The Landscaping Never Ends

Just like house projects, yard projects are never done. Eventually plants need replacement. This year is no different.

One of our climbing roses near the back porch died last year and I found a replacement: Ramblin’ Red Climbing Rose.

We also had a couple of yews die this winter. They were replaced with new ones to keep the look consistent along the north side of the house: Taunton Spreading Yew.

This corner has seen a lot of turnover throughout the years including various upright arborvitae and a few different magnolia. We're going to try something new: Winecraft black smokebush. If it survives, it should fill out to provide a nice anchor both in height & width for this corner. There are utility lines above, so we are height-limited. The color contrast with the things around it will also be striking.

A few of these got mowed down by the rabbits, so new replacements have been called up: Burning Bush - Compacta.

And finally the previous ninebark (Diabolo, IIRC) didn't make it through the winter this year. Which is strange because they've been doing well for quite a few years. I think they were just old and tired. We switched varieties to something a little smaller, which means we shouldn't have to do as much hedge shearing: Little Devil Ninebark. Like previously, they are arranged in a curve that matches the front porch. As they mature, they should be about the height where the brick transitions to stone.

The Front Porch Continues

Last autumn the roof was replaced on the front porch.

Work on the rest of the porch began earlier in the week.

Partially that included removing the old rotted square half columns that were against the house. In this photo you can see the shadow line where the column used to be just to the right of the downspout. On this side the base of the column was rotted.

On the north side, in addition to the column, parts of the beam fascia and various moldings had rotted and were removed.

Lastly, some of the bead board ceiling on the north end were also in bad shape and were removed.

The replacement materials are being sourced and installation will follow.

The old columns weren't accurate replacements for the originals. We're going to try to get a little closer than what was done previously...