Hello, I moved into this house not too long ago and there was always this space between the back part of my driveway and our fence (about 25-30’ long and 3-1’ deep to fence). Looks like it’s filled with mostly soil/dirt, weeds, and a tree stump (which needs to be removed). Any ideas of what to fill it with?
Native flowers/plants. No maintenance, added curb appeal, help the planet.
This is the obvious answer. Just make a trip to your local native plant specialist, and save yourself the time and work of installing an ugly ‘no grow zone.’
You can ignore the rock enthusiasts below who claim native plants need water, among other obvious misconceptions about what a native plant is or needs.
My first thought was rocks, but I’ve been swayed.
Native rocks?
Smart move. I went with artisanal rocks and they're overpriced.
I make my own with left over concrete. Can't trust big rock not to use hormones or pesticides these days.
I buy organic, but what does that even mean? Like, there's an organic rock farm right next to a non-organic rock farm. For my money though... I forage for rocks, and stones, in the early summer after the first good rain. Hope this helps.
Ohhhhh, that sounds risky though. I think I could identify rocks pretty well but I don't know if I would actually ever put myself to the test. It can be pretty hard to identify safe rocks vs dangerous rocks and even experts can get it wrong.
Organic rocks are overpriced as well.
And still taste nasty
YES!
Yes!!! Alternative steal one from a neighbor’s landscaping each day …..
I stand with rocks.
I’m convinced the Reddit algorithm serves these rock posts up to me now bc I always comment. lol.
See those leaves in the OP’s pic? Yeah…that turns into a leaf blowing maintenance nightmare once rocks are added. Rocks are impossible to keep free of debris and inevitably host weeds longterm. And the leaf blower knocks the rocks around so they have to be kicked back into place.
And that’s laying aside any enviro/green/heat island/pesticide chatter.
Rocks suck. A lot. Don’t even get me started on what happens when you realize rocks suck and you have to sift them out of the yard. Ugh.
Where and how exactly do you find a “local native plant specialist”?
Google ' Best native plants for my area' Boom! You're a specialist!
But my area only has hot single ladies.
If there aren’t any native plant nurseries in your area, you could contact your local extension office or your soil and water conservation district and either of them should be able to help you out
However, if you’re interested in researching your area’s native plants yourself, here are 2 of my favorite resources (for people in the US):
National Wildlife Federation’s native plant finder tool, just put in your zip code and the website gives you lists of native plants in your region ranked by the number of butterfly and moth species that use them as host plants
Prairie Moon Nursery’s search tool, you can click on (for instance) “Seeds” in the menu and then select “Shop all” and it will give you a list of over 600 species, then use the filters to filter to plants native to your region and from there filter for your state. You can then use the filters to filter the type of plant, height, level of sunlight, soil moisture, etc. that you’re interested in
The Prairie Moon website is my go to place to search for new native plants (even when I’m planning to actually buy the plants elsewhere) because the filters are so useful and they have tons of information for each plant, including a map of which counties it’s native in (which is especially useful in large states), a description of the plant, pictures, and even a Q&A section
Go to a local garden nursery and talk to them. They might not be a specialist but they'll probably know what you're looking for.
This has failed me in my area, at two different nursery’s; they all ended up selling me “low-maintenance” perennials that do well in our climate, but are not native plants.
After this experience, I feel like they’re not going to help you buy products that they don’t carry.
Try your local county extension. They know what native means, and they can even help you test your soil to help you make sure whatever you plant will live.
✅ Yep, was just about to suggest a local University extension office. County works too.
local native plant specialist
Wait, what? This is like those "consult your doctor" or "ask an engineer" responses... at least I know what those professions are, but who are these native plant specialists?
Could you hand some sort of line and have bird feeders to attract birds and have their droppings potentially spread some native seeds?
Bird feeders attract mice, at least that’s been my experience in two different homes. Before feeders, no mice. After feeders, mice. Removed feeders, no mice after a couple months & none since. Anecdotal perhaps but I’ve switched to hummingbirds feeders & occasionally suet in the winter.
I've got a lot of bunnies but no mice that I've seen. The squirrels definitely get their fair share as well.
My mom's bird feeder attracts the neighborhood chickens
Eta: I'm in north GA. We have a large Hispanic population that raises chickens but ironically the white army vet next door owns these specific terrors.
Chickens are birds so it's fair game for them.
Neighborhood…. chickens? Are you in Hawaii, perhaps?
I’m in CT and we have “hood chickens”. At least that’s what I call the neighbor up the streets chickens when they get out and come wandering up the road
As someone who keeps chickens, that's the most badass thing I've read today, and I live in Florida. It's still early and this is the first thing I've seen, but I'm going to quit reading now so that hood chickens can be the most badass thing on my mind.
