Young House Love

Home Decorating & DIY Tutorials

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Digging Up A Dated Row Of Bushes

We did it! Over the course of two nice long Clara naps (and with a little help from a friend) we managed to open up our front yard in what we like to call “Phase Two Of Ten Million” when it comes to slowly transforming our front yard. Why so many phases? Well it started out looking like this:

Front Before

Much like our first house’s yard, we figure it’ll take a few years of tweaks to get it where we want it, so this phase was just about clearing things out for a you-can-actually-see-the-house-now effect (Phase One was limbing up the magnolia). In short: we dug up/transplanted/removed a ton of bushes (with the help of a friend of ours who took home some boxwoods in exchange for helping us get a bunch of them up). This post is full of photos, so I’ll let them do the talking. Without further ado, here are the before and afters (we tried to take photos from the same angle for comparison). First there’s the AFTER to the before above (don’t mind the black feather wreath out there on the door for Halloween):

Front After

Here’s another BEFORE for ya from the driveway:

From Driveway Before

And another AFTER from the same angle (a little further away):

From Driveway After

Another BEFORE:

Driveway Side Before

And the AFTER:

Driveway Side After

Here’s a side-angle BEFORE:

Side Driveway Before

And an AFTER from the same POV:

Side Driveway After

Another BEFORE facing more towards the street:

Corner Before

And the accompanying AFTER:

Corner After

Here’s a BEFORE from the other side (the bushes used to completely stop the eye so our yard felt way smaller):

Side View Before

And here’s the AFTER from the same angle:

Side View After

Yet another BEFORE:

Side Angle Before

And another AFTER:

Side Angle After

Here’s how it looked from the front porch BEFORE:

Looking Out Before

And AFTER:

Looking Out After

The only drawback? I got me a blister. So in that aspect it was exactly like Phase One (seen here). Totally worth it though. No pain, no gain.

Blister

As for where we put the bushes that we transplanted, we just dug them up…

Transplanted Bush

… and planted them in the naturalized parts of our side and back yard (and our friend who helped us dig made off with the rest of the healthy ones). Sadly some of the bushes were dead…

Dead Boxwood

Dead Bushes

… so those just got removed with a sawzall (aka this reciprocating saw by Skill). Which was probably more fun to use than it should have been (it was actually our first time sawzalling, so we took turns and grinned like fools the whole time). And you know we loved the fact that this big curb appeal makeover was f-r-e-e (well, I guess it cost us a few boxwoods in return for some helpful friend labor, but it was foliage well spent).

As for our future lawn plans, we’re definitely just getting started out there – so there are a lot more phases on the over-the-next-few-years agenda. We’ve got plans to:

  • dig out some ivy/monkey grass
  • lay down some grass seed in certain areas
  • layer in some low maintenance native (and less vinyl fence-like) plantings to soften things up around certain areas of the perimeter
  • landscape around the front of the house (there are hardly any plants on either side of the porch – so it’s just sort of a mud pit in those areas)
  • do a million other things that are slipping my mind at the moment (one big one: convert the carport to a garage)

So this step was just about clearing things out to make way for some less house-obscuring choices and opening things up to let the eye travel a bit further in certain places. Feels nice to let the house breathe a little. And the neighbors have all been saying such sweet things about the change. Whew! Has anyone else been up to a few exterior tweaks? Do you do them during baby naps with the monitor outside on full blast so you can run in at a moment’s notice? Do you hold your breath until the neighbors approve? We totally do.

Psst- We’re over on BabyCenter talking about a Halloween surprise that we discovered on Sunday night. Let’s just say Clara’s in love. Here’s the story.

Comments

  1. jaime says

    Hey! Your yard looks great…as for the magnolia…dont cut it down, they are beautiful and sort of good luck in our family haha…my dad had the same problem with the trees in his back yard and (I wish I had a picture) he built circular, raised flat stone beds around the base about a foot high…and planted shade plants such as hostas (sp?).they are beautiful, full green plants that actually double in size so you have to separate them every so often…so they sort of give you more plant over the years…but they looked great and took care of his grass growing frustrations..and they give the yard this great texture and organized feel…and his trees still bloom and look great so they are smothered if you worried about that.

    Reply

    • jaime says

      *aren’t smothered. Geez. Haha. But also, he built them pretty wide to balance out the branch width…probably around three or four feet from trunk of tree to rock wall. We live in GA so it’s tough sometimes to get grass to grow naturally under a heavy shade tree…darn climate.

