and once in the fall. Grows four to six feet high and three to four feet wide. Can be a little more expensive, but well worth it. Many different colors to choose from.
11. Dwarf Gardenia - (Radican) dwarf evergreen. White flowers in the spring. Grows two feet high and four feet wide. Gardenias can be temperamental in zone seven in the United States but does well in zones eight through ten and some tropical and warmer climates. The Gardenias are known for their wonderful aroma.
12. Existing Trees - the Maple and the Spruce trees in the existing beds.
13. Decorative Bench - bench is located in an area which receives a good amount of shade. Great place to sit out and enjoy nature.

Gardening and doing a make over can be simple and rewarding. This article will give you some tips on prepping and planting techniques for your garden make over. You don't have to spend a lot of money redoing your front, backyard or sides. Use a few different plants and transform you area into a new and refreshing view.