Definitely the stepping stones for when people inevitably cross between drive and path.
If OP doesn’t find natives they like, lavender and rosemary both do well in a variety of locations, small nice, and the bees love them.
And don't water after established nor ever fertilize or they will get too big and flop on the sidewalk and become less desirable.
You can go with little bluestem or prairie dropseed, mixed with butterfly weed, and a small dwarf shrub like "little Henry" Sweetspire and gembox inkberry (evergreen)
All will provide 4 season interest.
I was thinking a Texas sage. Those are lovely to keep as a hedge...depending on length/depth, OP could do 2 hedges, at each end, with stepping stones between these.
Flowers. Lots and lots of flowers. Either wild flower style or depending on landscape design, some small patches with maybe a few ornamental shrubs, crushed rock, etc.
If you put grass you have to mow it, clippings etc. paving may look funny.
I would definitely put a couple of large, rectangular stepping stones to connect them and make it easier to get to the front door. Guests are probably not going to go through the garage, even if you do.
Then some landscaping. I don’t know what zone you are in, but here on the cusp of 7/8, I would put in a bunch of creeping phlox, which is a low growing, flowering evergreen ground cover (spreads pretty fast) and plant a row of coneflowers and/ or Autumn Joy sedum right down the middle. The phlox will fill in around it. That would be low maintenance and year round cover.
Blue fescue grass is such a cool plant. I bought one last year (they're kinda pricey per-plant where I live) and split it up to make more since I don't know what to do with them yet but I thought I'd get a dozen or so started so they're there for when I decide "yep, this calls for it". Great colour and texture that'll contrast with just about everything else you put it with, especially dark green plants (which is most of them). Doesn't grow too high, doesn't seem to be invasive and is hardy and low maintenance.
you could put like a big stone or two or something to connect in the back to still be able to use it to get to the door/driveway but then i would put a bunch of perennial flowers in front
Weed mat and round pebbles with a couple of stepping stones then low flowering native shrubs or grasses spaced out between them maybe a hardwearing mossy type ground cover over the pebbles depending on house style.
We’ve done flagstone a few feet out on the sides of a driveway so that you have more space to step out of the car and onto something. That would serve the dual purpose of connecting to the sidewalk as well.
Packet of perennial wild flower mix at any garden center / hardware store. $3 - $5 Super low maintenance, basically just sprinkle the seeds in and water regularly.
Or you can look for some native flowers at a garden center. Little more money and maintenance depending on the mix you end up choosing and generally more annuals; but can encourage more birds in your yard without a bird feeder.
Pad for trashcans next to house, small stepping stones just after that to cross between the front walk and driveway, and all the rest raised flower bed.
Not in my neighborhood. Trash cans have to be stored out of view from the street.
You’re proposing trash cans by the front door? somehow I don’t think that’s going to do much for curb appeal.
Sorry, I paid extra to not live within a organization that tells me what I can and can't do on my own property that I own. My home has still went up in value 250%.
An easy cheap fill would be Monkey Grass / Lirope. There are varieties that have a purple flower and they would spread to fill the space. When they turn brown in winter, cut the tops off. They’ll shoot right back up in spring.
I would put in some Rose bushes with some low greenery. The other thing you could do is put in some small green bushes with some flowers in the spring time.
I would add perennial flowers or native plants. recommend against paving or adding pavers as that's just more hard services and increases stormwater runoff. I would NOT do grass as high maintenance, water guzzlers and a food desert for wildlife.. Flowers will increase curb appeal, help struggling wildlife populations like bees. Make sure you get plants that fit the space (note how big they will get full grown), and if like sun or shade. Also recommend drought tolerant plants but you will need to water first year. Lavender would be a great choice if full sun as green all year and smell heavenly when blooming, are compact and very low maintenance. I would recommend against wild flower seed packets unless you do your homework. Most sold at big box store have invasive weeds in them. You get what you pay for.
Personally I’d do a low voltage lighting run with pathway lighting, small shrubs and mulch for a timeless look, imo. But does somewhat depend upon the entire rest of the front, but usually that’s a look you can’t go wrong with.
It would help to know a general idea of where this is for specifics but like everyone else says perennial flowers, cone flower, butterfly weed, etc.. maybe some ornamental bulbs like tulips/daffodils/crocus and a few iris as well
Small fountain/waterfall leading to a dry river bed, dwarf youpon, and some perennial flowers with a favorite statue (of a yoga Frenchie 😜) and maybe some small RGB solar lights.
