Forum
« closing fees 3% Rebate for a Mortgage Broker? »
June 4, 2009
Landscaping help for front yards
We have a little bit of a front lawn in the front of our brick limestone building. We need to completely landscape it. Are there any resources out there that can provide us with photos or ideas? We'd like to do this ourselves since it is not huge but it is big enough that we could do something nice with it.
Thanks.
Comments
It might be worth a walking tour of blocks near Prospect Park in Park Slope to get ideas. There are some beautiful limestones on 1st, 2nd, 3rd and 4th just below PPW that have lovely small gardens in front. I am sure there are dozens of other examples in Brooklyn but I know these from my route to the park.
Posted by: myplace at June 5, 2009 9:24 AM
Myplace has a good idea. Find a block where the houses face the same direction as yours (similar amounts of sun, etc.) and weave up and down from Union to 3rd Streets between PPW and 8th Ave. You'll get great ideas. Also visit the resource center at the Brooklyn Botanic Garden.
Posted by: parkslopemom at June 5, 2009 11:51 AM
I actually used to live on 4th street between 8th ave and the park. I guess this gives me a good reason to visit the old nabe. I hope people don't mind me taking photos!
Posted by: italiana71 at June 5, 2009 12:35 PM
Nothing says city living like a nice patch of asphalt.
Posted by: cornetor at June 5, 2009 2:13 PM
There's a six-family across from the Old Stone House that has gorgeous landscaping in a spot about six inches deep. The identical building next door has nothing. It's quite impressive, though they apparently had to cover up the basement windows to do it.
Posted by: mopar at June 5, 2009 4:45 PM
Italiana71, where to start? So much depends on the kind of light your garden gets, and the quality of the soil. You will need to learn to work with the former and can alter/amend the latter as necessary. One suggestion, already made by others, is to walk around your own neighborhood, look at existing gardens, and speak to the gardeners. Which gardens do you respond to? Which plants and plantings do you like, and under what light conditions are they succeeding? You may find yourself getting to know your neighbors even better, as well as being gifted with knowledge and cuttings.
There are so many more suggestions. In part these are related to getting out and walking/looking rather than reading/websurfing. In another part they are related to your own willingness to experiment with plants and plantings, and understanding that between your own efforts and those of Mother Nature’s you’ll learn and be rewarded over time.
Two garden tours coming up soon:
June 14, The Brownstone Brooklyn Garden District’s Garden Walk, Information: (718) 858-7968, brownstonebgd@gmail.com or bbgd.wordpress.com.
June 13 and 14, Nine private gardens, Jackson Heights, Queens. Information: (718) 565-5344 and jhbg.org.
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/04/30/garden/30webtours-001-001.html
Consider taking some classes: http://www.bbg.org/edu/adult/
Go to a good nursery and talk with their staff. They’ll be glad to help you begin clarifying your own vision.
In addition to the tours above, I suggest day-trips to the following (listed in no particular order). Enjoy the grand scale, but also study the small groupings set to thrive under diverse conditions and in different seasons.
Brooklyn Botanic Garden, Brooklyn, NY
http://www.bbg.org/
Winterthur, Delaware
http://www.winterthur.org/about/about.asp
Bowman’s Preserve, New Hope, PA
http://www.bhwp.org/calendar.htm
Planting Fields Arboretum, Oyster Bay, Long Island
http://www.plantingfields.com/
John Hume Japanese Stroll Garden, Locust Valley, Long Island
http://gardenconservancy.org/humes.html
Storm King Art Center, Mountainville, NY
http://www.stormking.org/
New York Botanical Garden, Bronx, NY
http://www.nybg.org/
Wave Hill, Westchester, NY
http://www.wavehill.org/home/
The Cloisters, Fort Tryon Park, NY
http://www.metmuseum.org/Works_Of_Art/the_cloisters
Conservatory Garden, Central Park, NY
http://www.centralpark.com/pages/attractions/conservatory-garden.html
Old Westbury Gardens, Old Westbury, Long Island
http://www.oldwestburygardens.org/
Clark Botanic Garden, Albertson, Long Island
http://www.clarkbotanic.org/photos.shtml
Longwood Gardens, Kennett Square, PA
http://www.longwoodgardens.org/TheGardens_1_3_2.html
Skylands NJ Botanical Garden, Ringwood, NJ
http://www.njbg.org/
If it's all too much or too new, and you're stumped or overwhelmed by the choices, many plant catalogs sell pre-selected mixes called “Pre-planned Gardens.” This is just one example:
http://springhillnursery.com/pre-planned-gardens/c/14/
Other resources:
http://blogs.cornell.edu/garden/
http://www.gardening.cornell.edu/
http://www.gardening.cornell.edu/homegardening/
http://www.sunset.com/garden/
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/victorygarden/
http://www.farmersalmanac.com/
http://www.hgtv.com/gardening-by-the-yard/show/index.html
http://www.createtv.org/CreateTV.nsf/GenreDisplay?Readform&Genre=Gardening
Posted by: vinca at June 5, 2009 7:31 PM
I hesitate to pipe up after vinca's awesome post, but I recommend you check out the front gardens on 11th or 12th Street between 7th and 8th Avenues (it's the block on the south side of the Ansonia Clock Building). People have put in some creative plantings and those are looong front gardens.
Also, on 2nd or 3rd Place in Carroll Gardens, between Hoyt and Clinton, there are a number of buildings with lovely front gardens. Since some face north and some face south you can get ideas for your specific situation. If you go on a weekend, you might catch some of the owners in their gardens; I've found them to be particularly friendly and interested in talking about their choices.
Enjoy your project!
Posted by: South Sloper at June 7, 2009 12:57 PM
you can contact me if you like... http://gardentypestudio.blogspot.com/
Posted by: the jibb at August 25, 2009 9:11 PM
hi am newbie here!
landscaping adds beauty to one's home...and even on gardens when you garden design it.
Posted by: links03rjean at September 9, 2009 4:18 AM
Post a comment
Please be patient while your comment is published. It may take a moment.