I bet the rooster even has a tiny little crooked hat and a pimp limp. Don't correct me, I don't want to know about that purple feathered rooster that follows the hood chickens around.
What’s funny is, my rooster is the one that has a crooked hat and the pimp limp.
Squirrels don't leave anything for the mice in my experience
Native plants are nature’s bird feeders. The leaves in spring & summer are food for important insect larvae which feed all sorts of birds, and in fall winter the seed heads feed birds like goldfinches! Natives are a win win win all around.
Great for lazy ppl around here in drought conditions. Everybody is out watering and weeding while don’t do any of that and my plants look healthy.
I am interested in native plants but haven't found a way to tell whats native or how/when to plant... Trying to look up what plants are native and I'm told I should have seeded native seeds last October and get ads for expensive "seed packs" but that doesn't sit right with me. Is there somewhere basic I can learn?
Gardenforwildlife.org - just write down the names of the flowers you like and work, then try to find those in your price range. Some are easy to identify, collect seeds from and spread.
If you have a local tractor supply store they should have large bags of local pollinator friendly seeds.
The bones of your enemies.
👆 this…..& maybe put down some landscaping tarp & river rock.
Agreed, it’d really accentuate the bones.
I did this at my last house, but also added a pond and fountain with blood. That ruby red color goes well with my pink hydrangeas.
Also invasive and fast-growing bamboo, so your neighbor becomes your enemy and you can add their bones too.
To crush your enemies, see them driven before you, and to hear the lamentations of their women.
I have a similar stretch and am filling it with wildflowers and perrenial bulbs.
Put some plants there.
And a... SECOND SHRUBBERY! With a little path down the middle to create a 2 layered effect.
Phlox
Seconded.
There are a lot of ground covers that would thrive there and look great. Once established, they do a good job of outcompeting most weeds, which keeps maintenance low.
Without knowing where this is or which direction it faces, some general recommendations include:
Thyme
Sweet Woodruff
Periwinkle (Vinca)
Alyssum
Appreciate it, yea the weeds are starting to take over on the yard also.
If you put natives they'll need much less maintenance, pest attention, and other BS time-wasters. Also, will thrive and make local good bugs happy.
Not sure where you are located but periwinkle, Allysum and Sweet woodruff are all invasive species and shouldn't be planted outside of their native zone.
I was just going to say the best suggestion is to go to a local nursery and ask what they recommend. They'll usually have the best recommendations.
Another option is to see if your state colleges have a gardening program. Penn State operates a separate department called Penn State Extension which kind of does local government advisement and assistance which includes a master gardener program for landscaping and similar issues.
Seaside daily would look awesome, as would several types of herbs.
Yes to plants, but pick natives.
I would see about perennial herbs lik thyme, sage, and oregano. They can act like ground cover, save you grocery money, and smell great.
Creeping thyme isbasically indestructable, smells great and bees love it
Plant some Mary Jane and make a second income !
In Texas one plant for personal use is still a life altering felony. 💀
Land of freedumbs, amirite?
Put a gun in the middle of it. They won't know WHAT to do. Probably straight to the state Supreme Court.
Just put them next to a school, the cops won't go near it
I would not. Rooted plants will cause the ground to retain more water, and cause the posts to rot faster. They’re going to rot eventually anyway, even though they’re pressure treated, but that doesn’t mean you should speed up the process.
Dig at least six inches down and fill with gravel or river stone.
If you do gravel/stones, you could do potted plants on top for aesthetics.
If you do it right in terms of pot size and plant selection, you may not have to water them much if at all.
Best of both worlds right here - some slim planter boxes with some herbs would be nice.
Don't recommend. I did 2-3 inch stone all around my pool inside the privacy fence. It's a weed disaster. Every fall it is packed with leaves which are insanely hard to get out without taking the rocks away too. And I have to treat the weeds that pop up constantly.
And since every year, a little more leaf debris makes it into the rocks, the weeds get worse every year. Was beautiful when installed. Now I can't wait to pay someone to remove it.
I just commented the same thing. I don't treat the weeds, though. I pull them. And pull. And pull. There's landscape fabric, sand, then probably 6" of stone and it's a total nightmare. No way in hell am I removing all that myself. Rather build one of those slightly elevated decks over it. Or just cram some native groundcover into the rocks (there's plenty of dirt in there) and let it take over.
We built a deck last year that we t over some of the rocks. They actually had to REMOVE a lot of the rocks to find the pool pipes, dig the post holes, and to take down the height a bit near my house.