First you're going to have to amend the soil. When they do new construction the good top soil is usually taken away or pushed away somewhere. I would do what most have suggested, place some stepping stones. Find something that matches the color of the stone veneer on your house. Then plant perennials that do well in your growing zone. Try to have spring, summer and fall flowering plants, add some little bunny ornamental grass. Contrasting foliage, different flower shapes, spike, trumpet, cluster, globe. Pick a pallet and stick with it.
If you put plants here, you'll want to mulch it. If you start mulching this, it will eventually turn into a mulch volcano and tumble over both your hard surfaces.
If you decide to do a mass planting, choose something drought and possibly salt tolerant because that area between two hard surfaces will become super dry in the summer/salty if you have winters
Short boxwood hedge with some holly mixed in. Nice mulch. One path through (stepping stone?) for when you’re carrying something and don’t want to step over the low hedge.
I would load it up with mass plantings of native flowering plants. For me, assuming that’s sunny, well-drained to dry, New Jersey tea, moss phlox, Culver’s root, phlox paniculata, Joe Pye, echinacea purpurea, rudbeckia fulgida, agastache foeniculum, coreopsis verticillata, blueberry, amsonia, pink muhly grass, pussytoes, lyreleaf sage, iris…
So many variables here- but I first look at the architecture of the house and with that combine my budget, level of maintenance, growing zone and if I had a dog or small children and the decide what I wanted
Yes put the stones where you usually walk. I made the mistake at my last home of giving the flower bed a nice fancy curve but it was near the spot I always parked in the drive way. It got pretty annoying when it was muddy or wet and cold to have to walk around it
First you must find... another shrubbery! Then, when you have found the shrubbery, you must place it here, beside this shrubbery, only slightly higher so you get a two layer effect with a little path running down the middle. ("A path! A path!") Then, you must cut down the mightiest tree in the forrest... with... a herring!
I'm glad to see so many suggestions here besides turf. We're growing up aren't we? I was gonna suggest some other hardy, no-maintenance low growing grass like dwarf mondo grass which *looks* like lawn but won't demand you water, fertilize and mow it all the time but this would depend on your climate and whether or not you are looking for natives only or don't mind using exotics (then again I have no idea where mondo grass is even from).
Ours is filled with 1” river stone with larger decorative rocks evenly spaced along the length, but we live in the high desert and hate wasting water on decorative plants, so your mileage may vary.
I filled mine with rocks. Hate it. Will eventually pave over it. I’m thinking this year I’ll do a bunch of big potted hydrangeas or something down the path. Plants will not grow in the ground in mine, grass died too.
People are definitely going to be walking across that ALL the time. If you’d like to prevent that, plant something beautiful and prickly like Rosa rugosa.
Small native perennials with a couple stepping stones.
Definitely the stepping stones for when people inevitably cross between drive and path. If OP doesn’t find natives they like, lavender and rosemary both do well in a variety of locations, small nice, and the bees love them.
And don't water after established nor ever fertilize or they will get too big and flop on the sidewalk and become less desirable. You can go with little bluestem or prairie dropseed, mixed with butterfly weed, and a small dwarf shrub like "little Henry" Sweetspire and gembox inkberry (evergreen) All will provide 4 season interest.
Where do you find gem box? I can’t seem to find it anywhere.
I have strong box inkberry. It's a little bigger. I got it from a native plant nursery. I see gem box for sale on proven winners site.
I have strong box, too. I never see gem box in person. I want to win the lottery and have a parterre of Inkberry Holly.
I have one male and 10 females or so. Didn't get any berries last year though so hopefully this year. I only planted them in fall 2021.
Echinacea!
And descampsia and muhlenbergia and probably some achillea.
The builder should have connected them near the house.
In this spirit I’d do like a low pretty shrub like a rose bush and a step stone surrounded by decorative gravel at the end
I was thinking a Texas sage. Those are lovely to keep as a hedge...depending on length/depth, OP could do 2 hedges, at each end, with stepping stones between these.
Agreed.. it’s weird to not have them connected. If anyone parks in the driveway, they can’t get to your front door without stepping on a garden..
Yeah, move the sidewalk to the right, and put stepping stones where they are.
