How to Landscape to Hide a Brick Foundation

Choose areas of the house that you wish to highlight. For example, the points to the left and right of the front door, surrounding a bay window or the two front corners of the house might be spots to which you wish to pull the eye.

Create focal points at the spots you highlighted. Blooming shrubs, such as hydrangea or lilac, and small trees, such as Japanese maple, crabapple or yew, are ideal choices for these spots. Large clumps of upright grasses, such as pampas or maidenhair, will also fit well in these areas.

Add smaller plants and specimens to complement the focal points. Examples of suitable items include small shrubs such as boxwood, juniper and rhododendron; large boulders; and groupings of perennial plants, for example, daylilies, hosta and daisies. As you add plants, ensure that you allow enough room for the plants to spread to mature growth to avoid overcrowding.

Incorporate other items such as boulders, birdbaths, bird feeders and other lawn ornaments to the area to round out the arrangement.

Plant groundcovers in front of the area to soften the transition from the taller plantings to the ground. Low-growing plants, such as sedum, verbena, primrose or creeping phlox, will spread and fill in the understory area to eliminate weeding and make an attractive ground area.

Add a border in front of the groundcover to separate the planting area from the rest of the lawn. Bricks, stones or a pieced edging will look attractive and provide an effective border.