It looked lovely when we finished it last year, especially if you ignored the fact that the landscaping behind it still needed work. Lately, though, it had slid into a much messier state:
That was a lot of overgrowth and dead material to deal with.
The patio itself still looked great (and stayed weed-free thanks to a crack-sanding trick), but the garden bed behind it had never looked worse.
When Katherine, a certified landscape designer who recently stopped by, evaluated the space she pointed out that some trees were diseased and dying — something the previous owners had mentioned but we hadn’t wanted to accept — and a large rhododendron had completely died. Not great news.
She advised what to prune, what to keep, and which dead or diseased plants should be removed to give the healthy ones a better chance and improve the overall appearance.
We started by removing the two failing trees and the dead rhododendron, then raked up the leaves so the bare soil and actual plants could be seen.
The difference was immediate. Opening up the space made the patio feel less claustrophobic — it’s nice not to feel like the plants are coming at you when you step outside.
We still had clumps of liriope to remove and several bare spots that needed intentional plantings. There’s also a rain barrel that I’ve been meaning to paint to help it blend in better, but that’s on the to-do list.
The next step was digging out the random liriope clumps to make room for more purposeful planting arrangements.
Here’s the area behind the tree that we cleared to create space for transplanting some existing shrubs.
How do you get free bushes? By transplanting them. Katherine suggested moving several overcrowded plants from one part of the bed to another.
We dug up the excess nandina bushes that were competing in one spot…
…and transplanted three of them near the hydrangeas in the corner, joining one that was already thriving there. Grouping several plants of the same type creates a more cohesive look than scattering lots of different species. Ideally we’d have had five in the grouping for that odd-numbered visual balance, but three plus the existing one still reads nicely and will fill in over time.
We also bought three hydrangeas from a local nursery after price-checking. They’re the same variety as the healthy hydrangeas already in the corner, so we’re hopeful they’ll grow big and bloom well like the existing plants. The nursery offered a warranty, which was a plus.
With everything planted and the beds prepared, we mulched the area to retain moisture and suppress weeds — mulch makes such a difference, even if I forgot to photograph it right away. We’ll share mulch photos in the next landscaping update.
Between recent rains and water from the rain barrel, we’re keeping the new plants well watered while they establish. Clara enjoyed the project too — she became fascinated with the worms we found and even dreamed about them the next night.
There’s still the corner by the rain barrel to tackle, and the bed near the house could use some smaller-scale plantings, but overall the transformation in a week has been dramatic. Landscaping is rewarding precisely because the before-and-after is so visible: what was once leaves and weeds is now greener and more intentional.
With the trees in bloom the whole area feels cheerful.
From the other side you can see a few spots that still need attention, but it’s far more pleasing than the tangled mess we started with.
Here’s a before shot compared with the after — the difference is obvious, especially once the beds were mulched and edges tidied.
The trees went from bare buds to full bloom in just a short time, which has made the space feel even more alive.
More before and afters show the progress — I couldn’t help snapping a few extra photos because the change is so satisfying.
I did manage to grab a “Mulched & Fabulous” shot after all — mulch really does tidy everything up and help the beds stay healthy.
That makes a stark contrast with how things looked just a short time before:
One of my favorite photos from the day features Clara pretending to be invisible — she squatted, closed her eyes and whispered “Where’s Clara?” It was too good not to capture.
Her dad even contributed a classic hiding pose for the photo collection — clearly good genes at work.
What are you planting this season? We’ve become fans of hydrangeas after seeing our originals thrive for over a year, and nandina has always been reliable for us. I’d love to hear about your favorite plants and what you’re working on in your garden, porch, or containers.