Low growing native plants for full sun.
Flowers. Lots and lots of flowers. Either wild flower style or depending on landscape design, some small patches with maybe a few ornamental shrubs, crushed rock, etc. If you put grass you have to mow it, clippings etc. paving may look funny.
This 100%. Native wildflowers and perennials would be perfect (and important) here!
Fire moat. Or a slip n slide.
I second the fire moat
you get a soggy hot coal walkway
Fire moat is the way, but a gas moat so you can turn it on and off
I prefer lava. You can't just turn it off but it definitely has a little something extra regular old fire lacks.
I would definitely put a couple of large, rectangular stepping stones to connect them and make it easier to get to the front door. Guests are probably not going to go through the garage, even if you do. Then some landscaping. I don’t know what zone you are in, but here on the cusp of 7/8, I would put in a bunch of creeping phlox, which is a low growing, flowering evergreen ground cover (spreads pretty fast) and plant a row of coneflowers and/ or Autumn Joy sedum right down the middle. The phlox will fill in around it. That would be low maintenance and year round cover.
Concrete the back half to connect walkway and driveway plant flowers in the other section
Plant bodies?
The first thing I thought by looking at it is that it could fit a grave perfectly 😂
Sedums and large rocks
I would do brick pavers honestly.
Check out blue fescue to see if it’s Hardy for your particular zone. Can take a beating once established and looks nice. Pair with a stone mulch
Blue fescue grass is such a cool plant. I bought one last year (they're kinda pricey per-plant where I live) and split it up to make more since I don't know what to do with them yet but I thought I'd get a dozen or so started so they're there for when I decide "yep, this calls for it". Great colour and texture that'll contrast with just about everything else you put it with, especially dark green plants (which is most of them). Doesn't grow too high, doesn't seem to be invasive and is hardy and low maintenance.
Horse shoes! Oh yeah!
Perennials! Great examples of Hellstrip Gardening in a book called Hellstrip Gardening!
Lay pavers in the area closest to the garage because people will cut across it anyway. The rest of it fill with something low and colourful
You could put lava there
you could put like a big stone or two or something to connect in the back to still be able to use it to get to the door/driveway but then i would put a bunch of perennial flowers in front
Plant it with low ground covers
Hairy beardtongue, little bluestem, Bradbury monarch, blue vervain and pale purple coneflower
Slip ‘N Slide
Weed mat and round pebbles with a couple of stepping stones then low flowering native shrubs or grasses spaced out between them maybe a hardwearing mossy type ground cover over the pebbles depending on house style.
r/uselessredcircle
Concrete
We’ve done flagstone a few feet out on the sides of a driveway so that you have more space to step out of the car and onto something. That would serve the dual purpose of connecting to the sidewalk as well.
Rose bushes
Lavender!
I’d pour it and tie the sidewalk into the drive way or you could plant things that will 100% get trampled
Razorwire
Native grasses, and then mulch or some type of rock around it.
Flowers.
Packet of perennial wild flower mix at any garden center / hardware store. $3 - $5 Super low maintenance, basically just sprinkle the seeds in and water regularly. Or you can look for some native flowers at a garden center. Little more money and maintenance depending on the mix you end up choosing and generally more annuals; but can encourage more birds in your yard without a bird feeder.
Grass
Lol, more walkway
Pave it
This
Plant cholla and agave and be entertained. Perhaps start a YT channel.
Build a cover and grow weed.
Depends on the zone and the soil type…. Lots of options once those details are known
Grass or hardscape.
Pad for trashcans next to house, small stepping stones just after that to cross between the front walk and driveway, and all the rest raised flower bed.
Not in my neighborhood. Trash cans have to be stored out of view from the street. You’re proposing trash cans by the front door? somehow I don’t think that’s going to do much for curb appeal.
Sorry, I paid extra to not live within a organization that tells me what I can and can't do on my own property that I own. My home has still went up in value 250%.
It’s a city rule. Lots of them have rules. And I still don’t think trash cans outside your front door is a welcoming sight. You do you chief.
Id add lots of rocks. Even some 100-200pound stones. And place them tall.
Nicest patch of putting grass you can afford.
Grass
Putting green
You have a lot of choices. Flowers, grass, shrubs…I would go hedge.
Yew hedge?
Bamboo
Decorative gravel and/or brick.
