Suggestions for Flower Bed

[ncolonna]

Hi All,

Looking for some advice and suggestions on what to plant in my flower bed in the front of my house. I'm located in Toronto and the front of my house faces East. I'd like to put some perennials in and have a clean look to it.

I'm not looking for anything that will grow too tall as I don't want it to block the window, I was thinking of putting in a dwarf japanese maple & a box wood but wanted to get some suggestions before I do anything.





Really appreciate any advice and suggestions that anyone might have.

Thanks,

Nick

[GardeningCook]

Even dwarf varieties of the two trees/shrubs you're thinking of will eventually block your windows, & trying to keep them from doing so is going to require a LOT of pruning every year, which won't do much for their appearance.

I'd stick to flowering perennials, of which there are thousands to choose from. Visit some local nurseries & see what they have to offer.

[LIcenter]

I have seven Dwarf Japanese Boxwood in one of my front beds that faces SW. They have been in the ground for (I think) 11 years, and have not grown in height more than 5 inches in all that time. They have more than doubled in width though. In all that time I have done nothing to them, and they still are keeping their nice rounded shape. Another type of boxwood I bought at the same time (can't remember the name) is planted on the NE side of the house, and has grown almost four feet in height since that time.

[pinksand]

It looks like part of Toronto is zone 6 and part is zone 5 and with an East facing house I'm guessing the site gets a decent amount of morning sun and then shade in the afternoon. There are a number of dwarf shrubs that should work in that space.

Mountain Laurel - 'Minuet' is a dwarf variety that I've heard can tolerate a sunny spot when you get further north like where you are.
Weigela - 'My Monet' or 'Midnight Wine' are low growing varieties, but if you're in zone 5 they may not do well through a particularly cold winter.
Sweet Spire - 'Little Henry' is also hardy to zone 5 but offers nice fall foliage and pretty summer blooms.
Hydrangea Paniculata - 'Little Quickfire' 'Little Lime' or 'Bobo' are all compact varieties
Hydrangea Arborescens - 'Invincibelle Spirit'
Red Twig Dogwood - 'Arctic Fire' or 'Arctic Sun' would offer some winter interest

I would probably mass 3 small shrubs of the same variety and intermingle some perennials and bulbs with different bloom times to add seasonal interest.