Hi everyone, I live in Tampa Florida, and I just bought a house. The landscaping is just not the best (Builder landscape included with the house ). I am not a very creative person . So I need all your help to have the best landscape in a cookie-cutter neighborhood.

Well, hello and welcome
I think it looks pretty darn good and if that is an example of contractor-level landscaping....I wish my contractor took a sip from that same jug!

It looks great for what it is. If you want to change it up I would start by just adding annuals to the bed for this year. Then figure out which plants you like and what ones you don't and eliminate the ones you don't and replace it with something you do. Start small and expand out from there.

I agree with others: I think it looks pretty good for a builder/landscaper. I particularly like the arrangement with the walkway going between the plantings (ie that little island bed). One thought I have is that you may find those shrubs have been planted too closely together. I can't tell what they are (variegated schefflera among others??) so I don't know their eventual size. You may discover in a few years that you will have to thin them out. The other thought I have is that the garden bed might look better if it followed the contours of the walkway....rather than going opposite to it. But, realistically that would be a LOT of work to change it & I am not even sure if it would still look good from the road.

See that point... On the paving...the one that sends your eye out towards the road? (Not that (that) is a bad thing)

Maybe what you are missing is color ...or a different texture....you've a modern ground choice with that paver...how about one of these -- the colored glaze and then potted to your taste sitting riight on that point or near abouts.

Or a small curved iron bench suited for 1 and1/2.
Both should be clean/ modern/ spare I think because of the paver choice

Welcome Carl!

Congratulations on your new home! I agree, for a "builder's landscaping" you came out ahead! Having had a "new built" home as well (a long time ago however) my husband and I found that the trees/bushes actually were all too large for the area when they started to mature; some where transplanted to other gardens we made or eventually tossed out as we redesigned our garden after approx. 5 years.

I know with the help of the NGA folks, good gardening idea books, AND your local nurseries, you will come up with a beautiful garden/yard that no other neighbor will have!! Remember one important thing. It will not happen over night unless of course, money is of no object!

Tips for Landscaping

1- If you don't know what the plant is...
Find out. Then decide if you want to keep it.

2- Take pictures of other landscapes you love and find out what is in them. Design what you really would like to see on paper.

3- my personal rule: If you don't LOVE it. Get rid of it. DON't spend your time growing or maintaining something you don't like.

Personally....( I without seeing the rest of your yard)

I think you need some good looking boulders in it. A pergola coming off the front walk with flag stone, garden swing and gorgeous plants underneath it.

Maybe even a bird bath?

I like color too. Perennials like a small hibiscus.

It actually looks good, however it is. Recently I had renovated the my garden somewhat the same way as you had done. I had been hearing a lot about blacktop driveway Nassau county pavers so I finally decided to once have a look of their design. The design was so fine and I love it. As the design was constructed according to my need and at the same time in my budget.

carl1313 said:Hi everyone, I live in Tampa Florida, and I just bought a house. The landscaping is just not the best (Builder landscape included with the house ). I am not a very creative person . So I need all your help to have the best landscape in a cookie-cutter neighborhood.

Hi, I don't know more about landscape ideas, but I recently read a blog explaining the 'Common Landscaping Mistakes To Avoid'. The blog points to some common mistakes we make during landscaping. They are;
1. Not Starting With A Plan
2. Skipping Prep Work
3. Monochromatic Colour Schemes
4. Forgetting to Factor Size
5. When Weeds Go Wild
6. Your Land Is A Backyard Buffet
Read more here : http://infinitygardens.ca/blog... . Hope it helps!

Guilty
Guilty
Guilty
Guilty......
And what about impulse buying and choosing the wrong plant for the environmental conditions...

I'd go for color. But then I'm really bored by green and more green. I've used a lot of annuals this year in bright orchid, some deep red, blue and white just to see how I like them. But I started with a base of pink/burgundy and silver for the perrenials. Then I started adding colors in the annuals because they won't last much beyond the end of autumn (no frost here), so I can change it up next year. Mine are all in containers, and you might want to do it that way just so you don't have to do a lot of digging and amending this first year. Once the annuals are finished the pots are available for the next round and you don't have to commit to in-the-ground permanence until you're sure what you want.


Edited to add: Oops, didn't notice the date on the last post. Hope this helps even if you're already started. And Good Luck!

Hello! I'm not that good at knowing all types of flowers and shrubs... but it looks to plain for me! I love colors!
I'd buy some annual flowers and put them in pots and decorate the front porch you have. Maybe add some in between the landscape.
Please post a pic with what you did

monika

Good morning... and hello as well!!!

You know, just to add colour...
I'd look into the brugmansias, daturas, & hibiscus groups.
You need colour, kinda tough looking at that bland yard and believe its Florida!

carl1313 said:Hi everyone, I live in Tampa Florida, and I just bought a house. The landscaping is just not the best (Builder landscape included with the house ). I am not a very creative person . So I need all your help to have the best landscape in a cookie-cutter neighborhood.

This is for down the road, although as much as it goes against my grain, crowded planting works better than semi-sterile perfect spacing.
My other half convinced me of this.

Beyond that when your cement gets weathered or you just get tired of square edges and everything being a shade of grey; tear out as much as you can afford and put in paver stones with your side walk have curves rather than rigid square angles..
Pick a color that you like, but this my favorite, the shades of reds that were so common up here are no longer in production replaced by pastel shades of brown that are about as eye catching as shades of grey.

I thought she was nuts but my sig. other had me put a red paver stone patio around half o the house with red edgers covering another fourth.
It looks good and I get nothing but compliments on it.

If you want really different, put a design in the paver stones; now it has been a few years since I have put any in and I am not sure you can get them anymore, up here at least bit they really add character.
We did a drive way with one and it looked great; at the same time a fellow we did retainer wall work for had put in a brown colored cement drive way ---- except ---- the cement dried to a shade of purple.
Not a happy camper.

If you are a builder you can do it for a third to half the price of a landscaper as I did.

My best friend love a purple driveway.