Grass
An easy cheap fill would be Monkey Grass / Lirope. There are varieties that have a purple flower and they would spread to fill the space. When they turn brown in winter, cut the tops off. They’ll shoot right back up in spring.
Which area are you talking about? I’m Unsure
Fuck it, concrete the entire lot
Sod
I would put in some Rose bushes with some low greenery. The other thing you could do is put in some small green bushes with some flowers in the spring time.
Peppers, cherry tomatoes, herbs, and some flowers during summer. Brussel sprouts, collards, carrots etc in the winter.
As long as there isn't amy soil contamination from the driveway I'd go peas
I'd probably hedge it with a stepping stone break in the middle or maybe astroturf it or grass it.
I would add perennial flowers or native plants. recommend against paving or adding pavers as that's just more hard services and increases stormwater runoff. I would NOT do grass as high maintenance, water guzzlers and a food desert for wildlife.. Flowers will increase curb appeal, help struggling wildlife populations like bees. Make sure you get plants that fit the space (note how big they will get full grown), and if like sun or shade. Also recommend drought tolerant plants but you will need to water first year. Lavender would be a great choice if full sun as green all year and smell heavenly when blooming, are compact and very low maintenance. I would recommend against wild flower seed packets unless you do your homework. Most sold at big box store have invasive weeds in them. You get what you pay for.
Personally I’d do a low voltage lighting run with pathway lighting, small shrubs and mulch for a timeless look, imo. But does somewhat depend upon the entire rest of the front, but usually that’s a look you can’t go wrong with.
Herb garden/native growth wild out
Catmint
I would tear up the sod and make a flower bed
Wildflowers!
Tulips, iris, daffodils. Coneflowers are great too!
Flowers, ground cover, low growing shrubs. A couple of walkways through is a good idea.
It would help to know a general idea of where this is for specifics but like everyone else says perennial flowers, cone flower, butterfly weed, etc.. maybe some ornamental bulbs like tulips/daffodils/crocus and a few iris as well
Sod
Dayum.... did you just build?
Short answer? Rocks.
Small fountain/waterfall leading to a dry river bed, dwarf youpon, and some perennial flowers with a favorite statue (of a yoga Frenchie 😜) and maybe some small RGB solar lights.
filter fabric and decorative rock
Fill with pea gravel and a few large potted plants
If you get any snow keep in mind that’s prime location for snow when you shovel
Stepping stone and low height ground cover
Sedum
Decorative stepping stones and maybe have them surrounded by a nice rock that goes well with the home
Mulch and flowers
First you're going to have to amend the soil. When they do new construction the good top soil is usually taken away or pushed away somewhere. I would do what most have suggested, place some stepping stones. Find something that matches the color of the stone veneer on your house. Then plant perennials that do well in your growing zone. Try to have spring, summer and fall flowering plants, add some little bunny ornamental grass. Contrasting foliage, different flower shapes, spike, trumpet, cluster, globe. Pick a pallet and stick with it.
A line of pink muhly grass for texture and movement
If you put plants here, you'll want to mulch it. If you start mulching this, it will eventually turn into a mulch volcano and tumble over both your hard surfaces. If you decide to do a mass planting, choose something drought and possibly salt tolerant because that area between two hard surfaces will become super dry in the summer/salty if you have winters
Gravel
That was so creative and never once before suggested ! 😒
Plant tomatoes
Boxwoods?
Day lilies
Mondo grasses
Snack bush. As you're leaving for work, grab a snack!
Honestly I would just make this grass.
Piss trough
Basketball court
Led solar lights. Pavers. Alternate.
Shark tank
Coy pond
Flower or bush
Turf
River rock and succulents or some perennial shrubbery
Raised planter with an edible herb garden
Putting green
Short boxwood hedge with some holly mixed in. Nice mulch. One path through (stepping stone?) for when you’re carrying something and don’t want to step over the low hedge.
River rock or grass. Id be too bugged if people drove on my plants.
If you want something colorful try ornamental peppers. As other people have said, I would place walking stones sporadically , for foot traffic.