Those rocks are evil. I can't tell you how much I hate them.
ETA: Thankfully, I have what used to be the end of a creek on my property. Now it's just a big ditch. So I was able to just tell them to dump all the rocks in there and not have to pay for haul off!
My first thought, as well, because all the rain that falls on the driveway has to be drained away. Maybe a French drain with decorative stone over and topped with potted plants as suggested.
Bingo
Pringles. You’ll need to reapply each week though.
Put something down that stops weeds growing through, then gravel.
Agreed especially being next to driveway.
Yeah, this is what I would do. Putting plants there is fine, but you're also creating a lot of work and maintenance for yourself. I'd just put down standard landscaping fabric, and put gravel on top. Bam, no maintenance for several years minimum pretty much. Eventually you may have to replace the fabric, but it sure beats pulling weeds every week.
Unless you live where it snows and use a snowblower. Gravel loves flying through windows in the Midwest.
The best answer
Thanks mate
Weed barrier and Rock/chat
This is really the only answer. Plants and mulch will keep moisture around the bottom of the fence causing it to prematurely rot. Rocks will drain easily and dry quickly.
Thanks! Yea that seems to be the best option from everyone. Appreciate all the ideas.
And if you do want some green, depending on where you live, there are some succulents/ cacti that do well in rocky/sandy conditions. Literally just bury the container they come in under the first layer of rocks. Could be the best of both worlds, or I could be wrong!
Yeah I know a lot of people are pushing for native plants but the reality is the best thing to do is put down weed barrier and go to a landscaping store with a pickup and choose some nice rock to go with it. Don't buy the bags from home depot or lowes unless you have no other choice. You'll pay significantly less buying it by the yard. I personally went with medium and large river rock. It looks really nice depending on where they source the rocks from.
This, putting plants there that may require extra watering could lead to wood rot and having to build a new fence. A rock garden will look better and last longer.
Natives generally don’t need extra water.
Lol at a pile of rocks somehow looking better than flowering native plants that need absolutely zero water or maintenance.
I've got a lot of spots like this - it's not "a pile of rocks", with decomposed granite, river rocks, or gravel, you just have a nice flat bed, looks kinda architectural and clean. Landscaping cloth under it and any weeds that try to grow can just be plucked out. It can look very neat and pretty; I wouldn't do it where you want shrubs, but next to a driveway it can be nice to not have branches sticking out into your vehicles.
Really depends what you want visually; here in Texas, these sort of beds often need a lot of weeding.
This! Do a good job with the weed barrier.
Native moss
No upkeep, looks great, and 1 square meter of moss absorbs as much CO2 as a tree (when planted directly on soil).
I didn’t know that about the CO2. Now I’m even happier with my moss garden. I’ve got about 4 trees worth.
That's awesome! I'm planning on making moss paste and spreading it around my neighborhood's common areas. 2 parts moss, 2 parts water, 1 part buttermilk. Slap in on those dirt circles around trees.. it'll add up.
What is this magic? You’re breaking up the moss, I assume? I need more info!
Basically. You throw the moss, water, and buttermilk in a blender, then use a brush or whatever to spread it around where you want the moss (make sure it's being planted right onto dirt) https://www.gardeningknowhow.com/ornamental/foliage/moss/how-to-make-a-moss-slurry.htm
Thank you - I’ve learned a lot from you today :)
Milkweed! Try to attract butterflies, dragon flies, fireflies and ladybugs.
You can lay down landscaping cloth and then cover with decomposed granite (like gravel) if you just want a clean look. Weeds will try to grow, but the roots can't get through the fabric and and they'll pluck right out. You might want to dig out and inch or two of dirt to get enough depth for the stone to really set in. You can also use stuff like pebbles, river rock, etc. depending on the look you want.
A great way to remove small stumps like that is take a pressure washer and blast all around them, let the water drain, "rinse" and repeat. Eventually you'll have a muddy hole around the stump, and if it doesn't pull out, you can chop the roots or use a sawzall on 'em. It's WAY faster than digging around the things, you can see the roots and remove the thing a few inches below the soil surface. It's kinda fun for your inner twelve-year-old - you'll get a little splashed and muddy, wear a bathing suit on a hot day and enjoy it.
Eyelets and stainless steel wire on the back of the fence. Plant some jasmine or another climbing vine that doesn’t take on a lot of water (and weight).
Jasmine or clematis are the best smelling spring flowers and their evergreen leaves look beautiful year round.
Really hardy succulents and rocks because that will get hot and the soil is going to be awful due to the water runoff from the blacktop.
