karmahappytoes said: I sure would be taking out more grass and designing a full bed not just a few plants.
You are going to have so much fun mowing that area.
karmahappytoes said: Ceriano:
Thought you would like to see what our front yard looks like, not work just a 'passion' and this time of year not much out there. Start small in this area and just keep working at it. Sorry the photo isn't great, taken from our video camera, a bit
to cool to be out. We started with all grass and after 33 years it's established nicely.
On yours I would create a full bed in this area to surround all items.
karmahappytoes said: Ceriano:
I did this all by myself! A while back we had a huge evergreen fall across the front
yard, they took 8 cords of wood away and I had a landscaper tell me it would take a year to get it back to normal. The landscaper about die when he came back in less than a month and it was back to normal. Type karma 'Happy Toes' Garden in google and you can see the rest of the yard.
I wouldn't live in a house that has a HOA if you gave me
the house for free. Just do a half circle in this area first. Then slowly do other areas and you should be fine. Or run for head of the HOA??
Arico said: I concur with the advice to remove the grass and turn it into a single large bed.
Both a large curve at the front or a rectangle joined to the hedge in the back are an option, seeing the formal planting scheme.
If you'd like an urn, placing it in the middle would be the most obvious choice. Keeping the surrounding planting low (small perennials or groundcover) and fairly monotonous (not too many species, cultivars, colors) would keep it visually pleasing; it won't look like it's swamping the trees and shrubs. As they grow higher you can revise this choice since they'll be able to hold their own visually.
A simple bench is also an option.
Design (however bad and tasteless ) in and of itself is subjective. It's your garden. You do you and if it doesn't do it for you, try again. That's the fun thing about gardening after all.
karmahappytoes said: Now the above photo is more than work to keep that all looking nice!
Arico said: I concur with the advice to remove the grass and turn it into a single large bed.
Both a large curve at the front or a rectangle joined to the hedge in the back are an option, seeing the formal planting scheme.
If you'd like an urn, placing it in the middle would be the most obvious choice. Keeping the surrounding planting low (small perennials or groundcover) and fairly monotonous (not too many species, cultivars, colors) would keep it visually pleasing; it won't look like it's swamping the trees and shrubs. As they grow higher you can revise this choice since they'll be able to hold their own visually.
A simple bench is also an option.
Design (however bad and tasteless ) in and of itself is subjective. It's your garden. You do you and if it doesn't do it for you, try again. That's the fun thing about gardening after all.
plasko20 said: People may have been right in their suggestions of joining up the plants into one or 2 bigger beds. You may also need a gravel path to get to your urn so you do not wear down the grass.
I would probably choose a sundial over an urn, but that is just me.
Here are a couple examples stolen from the internet. Note the straight formal lines in one, versus the swirly lines in the other:
I think you are off to a great start. Come back an post more pics once you get it together, I would love to see the final product.
Edited to add: your trees in the back line do not appear to be healthy. You may wish to investigate. It would ruin your formal garden to have a line of dead trees.
plasko20 said: There is no rule that you absolutely have to be symmetrical.
It is your yard. You are the artist and it is your canvas. Plus things in pairs never grow at the same rate anyhow so you would end up with one bigger than the other which would annoy you.
I like cherry trees (and Japanese maples) as I love the Japanese garden look, myself.
They can definitely be pruned into shape, depending on which you have (there are so many) they will be fine. Not sure if you would call it formal, but there is one I like called Amanogawa (a.k.a flagpole). It is narrow and upright. Good for tight spaces, but the blooms are more white than pink. But I do like visiting the Kwanzan cherry trees in the park (too big for my yard) as they have doubled-blooms so they really pop. Autumn cherry blooms twice a year (so more bang for your buck), once in spring then again in fall. However, also too big for me.
I like your planning and thinking.
One practical thing to bear in mind is that some types of trees will seek out your water main or sewage line and try and invade roots into it. I forget which types are nuisance trees, but some can be. Not sure if that patch of your yard covers any important pipes.
plasko20 said: There is no rule that you absolutely have to be symmetrical.
It is your yard. You are the artist and it is your canvas. Plus things in pairs never grow at the same rate anyhow so you would end up with one bigger than the other which would annoy you.
I like cherry trees (and Japanese maples) as I love the Japanese garden look, myself.
They can definitely be pruned into shape, depending on which you have (there are so many) they will be fine. Not sure if you would call it formal, but there is one I like called Amanogawa (a.k.a flagpole). It is narrow and upright. Good for tight spaces, but the blooms are more white than pink. But I do like visiting the Kwanzan cherry trees in the park (too big for my yard) as they have doubled-blooms so they really pop. Autumn cherry blooms twice a year (so more bang for your buck), once in spring then again in fall. However, also too big for me.
I like your planning and thinking.
One practical thing to bear in mind is that some types of trees will seek out your water main or sewage line and try and invade roots into it. I forget which types are nuisance trees, but some can be. Not sure if that patch of your yard covers any important pipes.