Landscaping Ideas for Tennessee

Ornamental Grasses

• Hardy ornamental grasses are easy to maintain and add dramatic visual interest to the landscape. Grasses readily grow in poor soils that do not nurture less-hardy plants. Used to define garden borders or planted as a backdrop to colorful annuals, ornamental grasses are available in an array of colors, heights and textures. Most ornamental grasses are perennial and add year-round interest to Tennessee cottage gardens and urban landscapes.

  Native bushy beard grass, or Andropogon glomeratus, is an excellent ornamental grass used for both screening and erosion control. Hop sedge, or Carex lupulina, is a herbaceous perennial that dies back in winter and returns every spring. Hop sedge is attractive when planted in large mounds.

Trees

• Trees should be planted in the fall. Young trees have a hard time taking hold in Tennessee's hot summers. Planting in the fall, when trees will benefit from light winter rains, promotes vigorous growth and allows the roots to become firmly established. For ease of cultivation and maintenance, select trees that are native to Tennessee. Bald cypress, or Taxodium distichum, black cherry, or Prunus serotina,

  black oak, or Quercus velutina, and black willow, or Salix nigra, grow well in wetland a areas.

Shrubs

• Oakleaf hydrangea, or hydrangea quercifolia, which is native to Tennessee, is widely used as an ornamental shrub. Planted for its interesting shape, diminutive size and low maintenance requirements, Oakleaf hydrangea presents impressive fall foliage in shades of purple and red. Summer flowers present as large white clusters that are attractive to bees and birds.

  Strawberry bush, or Euonymus americana, another hardy shrub native to Tennessee, is often planted in areas of dense shade. The dense green foliage and bright fruits provide visual interest. The plant, which reaches a height of 3 to 8 feet, reproduces readily and is easy to maintain.

Flowers

• Purple coneflower, or Echinacea purpurea, Virginia bluebells, or Mertensia virginica, wild columbine, or Aquilegia canadensis, and wild geranium, or Geranium maculatum, are plants native to Tennessee that are easy to grow and often incorporated into rural landscapes.

Ground Cover

• Blue wild indigo, or Baptisia australis, presents deep-purple flowers on dense plants. The blue wild indigo prefers full sun and moist soil. It is excellent cover for steep stream banks and wetland areas subject to erosion. Native to Tennessee, blue wild indigo requires little maintenance and provides habitat for birds and wildlife.