Help Me Choose?

Help!  I've fallen into a never-ending cycle of planning, over-thinking, searching, envisioning, and general in-action over the plans in my front yard garden and landscape, and I can't get up!


Here's the view of our south side yard as it is today.   BO-ring!

The plan in my head calls for expanding the flowerbeds out from the house foundation, across the strip of grass, over to the south side azalea border.   The we'll place a white arbor (wood, or maybe vinyl-clad wood) in this new flowerbed to serve as an entrance from the front yard to the south side yard.

Then we'd use a variety of evergreen and deciduous shrubs to create a living screen to sort of hide the side yard garden area from view, creating a more private side yard area.

But the problem is, I keep waffling on the choice of arbor... flat-top or arched?

Flat-top?

Or arched?

I also need help coming up with shrubs to use.   In a perfect world, the collection of shrubs would:

• be mostly evergreen to screen the yard all four seasons
• have fragrance at least some parts of the year
• have flowers or intereseting foliage most of the spring/summer/fall season
• not grow too tall - 8ft max at maturity
• be somewhat fast growers so we get the effect we want right away
• be ok with shade to the right of the arbor and hot afternoon sun to the left of the arbor
• be ok with clay soil
• be somewhat deer resistant

So far, I'm thinking at least hydrangea, roses, dwarf Alberta spruce, maybe some azalea.    Holly, cherry laurel and boxwood are evergreen choices that could work, but I'd love to try some plants I've never used before... would Deutzia work here?   How about something pyramidal that doesn't get too tall?  (Is there a blue spruce that doesn't grow to be a ba-jillion feet tall?)

I've been thinking and planning and researching and pinning... in general, driving myself crazy.

Which arbor style should we choose?

Arched - source

Semi-arched - source

Flat top? - source

Different Flat top?  - source

What do you think?  Do you like any of these arbor choices more than the others?   Do you have plant suggestions for me?  I'd love to hear your thoughts!

We've been working on fixing up our 1/2 acre property all spring and summer.  Here are some of the things we've already done:

I'd love it if you follow me on Facebook and Pinterest! 

  

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Linking to:

Metamorphosis Monday - Between Naps on the Porch

Make it Pretty Monday - The Dedicated House

The Scoop - StoneGable

Wow Us Wednesday - Savvy Southern Style

Creative Muster Party - Fluster Buster

Home and Garden Thursday - A Delightsome Life

Thoughts of Home - Poofing the Pillows

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