Hello all. I have a mulch bed around 1.5 feet wide and 56 feet long
that runs alongside the length of my driveway. Currently, it is just
that, a mulch bed, with no ornamentation. I am planning on filling in
this section with a combination of plants, and solar lights. Something
like this:

---------------------------------------------------------------
PLANT LIGHT PLANT LIGHT PLANT LIGHT
---------------------------------------------------------------

I am going to need about 6-7 plants. Can anyone recommend an annual
plant that can survive moderate winters, that is relatively low-lying?
Maybe something that can be trimmed to form a circular shape?

Thanks!

-AJ

"mieskola" wrote in message
oups.com...
Hello all. I have a mulch bed around 1.5 feet wide and 56 feet long
that runs alongside the length of my driveway. Currently, it is just
that, a mulch bed, with no ornamentation. I am planning on filling in
this section with a combination of plants, and solar lights. Something
like this:

---------------------------------------------------------------
PLANT LIGHT PLANT LIGHT PLANT LIGHT
---------------------------------------------------------------

I am going to need about 6-7 plants. Can anyone recommend an annual
plant that can survive moderate winters, that is relatively low-lying?
Maybe something that can be trimmed to form a circular shape?

Thanks!

-AJ


Rethink the lights. Arrangements like that often end up looking like the
tacky landscaping at a shopping mall. And, where do you live?

Joe,

I am certainly open to suggestions. I live in Southern New Jersey.
I personally don't like the lights either, since the neighbors kids
have a tendency of knocking them over and breaking them while playing
(I know this since I been through two sets of them already).

-AJ


JoeSpareBedroom wrote:
"mieskola" wrote in message
oups.com...
Hello all. I have a mulch bed around 1.5 feet wide and 56 feet long
that runs alongside the length of my driveway. Currently, it is just
that, a mulch bed, with no ornamentation. I am planning on filling in
this section with a combination of plants, and solar lights. Something
like this:

---------------------------------------------------------------
PLANT LIGHT PLANT LIGHT PLANT LIGHT
---------------------------------------------------------------

I am going to need about 6-7 plants. Can anyone recommend an annual
plant that can survive moderate winters, that is relatively low-lying?
Maybe something that can be trimmed to form a circular shape?

Thanks!

-AJ


Rethink the lights. Arrangements like that often end up looking like the
tacky landscaping at a shopping mall. And, where do you live?

OK. Cap the lights with blank electrical box covers. Or, leave just a
couple, not so close to the street. About the plants: Why annuals? Those are
normally not used as the basis of a planting. How about boxwood, which grows
fairly slowly, and is a breeze to shape? This source is expensive, but it's
a good pictu
http://www.waysidegardens.com/webapp...&OfferCode=SH3

You should be able to find it at any decent nursery (which is defined as
"not Home Depot or anyplace like it"). The same nurseries will be able to
recommend shrubs with similar growth habits, but which have flowers.



"mieskola" wrote in message
s.com...
Joe,

I am certainly open to suggestions. I live in Southern New Jersey.
I personally don't like the lights either, since the neighbors kids
have a tendency of knocking them over and breaking them while playing
(I know this since I been through two sets of them already).

-AJ


JoeSpareBedroom wrote:
"mieskola" wrote in message
oups.com...
Hello all. I have a mulch bed around 1.5 feet wide and 56 feet long
that runs alongside the length of my driveway. Currently, it is just
that, a mulch bed, with no ornamentation. I am planning on filling in
this section with a combination of plants, and solar lights. Something
like this:

---------------------------------------------------------------
PLANT LIGHT PLANT LIGHT PLANT LIGHT
---------------------------------------------------------------

I am going to need about 6-7 plants. Can anyone recommend an annual
plant that can survive moderate winters, that is relatively low-lying?
Maybe something that can be trimmed to form a circular shape?

Thanks!

-AJ


Rethink the lights. Arrangements like that often end up looking like the
tacky landscaping at a shopping mall. And, where do you live?

Joe, nevermind my mentioning "annual". I was thinking 2 things at
once.

Thanks for your recommendation regarding boxwoods. I have many
nurseries in my immediate area, I will take a look at their selection
to see if they carry boxwoods.

Thanks!

AJ




JoeSpareBedroom wrote:
OK. Cap the lights with blank electrical box covers. Or, leave just a
couple, not so close to the street. About the plants: Why annuals? Those are
normally not used as the basis of a planting. How about boxwood, which grows
fairly slowly, and is a breeze to shape? This source is expensive, but it's
a good pictu
http://www.waysidegardens.com/webapp...&OfferCode=SH3

You should be able to find it at any decent nursery (which is defined as
"not Home Depot or anyplace like it"). The same nurseries will be able to
recommend shrubs with similar growth habits, but which have flowers.



"mieskola" wrote in message
s.com...
Joe,

I am certainly open to suggestions. I live in Southern New Jersey.
I personally don't like the lights either, since the neighbors kids
have a tendency of knocking them over and breaking them while playing
(I know this since I been through two sets of them already).

-AJ


JoeSpareBedroom wrote:
"mieskola" wrote in message
oups.com...
Hello all. I have a mulch bed around 1.5 feet wide and 56 feet long
that runs alongside the length of my driveway. Currently, it is just
that, a mulch bed, with no ornamentation. I am planning on filling in
this section with a combination of plants, and solar lights. Something
like this:

---------------------------------------------------------------
PLANT LIGHT PLANT LIGHT PLANT LIGHT
---------------------------------------------------------------

I am going to need about 6-7 plants. Can anyone recommend an annual
plant that can survive moderate winters, that is relatively low-lying?
Maybe something that can be trimmed to form a circular shape?

Thanks!

-AJ


Rethink the lights. Arrangements like that often end up looking like the
tacky landscaping at a shopping mall. And, where do you live?

"mieskola" wrote in message
ups.com...
Joe, nevermind my mentioning "annual". I was thinking 2 things at
once.

Thanks for your recommendation regarding boxwoods. I have many
nurseries in my immediate area, I will take a look at their selection
to see if they carry boxwoods.

Thanks!

AJ

Another recommendation, which you should take seriously: Get to your library
and see if they've got either or both of these books, both by Henry
Mitchell, the late garden columnist for the Washington Post: "The Essential
Earthman", and "One Man's Garden". Most of his recommendations were based on
personal experience with certain plants in Washington DC, close enough to
you to be accurate. Each chapter is a column from the newspaper, so they're
short. And, the guy's humor makes the books very easy to read.

When you're done, you'll have a list as long as your arm.

On 26 Oct 2006 07:12:58 -0700, mieskola wrote:
Hello all. I have a mulch bed around 1.5 feet wide and 56 feet long

What's the soil like? Sun or shade?
Where are you, what's the style of the house, and what's the
general thing you're trying to accomplish? As I read the alternation of
plants and lights, and the request for something that can be trimmed to
circular shape, I see trouble for a novice gardener. If you keep it
trimmed that way, it's going to look institutional. If you don't, it'll
look like a broken tooth in a smile, especially if all plants don't grow
at the same rate.

How much time can you devote to caring for this area?

6 or 7 plants in 56 ft is about 8 ft on center... if you trim to a circular
shape 1.5 ft wide (your maximum width), you'll have about 6 ft gaps
between plants.... and you'll need to weed assiduously.

Kay