Landscaping advise

(Question)

HI

I was wondering if I can get some advise on landscaping my frontward. I have the design but wanted help with foundation plants to select

(Answer)

Thank-you for contacting Toronto Master Gardeners with your question.

Without more information about your design, the orientation of your site and the zone you are in, it is a little difficult to make specific plant recommendations. The most common selections for foundation planting, however, are evergreen and deciduous shrubs. You could use these woody plants alone or in combination with perennials and bulbs, depending on your taste and your interest in spending time gardening.

Some popular reasonably low-growing deciduous shrub choices for the Toronto area are hydrangeas (Hydrangea arborescens ‘Annabelle’ or H. paniculatum ‘Little Lime’ are good examples) and weigelas (such as Weigela ‘Tuxedo’). Dwarf varieties of other shrubs might also work well – Dwarf fothergilla (Fothergilla gardenii), Dwarf Korean Lilac (Syringa meyeri ‘Palibin’) or Slender Deutzia (Deutzia gracilis ‘Nikko’) are possibilities, depending on the amount of sun your site receives. Coniferous evergreens such as Hick’s Yew (Taxus x media ‘Hicksii’) are useful as foundation plants where some height is desired. Dwarf forms of juniper (Juniperus), arborvitae (Thuja) and spruce (eg. Bird’s nest spruce – Picea abies ‘Nidiformis’ or Dwarf blue spruce – P. pungens ‘Globosa’) are also worth your consideration.

The following link takes you to an article which explores some design considerations for foundation planting. It includes photographs of some interesting examples:

https://www.thespruce.com/pictures-of-foundation-plantings-4069724

Have a nice time selecting your plants! Feel free to give us more information about your site and design consideration so that we can give more specific advice.