Decatur Herbaceous Garden

The client was a new home owner in a brand new home looking to revitalize and bring to life his frumpy, traditional yard. 

 

THE BRIEF:

• Long summer blooms despite the shady, heavy clay site

• Increase curb appeal to make their home look inviting

• Very low maintenance

• Lots of nectar plants for pollinators and spaces for over wintering

• Consideration for heavy rabbit pressure

• A central path to the curb to encourage trick or treaters

 

THE FUNCTION

 

To increase the site's usefulness as a habitat year-round, the site includes a large variety of native plant species offering nectar and blooms throughout the year for visiting bees, wasps, and butterflies.  There are overwinter nesting spaces like ornamental grasses and evergreen shrubs. We carefully sourced long blooming plants that have some shade tolerance, and we removed the existing plants that rabbits love and added native plants that repel them. We regraded the slope and added a central, permeable path.

 

THE LOOK

 

The client hoped for a cottage style look but given the grandiose of the home we went for a formal herbaceous look in large blocks to match the impact of the home. For a cohesive look and welcoming look to boost the curb appeal, we reshaped the lawn into 2 contemporary half moon shapes. We took out the curved red brick path at the front of the home and made the paths rectilinear to suit the new house. For the color palette, we played off the subtle tones of the home and choosing soft pastels, whites and small amount of orange.