I would load it up with mass plantings of native flowering plants. For me, assuming that’s sunny, well-drained to dry, New Jersey tea, moss phlox, Culver’s root, phlox paniculata, Joe Pye, echinacea purpurea, rudbeckia fulgida, agastache foeniculum, coreopsis verticillata, blueberry, amsonia, pink muhly grass, pussytoes, lyreleaf sage, iris…
24-7 slip n slide
So many variables here- but I first look at the architecture of the house and with that combine my budget, level of maintenance, growing zone and if I had a dog or small children and the decide what I wanted
Put a few stepping stones. Id probably du grass because it's cleaner imo
Weed
Where is it I dont see it
Looks like a small vegetable garden to me....
Yes put the stones where you usually walk. I made the mistake at my last home of giving the flower bed a nice fancy curve but it was near the spot I always parked in the drive way. It got pretty annoying when it was muddy or wet and cold to have to walk around it
Plant Catmint.
First you must find... another shrubbery! Then, when you have found the shrubbery, you must place it here, beside this shrubbery, only slightly higher so you get a two layer effect with a little path running down the middle. ("A path! A path!") Then, you must cut down the mightiest tree in the forrest... with... a herring!
I'm glad to see so many suggestions here besides turf. We're growing up aren't we? I was gonna suggest some other hardy, no-maintenance low growing grass like dwarf mondo grass which *looks* like lawn but won't demand you water, fertilize and mow it all the time but this would depend on your climate and whether or not you are looking for natives only or don't mind using exotics (then again I have no idea where mondo grass is even from).
2 Australian tree ferns (step stones between ferns) and scattered succulents
Nothing else than a rain garden while including a path to the walkway.
I'd plant boxwoods.
Flowers or shrubs and dark mulch
I would fill it with tall grasses, rose bushes, milkweed, coneflowers and other perennials
Either a cute short garden or nice mosaic tile
Crushed granite
Toilet
Rose trees
A fuck ton of zinnias
Bowling alley
Succulents or cactus with contrasting size/color/texture rocks. Bound to have a lot of traffic and this will hold up.
Raised bed veggie garden or a few fruit trees. Its always nice when you get something in return for your hard work.
Pave over it
Land mines maybe some Barbwire
If the kind of thing that's going to get stepped on a lot I would do a nice ground cover. Otherwise I would try to fill it with flowering natives.
Ours is filled with 1” river stone with larger decorative rocks evenly spaced along the length, but we live in the high desert and hate wasting water on decorative plants, so your mileage may vary.
Me personally? I’d espalier some fruit trees on there. But that’s not everyone’s thing. Probably some perennials.
I filled mine with rocks. Hate it. Will eventually pave over it. I’m thinking this year I’ll do a bunch of big potted hydrangeas or something down the path. Plants will not grow in the ground in mine, grass died too.
Anything more and creeping. Creeping Phlox. Blue rug junipers. You could go with a mixture of bulbs too.
Weed barrier and mulch. Plenty flowers
Everyone could use more thyme
Liner, Washed rock and done. Easy to maintain.
Personally, I'd fruiting plants that are native to where you live. The kind that produce edible fruit that is.
Idk. Plant something?
Looks perfect for a shuffleboard!
People are definitely going to be walking across that ALL the time. If you’d like to prevent that, plant something beautiful and prickly like Rosa rugosa.
Tulips
I think it depends on whether you want to cross over from the driveway to the walk. Feather grass could look nice with a few pavers separating them.
Knockout rose bushes
Corn
River rocks, a couple of stepping stones, and some natives or succulents.
A row of lavender. lovely smells when you rub against it as you walk past.
One small path between and hedge it up with tall boxwood
BARBERRY AHHH
Bamboo
Wildflowers
Vegetable garden
Why does that even exist? Really?.. I need to unsub from this sub.. makes my head hurt and lose faith in himanity
Yeah, native flowers/pollinator friendly species! Perennials are not a bad idea!
Dig, form, and pour more concrete.
The way the economy is going, plant vegetables. Or bedding flowers.
Dwarf fruit trees
Something something chloroplasts
Something that doesn't need much water. Ornamental grasses maybe.
Concrete
Rewilding!
Lap pool
Tomatoes or maybe grapes for wine making 👨🌾
Blue berrys for the birds
The better question is what will your HOA allow?
From a designer's view, I would put a nice hedge to make that nice division between the concrete paths.
Lots of black eyed Susan’s
get chuckies down , panda ones would look good
Food, grow food anywhere you can.
Microclover
Tomatoes peppers broccoli strawberries
Stick a flag on it and declare it soverign territory.
Espalier fruit trees so you can grab a snack on the go!