Home Garden

How to Decorate a Long Exterior House Wall

If one side of your home is a blank slate, decorate it with landscaping features to break up the monotony. Add dimension to a long exterior house wall by combining flowers, foliage and garden art in staggered heights and a variety of color. Create symmetry along the length of the house wall with pairs of landscape features that work together with the overall design of the space.

Things You'll Need

  • Measuring tape
  • Spray paint
  • Shovel
  • Landscape fabric
  • Decorative rocks
  • Scissors
  • Birdbath/fountain
  • 2 metal garden arches
  • Climbing roses
  • Stretchy material
  • Spade
  • 2 conical evergreen trees
  • Evergreen shrubs
  • Perennials
  • Garden statues
  • Mulch
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Instructions

    • 1

      Measure and mark the outline of a planting bed with spray paint that extends 2 to 3 feet from the exterior wall of the house and that runs the length of the long house wall. Remove the grass, rocks and debris from inside the planting bed.

    • 2

      Cut and place landscape fabric over the top soil of the planting bed. Border the bed with decorative rocks or other landscape edging.

    • 3

      Stand at least a 3-foot tall birdbath or fountain in the center of the length of the planting bed. Position one metal garden arch in the planting bed on each side of the birdbath or fountain. Leave at least 1 foot between the side of the arch and the birdbath for planting. The arch should be in the center of the width of the planting bed.

    • 4

      Plant climbing roses on each side of each metal arch. Tie the tops of the climbing roses to the metal arches with stretchy fabric to train them to grow along the arches. As the roses begin to grow, continue to tie the vines to the arches.

    • 5

      Plant two conical evergreen trees, such as junipers or cypress, at each end of the long planting bed. Conical shaped evergreen trees will anchor the long exterior house wall and provide greenery year round. Select a type of evergreen based on your gardening zone and on the amount of sunlight the planting bed receives.

    • 6

      Decorate the length of the planting bed by planting small evergreen shrubs and perennial flowers that bloom periodically through the year. For example, dwarf gardenia shrubs add dark, waxy foliage year round and fragrant blooms in the summer in zones 8B through 11. Perennial flowers and herbs include lilies, roses, peonies, oregano and rosemary.

    • 7

      Stand garden art, such as statues, beneath each arch. Fill in around the plants and garden art with decorative mulch.