Fabric, limestone 1-1/2” rock, Ferns.
rough up the soil and throw down a wild flower seed mix
Miniature bocce ball court?
A moat with gators!!
I would put landscape cloth and river stone
Marijuana plants
West/south exposure? Sunflowers. North east exposure? Peas, sweet peas?
You could also espallier apples, pears, grapes, etc.
Don't mind overhanging onto the pavement? Salvia bushes, boxwood, ceanothus, juniper.
Rosemary is an excellent shrub that lives a long time, can be shaped and is drought tolerant once established. Not good for those who are bee allergic tho, but if you want pollinators, they love rosemary. Also creates bird nesting places.
Find a local nursery not at a big box store (the type landscape businesses use) and get advice.
Mulch or river rock. Something zero- to no-maintenance. If you plant something there, it'll shorten the life of your fence, and probably won't look that good anyway.
Pretty rocks are easy to keep weed free with weed block before. Or pretty greens like oregano or thyme and you can eat them too.
Plants! Like marigolds, they are great at repelling incets
Rocks or crushed stone
Flower bulbs. Use a couple of different varieties that will bloom in cycles over the spring while leaving reasonably dense vegetation behind.
They are fairly resilient, easy to replace, and will give you a border of color that will look nice there. Since you can overplant bulbs, you can get enough density to shade out weeds.
(Depending on where you live and the soil there, native perennial grasses can be a good choice too. Watch out, though, for anything that will get too big as grasses are definitely capable of scratching your car.)
Creeping phlox... It chokes out weeds and other plants, feels great to walk on... Doesn't take a whole lot of maintenance...
Caulk
Sunflowers!
Whatever climbing plants are native to your area
I put hops in a similar spot. Worked great, looked great.
Not on a wooden fence. Would destroy the fence.
Bull. A lattice can be attached to make climbing vines happy. Damage to the fence would be minimal if noticeable.
Mine is still alive after 30 years
Plant some flowers or plants
Potted plants, planted plants, rocks, clover, lawn ornaments, or all of them.
Flowers,
I would put down some decomposed granite to fill the gap. You could put some potted plants for some color
Espalier apple trees
If the drive is pitched to that area then dig out about a foot deep and fill with 3/4" stone.
If not then plant some hostas in there or other shade lovin' plants.
You can use some of deez
Use some timber to make a raised bored. Fill gap with stones/slate to maintain good drainage. Place planters on top.
Dig it out, landscape cloth, and river rock. Sprinkle some glow in the dark stones throughout.
You don’t want flowers there. It’s a huge head ache, especially when it comes time to replace the fence. Additionally, you don’t want vegetation near your driveway - it creates voids in the soil near/under the driveway. When they die, it creates spots for the driveway to depress and create cracks / will hold water. Just a big no-no overall.
Add some stone in that area. It’ll still allow water to drain away, can be driven over, not a tripping hazard and will look nice.
I’d post this to r/landscaping
The posts will rot and require additional support, anything you put there will be disturbed
I personally would not choose rocks because people can use those as a tool to get into your home easily.
Instead, have you heard of Moss Rose? It is multi-color flowers with a lot of green. That's what I'm doing in an area that is smaller, similar to yours. They bloom all summer long and are quite lovely.
If you don't want to fool with plants and their maintenance, I suggest chipped granite, or gravel. Pull all the weeds, or use weed killer (vinegar and salt mix is very effective and safe) with heavy Black plastic put down. Before putting plastic down, you can dig soil a few inches deeper so the rock will stay in place.
Get a small bag of white or red clover seeds and spread em down. The bees will appreciate it.
Allysum and sunflowers. Get a variety of both. Very pretty and full of color and foliage plus easy to care for.
May want to amend the soil a little bit, too, for maximum prettiness.
Black mulch
Mulch is quick and easy
I put succulents in there
Some nice running bamboo would look really sharp…
Mulch!
Where are you located? If you can find some native bee balm, it will completely fill that up and need very little weeding as it will crowd everything else out. Only the native stuff though, the cultivars you would get at most nurseries are all rather fragile by comparison.
Sedum/stone crop plants. They thrive in full sun, require little water and no care whatsoever. They stay green. Can be stepped on regularly, and do quite well being fully neglected. Just cut them back once or twice a year. Easy.
Oregano and mint. Both spreaders, but not a problem there, and you have one of the ingredients of both juleps and pizza sauce.
Mulch
Plant some big blue liriope grasses in the space
Wildflowers! Help the pollinators!
Could put a planter
Grape vines... You can train them and cut them back as much as you want. Plus, grapes!
