I have this zone beside my new driveway that used to have some shrubs that (over) grew to about 18' tall. I hated them and exercised my Milwaukee Hackzall this spring. The area where the shrubs were is on a hill and my neighbor's yard is higher. Right now there is a bare spot that used to be under the shrub/trees.
I SUCK at landscaping. Please share images or ideas for something that's reasonably easy to maintain. I would not be opposed to something that would stay no more than around 6-8' tall. Much lower is also fine - I'd just rather not have it all grass so that we can have some separation from the neighbor next door. And nothing that is likely to grow endlessly. Budget? Say $1,500 or less.
Photo from today..
I suck at landscaping too. I have a pretty good eye, but every plant I touch turns to brown crusties in a matter of days.
I would consider a ground cover type thing. You can go as short or tall as you want. Hostas are super hardy, tolerate shade or sun, and usually cheap. Pachysandra is another lovely plant that blooms modestly but has great green foliage that gets about a foot high or a little more. Ivy is a little slow to grow and will keep going past its boundaries, but just mow it back to the line.
Creeping Juniper makes a dandy evergreen carpet. Think of it like a flat spruce tree. Lovely, and rabbits love to hide/nest in it.
For the ultimate low carpet, try something like Scotch Moss or a Sedge suitable to your southern climate.
Now, if you want some impact without getting too complicated, give it a couple layers and colors. Mix something like a non-variegated Pachysandra (deep green) with some Tater Tot Arbor Vitae (lighter green). Or some Snow On The Mountain (dusty green) with a dwarf japanese maple (deep purple/red)
I was talking to my sister and she suggested ivy if you want green as it won’t rip you to shreds when the inevitable need to weed occurs. Another choice would be a selection of rock say 3/4” crush and river rock. Weed control via rock salt, spread over the rock like fertilizer every spring and it washes in. DO NOT use landscape fabric it is a tool of the devil and leads to the invention of cuss words.
Evergreens will tend to keep grass and such down. We found these neat little guys called Fat Albert blue spruces. They look like regular blue spruces, but only grow to like 10' tall- and very slowly. A row of them would look super classy. You could even put lights and bows on them at Christmas time.
I'm liking the dwarf Christmas tree idea. Started by raking the edges inward and planting some grass around the edges - in order to reduce the footprint of the target area.
Where about's are you? The most drought resistant trees are Lilacs and Rocky Mountain Junipers (for North Dakota). Do you like your neighbor looking down into your business? What did you cut down, they might not be dead and are just waiting to return? Creeping Junipers with Columnar Junipers would be nice.
VolvoHeretic said:
Where about's are you? The most drought resistant trees are Lilacs and Rocky Mountain Junipers (for North Dakota). Do you like your neighbor looking down into your business? What did you cut down, they might not be dead and are just waiting to return? Creeping Junipers with Columnar Junipers would be nice.
Atlanta. Not concerned with the neighbor. What I cut down will be killed off through my persistence.
I'll look into Junipers. Thx
STM317
PowerDork
5/2/22 6:40 a.m.
I'd look for the evergreen ground cover that you like the look of, that can tolerate that exact location (sunlight, moisture, etc).
If that spot is "full sun", then here are some suggestions for native ground covers in the ATL area
With the right border, to keep the grass and ground cover from intermingling, you'd probably have to do very little weeding.
Dwarf crepe myrtle, with english ivy at the base (so no mulching needed)
I'll be the dark horse here: garden railroad. A used starter LGB set, extra track, a few structures, and some dwarf pines, on $1,500 is way doable. Let me live vicariously through you.
OHSCrifle said:
I'm liking the dwarf Christmas tree idea. Started by raking the edges inward and planting some grass around the edges - in order to reduce the footprint of the target area.
https://conifersociety.org/conifers/picea-pungens-fat-albert/
It looks fairly shaded. Most conifers prefer full sunlight, but a few tolerate shade. I'm personally a rhododendron/azalea fan, as they love shade, produce beautiful flowers in spring, but I'm not sure how they'll do in Atlanta (I live on the other side of the mountains in Tenn.). Plus, they can be finicky and grow relatively slowly.
Roses? There are some hearty breeds that don't require a lot of fussing. Girl down the street has some growing on a wooden fence that she totally ignores except to pick the flowers off, some red, some yellow. We copped one in Cape Cod, so sturdy and idiot proof that it can grow in salt water. They get about 2ft. tall, we kept them cut to almost ground cover but they still flowered well.
J.A. Ackley said:
It looks fairly shaded. Most conifers prefer full sunlight, but a few tolerate shade. I'm personally a rhododendron/azalea fan, as they love shade, produce beautiful flowers in spring, but I'm not sure how they'll do in Atlanta (I live on the other side of the mountains in Tenn.). Plus, they can be finicky and grow relatively slowly.
That's a good option, too. And magnolias- the evergreen bush of the south.
Thanks for the responses. I'm pondering.
Behind my house (west) is a wall of 80-100' hardwoods. Front yard gets sun for around 4 hours in the summer then it's all shade.
Back and side yards are all natural and mostly ravine. Lots of English ivy that I have to machete off the trees every year.
I'm pretty sure my next place will be a condo... hate landscaping!!
Easy to maintain - check!
No taller than 6-8' - check!
Unlikely to grow larger - check!
$1500 budget - very doable.
As I drive around different areas, the customary solution is often a row of inoperable automobiles...
