DIY Network

Curb Appeal Curb appeal does make a difference; here are some great tips for giving your house a facelift. From "Today Show Tips" episode DTST-116

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Most of the color in this window box comes from the foliage. The plants were chosen to add color in a shady location.

Make Your Front Yard Memorable

The toughest part about landscaping is knowing what to plant where, but being creative can expand the possibilities and increase the curb appeal of your house. Check out these tips for some unusual ways to update your front yard.

• Start by taking a good, objective, critical look at the front of your house. Most people enter their homes through the garage and don't really notice how the house looks to others. So spend some time analyzing what could use improvement or repair — or just dressing up.

• Pavement planting is found more often in England than here. Basically it's treating the front walk like a garden planted with low-growing herbs that you can walk on. In fact, walking on these plants releases lovely fragrances from the leaves. There is a line of plants called Stepables that are specifically used for pavement planting. These plants are tough; they can stand a lot of sun and are drought-tolerant, too.

  Pavement planting is an informal look, so don't plant in a symmetrical pattern. Plant the lowest-growing herbs, such as thyme, in the middle of the path; put taller ones along the outside edges. The finished planting should look random and natural.
  

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• Window boxes are a classic way to dress up the front of a house. Think beyond geraniums, though. Mix things up a bit; use a long-haired grass mixed with some sunny salvias and lantanas. Choose plants that stand up in dry conditions; window boxes dry out quickly. You'll probably have to water them every day in warm weather.

• For flower beds, start with some shrubs, such as boxwood, to provide some structure. Then add plants to create a meadow look. Cone flowers are a good choice for that; so are veronica, decorative grasses and black-eyed Susans.

• If the front of your house is shady, look for begonias, astilbe and fuchsia, as well as plants with colorful foliage, such as coleus and caladiums.

• Standardizing an ordinary plant makes it extraordinary. A standard is any plant that's been trained to grow as a tree. It's a more formal look that works very well in containers.

• Consider the style of your house when you plan the front garden. A colonial looks better with a symmetrical design, while contemporary styles can be asymmetrical.

• Move indoor trees outside in the summer and make them part of your landscape, at least until the temperatures start to drop in the fall. A gardenia topiary or any other indoor houseplant works well in an urn.

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