  4. maribel says

    Love your yard it’s so green…I have a question regarding window treatments. I have three rooms that face my street. (living room and two bedrooms). How would you deal with this when wanting different curtains for each room…with out looking like a quilt from the outside…

    Reply

    • YoungHouseLove says

      I never really pay attention to it. Haha. Weird answer, right? We have patterned curtains in Clara’s room and in the living room (super bright, both of them) but from the back – and also because we hang them high and wide, so they don’t overlap the window a ton) they look neutral enough from the curb somehow.

      xo,
      s

  5. Gretchen says

    I’ve always heard that digging up established boxwoods like those (and mine) can be a huge pain b/c they can regrow if you leave any roots underground. Also because of the clay soil around my area (I’m near Roanoke, not far from you). Do you have that tough soil too? You didn’t throw your backs out or anything? I know you said it took two Clara naptimes… which sounds surprisingly quick! :)

    I have wanted to get rid of our boxwoods ever since we moved in 4 1/2 years ago. I love them if they’re in a hedge, but these were just plopped separately in random places just in front of our house. I so want to get rid of them and create a real garden! I’ve tried to plant things around them, but the garden just doesn’t flow well. Hmmmm…

    Reply

    • YoungHouseLove says

      It was tough! Don’t get us wrong. But it was possible! You can do it! We do have some pretty firm soil (although we didn’t hit much clay) so we just took our time and did what we could!

      xo,
      s

  7. Sandy says

    Can you believe what a huge difference that makes?!!!! That is just amazing! I love transformations like that. It makes the hard work so satisfying.

    Reply

  12. Brittney Colyer says

    BRAVO yall! Seriously, that’s a crazy large amount of work but it for sure paid off. I think the pay off from the front porch alone was worth it. Man. Curb appeal just shot through the roof! Congrats and happy Tuesday!

    Reply

  13. maribel says

    Now that I think about it one window is shaded by a tree so it’s not too visible the others have beige blinds that blend in from the curb…so if i do the high and wide thing i will be good…I drove by a house the other day that had wood blinds
    on all the front windows and it just looked to matchy matchy to me…

    Reply

  14. Britney says

    What wonderful improvements you’ve done to your yard!!! The yard looks so much bigger.

    CAMEO ME!

    I’d basically love a cameo from any of the stars of True Blood ;) Those boys are smokin hot!

    Reply

  17. Angie K says

    Wow, that looks so much better! When I looked at the first picture I thought “wow, that tree grew back SO fast!” I then felt a little sheepish when I kept reading. Of course it didn’t grow that fast.

    I should just stop having conversations in my own head :)

    I have a handful of bushes in front of my townhouse I want to remove. I’m going to put in a little porch instead. Nothing fancy…just a place I can sit and watch the kiddos play in the front yard…

    Reply

  18. Gabbi says

    i absolutely love it! it takes me back to when we removed all the overgrown plants in our yard. its the best feeling to see your house and get rid of all the obstructions! good job!

    Reply

  19. Julie W says

    It looks absolutely beautiful now. Bush hedges never look right unless they are constantly pruned which my lazy butt will never do. I like the monkey grass around the driveway now. The before view from the front porch makes me want to go grab my safari hat and sit and wait to see what wildlife will pass by. No offense to you or the previous owners I just think it looks kind of cool like that.

    Reply

  21. Teresa says

    WOW!!! That makes a huge difference in your front yard… so do you find yourself sneaking to teh front windows to peak out at it every now and again?? lol

    Reply

    • YoungHouseLove says

      Haha- yes! I even make John drive right by the house when we’re going home so I can see the whole thing (then we back up and pull into the driveway).

      xo,
      s

  22. KLL says

    I keep reading the title of this post as “Bush fence Beyonce.” I blame you for making Beyonce something my subconscious automatically settles upon.

    Reply

  23. Melody says

    I’m usually one for a lot of landscaping because it provides privacy, but I love what you’ve done. It looks so much better… very clean looking! I might have to consider trimming things back a bit next year!

    Reply

  24. Sabrina says

    Love it! I need someone to help me dig up all my bushes in the front! I was told I needed a tree company to dig them up. That’s what she said, by the way for headline, from the hubs lol

    Reply

    • Sabrina says

      I did that! No one wanted them lol They are half dead. They are right up against our house and the half that is closer to the house is dead. Also everyone around here has them. I saw 6 free bushes listed. We looked behind them and no one bothered to paint the house there or reside. We have old siding and paint color from the 60’s back there. Totally need to reno. Next year though. We are “those people”, we only work on the inside of the house.

