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Posted: Nov/02/2009 11:36 PM PST
I live in a 100+ year old Victorian farmhouse on about three acres in a nice suburb. Most of my beds and borders have cottage garden designs. About 100 feet in front of my home, I have two 30+ year old white flowering crabapples. Nice trees. I have pruned and fertalized them and they are specatacular. I am, however, tired of cutting under them. While my lawn tractor fits under them, I get beat up riding on it. Because of their canopies, and the fruit that drops, the grass is thin under the trees. I have pruned the trees but I do not want to bring the branches up much higher because it would diminish the shape of the trees. I would like to plant the area under the trees. In the past, I have had a small bed in which I planted coleus and waxed begonias, but I would like to expand the borders beyond the dripline so that I do not need to cut under them. I also would like to switch to perrenials. I was thinking hostas (I have a wide variety in an 80' long shade garden), but I would also like to add some color for summer/fall (after the blossoms drop from the crabapples). Whatever I add, it should not be much taller than mid-sized hostas, or it will look out of proportion to the height under the trees. Any suggestions? |
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Posted: Nov/16/2009 11:44 AM PST
If you planted a ground cover with a varigated leaf under them it could spread under them and then you could add a few perennials here and there for some pops of color. I have some dead nettle, I believe it's Beacon Silver, sweet woodruff, and pacysandra as ground covers in my yard. The dead nettle has a pretty silver in the leaves and gets purplish flowers on it, but they're easily cut off if you don't like the blooms. It's very hardy and spreads well. Mine gets about 8 inches tall at most. It might be pretty to have a few pops of hosta among it under your crab apples. I hope that helps! |
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