Naturalizing the Side Yard and Refreshing the Porch Garden

We’re slowly transforming the yard, one section at a time. After finishing the bed to the right of the porch, the next tasks were the bed to the left of the porch and the side lot beside the house — a damp little valley we plan to naturalize into a pretty, low-maintenance forested area.

Before tackling the porch bed, we trimmed back the old clumps of ornamental grasses in the side lot. We were told to cut them back in March so they’d come back fresh and tidy; we were a little late, but the job is done now.

With the grasses cut back, the side lot already looks much neater:

From the street you can see the trimmed grass clumps (there are four) and our plan to make the valley feel woodsy and natural when everything fills in — the grasses typically grow 4–5 feet tall. We also planted a new tree at the edge of the yard to start creating that orchard-like, forested feel.

One of the designer-recommended trees for the moist area was River Birch, and we found a healthy specimen on sale at Home Depot. We followed the planting directions on the label and tucked it into the valley to thrive in that damp soil.

After planting the tree, we moved on to the planting bed to the left of the front porch. It was covered in leaves, missing a few shrubs, and overrun with liriope.

We raked out the leaves and removed the liriope to prepare a fresh bed for new plantings.

We planted an Otto Luyken laurel for evergreen structure and good year-round shape, and we relocated a struggling mid-row shrub to the wild portion of the side yard where it can recover out of the spotlight.

With the bed cleared, we had a good canvas to work with. This bed is larger than the one on the right side of the porch — roughly 20 feet long and between 7 and 11 feet deep — so we mirrored the plant palette we used on the opposite side for balance and continuity. The plants chosen tolerate partial shade and will create a cohesive look across the front of the house.

We selected three Garden Variegated Dead Nettle (the mounding variety) for late spring to summer color and ground coverage, and three Dwarf Pieris japonica ‘Variegata’ shrubs for evergreen structure and spring blooms. Each plant is compact (the nettles reach around 6–8″ and the Pieris about 2′ x 2′), so they’ll present nicely without overpowering the house.

We planted three of each type, following the common landscaping advice to use odd numbers and cluster plants for visual impact. Spacing was guided by the tags and by how they’ll look at maturity — about 3–4 feet between plants and between the plantings and the house.

We dug to the recommended depth, amended the holes per the plant tags, and set each plant carefully to ensure good root contact. A few hours of work later, the bed was planted and mulched to retain moisture and suppress weeds.

The result is a tidy, inviting bed that complements the house without overpowering the facade. The Otto Luyken laurel, variegated dead nettle, and dwarf Pieris will all bloom in spring, with the nettle extending color into summer. We finished with mulch to tie everything together.

Here’s the transformation in sequence — before the cleanup:

And after several hours of raking, replanting, and mulching (we’ll finish the smaller zone on the far left after a short break and with the right plant choices):

To help visualize the mature planting, we created a composite showing everything at full size so we can be sure it won’t overwhelm the house. The goal is a clean, layered look that adds curb appeal without making our single-story home look squat.

There are still more outdoor projects on our list — near the path, the mailbox, and other yard zones — so the full curb appeal reveal is coming. For now we’re happy to have made progress: naturalizing the side lot with trees and grasses and replanting a balanced, long-term bed by the porch. What are you planting this season? If your yard feels like a dozen half-finished projects, take heart — small, steady steps make a big difference over time.

Psst — we’ve become a Hunger Games household. More on that back at our family blog.