  25. Susan says

    Sherry, I’m a Master Gardener and landscape designer and even so, I can’t believe the difference all that hard work made! You and John have great structural visualization and vision. I’m not sure that can be learned. Anyway, your yard looks fabulous.

    Reply

  27. dee says

    Looks wonderful!!!! So much hard work. Love how you take before and after photos from the same angle. So many before and after shots do not do that and it is hard to compare. Thanks!

    Reply

  30. Kati L says

    Wow – what an amazing transformation! I love that you can see that happy yellow door from the road now – it makes your house look even more inviting!

    Reply

  31. Jasmine says

    Oh my gosh. I am so inspired by this post… I think it just goes to show you that as so many visual things in life—often all you need to do is edit… not necessarily add or elaborate: just take something away to make something else shine. As a photographer, this is a principle I try to live by, but this is such a great example of this in other applications. Lovely!

    Reply

  32. Ali says

    Huge!! It looks great. We’re in the process of getting rid of some eyesores in our front yard, like a giant flagpole, some haggard-looking hedges, and some dying trees. I’m excited about how much it will open up the look!

    Reply

  34. Trina says

    Looks GREAT you guys!! Amazing what a little hard work will do, it looks completely different (in a good way)!

    We just bought a new home 3 weeks ago & had a little…ok, A LOT, of brush to clear out. Previous owners had a love for everything viney, and we SO did not! Now we can actually SEE our house & we love it! The only problem we ran into was the vines actually left little “footprints” bedhind so now our house looks polka dotted!! We are looking into the cost of having it sanded & repainted or re-stucco’d. What a project!!

    Reply

  35. Terri says

    What a great transformation! Do you guys have any advice for digging up boxwoods? I have several old ones that need to go, but they don’t budge when I try to dig them up. Also, thank you for the great tip on free labor. My boxwoods will hopefully be in someone elses yard by the winter.

    One more thing…where do you go for your yard inspiration?
    Thanks!

    Reply

    • YoungHouseLove says

      Our tip is to jump on the shovel to get in there. Haha. That helps us sink into the dense soil. We also just put our heads down and dig! It’s hard work but so worth it! As for our yard inspiration, we just take photos of homes with landscaping that we love (even on vacation) and also pin stuff on Pinterest that inspires us!

      xo,
      s

  40. Jaimie says

    We need to redo the landscaping in our yard. After this most recent Texas drought, we need some serious xeriscaping. Even our monkey grass is 50% dead at this point, and I am not looking forward to ripping it all out in the next few months. The previous owners went a little crazy with it; it is everywhere.

    Reply

  42. Jenna says

    Wow the difference is incredible!!! I’ve been dying to remove some over grown bushes from our yard, but haven’t gotten my hubby completely on board yet. Maybe I’ll show him this post… So inspiring!

    Reply

  43. Lisa says

    Your neighbors must have been shocked! Looks awesome! I owned a home with a boxwood hedge and know they are high maintenance. My neighbors had one too and let it grow 12 ft tall or more, then sculpted it into arches. It was fun!
    Recently my husband and I took out some 25 year old creeping jasmine that was creepy from a lack of pruning. It was fun having neighbors go by and tell us how much better the yard looked!

    Reply

  44. Lauren says

    Wow! You guys did a great job clearing the bushes! I can’t believe it only took you a couple of nap times, haha Keep up the good work : )

    Reply

  48. Allison says

    My husband and I cut down a dead tree in our front yard this weekend. I was so nervous that it would fall on our mailbox, but our youtube video instructions worked out perfectly.

    We want to move some crepe myrtle bushes from the backyard to the front, but I’m worried that we’re running out of time this fall. How long before a frost do you allow so your bushes survive?

    Also, how far from the base of your plants did you start digging, and how large were your transplant holes? (I have no clue how to do this, and I don’t want to damage the roots.)

    Thanks, and, wow(!) what an improvement to your front yard!

    Reply

    • YoungHouseLove says

      The base of a boxwood is only about 5″ wide (they’re very small and stick-y on the bottom) so we probably dug about 8″ wider than that all around? As for our transplant holes, we just dug them deeper and wider than the root ball and filled them with some soil/compost. Hope it helps!

      xo,
      s

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