What state /climate zone would be helpful for recommendations
Chaos garden! Wildflowers!
We did a layer of lime with mulch and river rock.
We moved or I would send you a picture.
Dichondria first. Then add in low no maintenance natives
Purpleheart. It comes back every year.Thrives on shade or sun. Bees love. Easy to propagate. Just snap turgid stem and stick in moist mulch.
Plant some Boston Ivy to grow up the fence. Then plant a range of bulbs and perennials so that your garden looks nice in all seasons with different things sprouting at different times. This will vary depending on your location.
White limestone would set it off
I'm a huge plant nerd, so I would tend to lean toward what a lot of folk here are saying about native plants. But looking at the condition of the posts, and level of algae you have on the fence, it looks like this side of the fence gets less than ideal light. You have a moisture problem. Zooming in on the bottom of the posts it looks like some are already rotting out. You may need to replace them sooner than some may think. What I would do is dig down about 3" in the gap and lay down landscaping fabric, then fill with river stone. I'd pitch it so water runs away from the posts and the driveway. Likely towards the back yard. While you're digging it out you can assess the post rot. Good luck!
Second point: Based on the direction its facing, it looks like OP owns the fence and will be the one responsible for replacing it when/if it needs to be done.
If you live where it snows, do not use crushed rock - snow blowers turn that stuff into projectiles.
2 layers of landscape fabric, then gravel. Just keep it simple
River rock.
crushed stone or rounded white stone
I have areas like that around my home, I dug down 6” and put landscaping fabic down to prevent weed growth and filled with river rock… looks great… zero maintenance!!!
Shamrocks
A French drain with 3/river rock
Clover.
Turn it into a flower bed. Then plant flowers. Then mulch.
Rocks are good generally. If your wanting green that doesn’t need mowing think clovers. Nice looking and never need mowing.
Mondo grass
California poppies.
They grow like weeds and look beautiful.
Do now sow them, just toss them on the dirt and water, or let the rain fall if you have regular rain in your area.
Gravel might look good
some native grasses would do well to fill the space with minimal maintenance.
I agree with the people saying rock, 2-2.5 inch river rock would probably work great. And if you wanted plants there you could still cut small holes in the fabric and plant some there on top of the rock.
Some variety of thyme would work. It will take a while to fill in but once established makes a thick cover that smells nice. Lemon thyme would work. If you put rocks or gravel in the weeds will just re grow there. Might as well be desirable plants.
Hostas
Power wash that fence first. Make it look nice! Then native flowers. It’d look great.
Flowers
Easy: weeds. They will plant themselves.
Since we recommended mint, try bamboo or kudzu. Both are also nice and will fill in the area. Also, please don't do either of these, my humanity can't let me make this joke full deadpan.
I did something recently, I went with small gravel to help with the water flow.
Good ideas on here. Whatever you do will you please post it?
Hostas!!!!
If you dislike your neighbours, plant something really invasive like mint or lemon balm. It will drive them nuts once it migrates over to their side. :D
Grass or gravel. Or more blacktop if anything.
I like the greenery (with weed block as others are saying), but if you want to continue the blacktop, you could get some cold patch asphalt. It's relatively simple, just takes some prep work and you'll need a good tamper. You could go all out with new (hot) asphalt, but it's a lot more work.
Grow some jalapenos or setup a trellis for tomatoes, grapes, etc...
hostas
Those pickets need to be cut up higher off the ground. But then seed it with native annuals.
Finally, someone said it. Pickets shouldn't contact moisture.
Otherwise you end up replacing much too soon.
I’d put down weed guard fabric (which can be a nuisance while putting down, but will be well worth the money for not having to weed the area).
Then I’d lay 1/4 inch trap rock. If you have a mason/landscape supplier near you, they will likely have multiple colors and will definitely have the weed guard.
I would strongly recommend staying away from big name lot depot stores. A mason/landscape supplier is not looking to make money off of a residential property owner. In my experience they gave me delivery options as well. My store actually told me to borrow a pick up truck because their delivery wasn’t worth the price.
Hope this helps ✊
River rock
2" river stone, or pea gravel and calcium to firm it up
Resist the temptation to fill it with blacktop. Some day, those fence posts are going to need replacement and blacktop would need to be dug out in order to do that, leaving you with a higher cost for the replacement, not to mention you would then have to follow in the space with more blacktop.
If you decide on flowers and elect to raise the bed a bit in the process, protect the pickets from the moisture in the dirt by putting a strip of metal sheeting between the pickets and the dirt. This will extend the life of the pickets by keeping them from rotting out at the bottom where they make contact with wet soil.