Suntan answers:

Hey Just BN Me,

Planning is the key! Take a plot plan with elevations and water flow arrows. Be sure to make note of your home gutters or drip guards. Try to form curves in your landscape, rounded edges adds powerful interest.

Rocks (lava or granite) on landscape cloth will give the best weed protection, yet, allow you to put bushes protruding through the cloth. This will not prevent weeds, but will slow them down. In Georgia as with most of the south, Termites are a pervasive problem. It is not a question of if you get them, it is a question of when. Good prevention would include things like having a Termite insurance and possibly Centricon type system.

At the corners of a home, I like to see a circular planting area protrude out slightly from the front and side, and you do sort of a curve from the circle to tie into the front and side. These are not drastic, just slight. You can prune your bushes to fit into these areas, and plant so that they will fill more quickly.

Some ideas for bushes in the south: Knock out roses; Nandina (several varieties); Lorapetilum; Camellia (on the shady side, north); Rosemary Bush – (and you can eat what you prune off); azaleas; gardenias; to name a few.

Take pictures of your home from the view(s) you care most about. Then superimpose plants with layers in a photo editor. There are landscape software packages to help with this, and they are under $40.00 The satisfaction you get from doing it right the first time may not be understood, until you get it wrong – they you wish you planned better (speaking from experience).

Be sure to get the hardiness zone, watering requirements, sun exposure considerations for each plant right. Consider the height, size when fully grown – and can you prune that plant to be what you want in the future.

Suntan answers:

Here’s some pictures of rock /stone landscaping:

http://www.stonesmith.net/RG.html

http://www.structurelandscaping.com/rockgardens.html

http://www.otthontudos.hu/otlettarablak.php?otid=19&kepszam=1

http://www.stonegarden.ca/pages/landscaping_pics.html

http://www.neavelandscaping.com/nl/li/ys/ac/boulders.htm

Video on using stones & rocks in landscaping:

Try to use plants that are native in your area. Here’s a list of drought-tolerant plants: Achillea (Yarrow) , Alyssum, Artemisia, Asclepias (Butterfly Weed), Beebalm, California Poppy, Campanula carpatica (Bellflower), Campis (Trumpet vine), Coreopsis, Cosmos, Cranesbill Geranium, Daylily, Echinacea Coneflower, Euphorbia, Gaillardia, Goldenrod, Greek oregano, Heliopsis, Hosta, Iris,
Kniphofia (Red Hot Poker), Lamb’s Ears, Lavender, Liatris, Nasturtium, Nepeta Catmint,
Penstemon, Perovskia (Russian Sage), Portulaca, Rudbeckia, Salvia nemerosa, Sedum,
Tradescantia (Spiderwort), Veronica, Zinnia

Shrubs:Amelanchier (Shadbush), Aronia (Chokeberry), Buddleia (Butterfly Bush),
Caryopteris, Cotoneaster, Hypericum (St. Johnswort), Juniper, Potentilla, Cytisus (Scotch Broom), Viburnum
Grasses: Feather Reed Grass (Calamagrostis acutiflora), Fescue, Fountain Grass (Pennisetum), Maiden Grass (Miscanthus), Switch Grass (Panicum)

http://gardening.about.com/od/gardendesign/a/Xeriscaping_3.htm

http://redwoodbarn.com/droughttolerant.html#pcovers

Drought tolerant plants: Xeriscapes:

http://aggie-horticulture.tamu.edu/aransas/xeriscape.htm

http://www.eartheasy.com/grow_xeriscape.htm

http://www.whiteflowerfarm.com/drought-tolerant-plants.html?utm_source=OthersMB&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=2008+08+02

Good luck!!! Hope this is helpful.

Suntan answers:

Since you have an older house, you want to stick with “older” flowers. Use azalias close to the house. They come in a variety of colors and bloom early spring. For summer blooms, try Sweet Williams, begonias, old-fashioned roses, and petunias. For spring blooms, plant daffodils and pansies.

Don’t forget the ferns for your front porch. You can save money by splitting ferns in the spring. Even if you do not split, you will want to transplant ferns into a larger container. They like room to spread. You can split one fern in half or thirds and repot in larger containers.

Feed with Miracle Gro!