Good Plants for Landscaping a Front Yard

Color

• Some plants provide year-round color, which really boosts the eye-appeal of your property during the winter months. Other plants don't maintain their color as long, but when they are in bloom, they're so beautiful it's worth planting them to enjoy for a shorter season. That would include lilac bushes, whose purple or white blossoms are not only lovely but have a heavenly fragrance; peony bushes, which bloom around Memorial Day; hydrangeas, with their huge blue, pink or white blossoms; and many more.

  Plants that provide year-round color, such as redtwig dogwood and golden willow, are a real treat in the winter. Some plants provide a real burst of color in the fall, when many other plants are dying off, and make a nice addition to your landscaping. Ornamental grasses also provide year-round color and interest.

Attractive to Wildlife

• Any sizable plants provide shelter for birds and so will attract them, but birds especially like chokecherry, silverberry and sumac, which has the added attraction of bright autumn color. Plants that provide food, like cranberry bushes, and evergreen bushes and trees that provide winter shelter, also are a good choice. Butterflies are drawn to honeysuckle and butterfly bushes; they also like many colorful flowers, which can be a part of the landscaping plan.

How Much?

• You might want to reduce the size of your lawn for several reasons. You might want to mow less often out of concern for the environment, or just because you don't like to do it. The larger the area you landscape, the less room you'll have for grass, and once your landscaping plants take off, they require little maintenance, certainly much less than a lawn. The initial cost is considerable: It can easily run to $100 or more to landscape a fairly small area. But if you think of it as investing in your property, the money spent is easy to justify.

  Plan for a balanced, harmonious look, complete one section at a time as you can afford it, and know you'll reap the rewards for many decades to come.