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Fresh New Garden Design for Classic Cape | Gorham, ME
Fresh New Garden Design for Classic Cape | Gorham, ME
This front garden redesign for a classic Cape-style home in Gorham, Maine focused on creating a colorful, long-blooming planting that would complement the home’s traditional architecture while remaining easy for the homeowner to maintain.
The homeowner contacted Garden Design Maine at the end of the 2023 growing season to explore options for refreshing the existing front garden beds. While several of the existing perennials were healthy, the planting lacked long bloom periods and cohesive design. With plans to repaint the house the following year, it was the perfect opportunity to create a new front garden design that would enhance the home’s curb appeal.
The new planting plan focused on combining long-blooming perennials, attractive foliage, and plants that would provide winter interest, ensuring the front garden remains visually appealing throughout the seasons.
The existing garden bed had some healthy, happy peonies, a gorgeous geranium, and spring bulbs, but the customer wanted to freshen everything up with some long-blooming and easy to care for choices.
Garden Design Goals
Garden Design Goals
The design for this classic Cape front garden focused on improving curb appeal while keeping plant choices practical and easy to care for. Key goals included:
Create a cohesive front yard planting design to complement the home’s classic Cape architecture
Select long-blooming perennials to provide color throughout the growing season
Include plants that offer visual interest in winter months
Choose hardy, low-maintenance plants suited to Maine gardens
Refresh the existing garden beds while preserving healthy established plants where possible
Before the Garden Redesign
Before the Garden Redesign
Before the redesign, the front garden beds contained several established plants, including healthy peonies, a beautiful hardy geranium, and spring-blooming bulbs. While these plants were thriving, the overall garden lacked structure and extended seasonal interest.
The homeowner wanted a planting design that would feel more intentional and cohesive, with flowers that bloom over a longer period and foliage that would look attractive throughout the season.
With the home scheduled for a new exterior paint color, redesigning the garden beds offered an opportunity to create a planting palette that would better complement the updated look of the house.
Garden Design Concepts
Garden Design Concepts
To help the homeowner visualize different possibilities, Garden Design Maine developed multiple planting concepts. Each option explored different combinations of shrubs, ornamental grasses, and long-blooming perennials while maintaining an easy-care approach.
Design Option One
Design Option One
The first design option incorporated dwarf evergreen trees at the ends of the garden beds to provide year-round structure. Deciduous deutzia shrubs were placed on either side of the front stairs, creating a welcoming focal point near the entrance.
Long-blooming drift roses, catmint, salvia, and daylilies were combined with classic garden perennials such as daisies and echinacea. Bright accents of yellow were introduced through Jacob’s Ladder ‘Golden Feathers,’ adding contrast and foliage interest.
Design Option Two
Design Option Two
The second concept relied on compact hydrangeas to anchor the ends of the garden beds, providing reliable summer blooms. Golden-leafed caryopteris shrubs were positioned near the front steps, adding both structure and color contrast.
Little bluestem ornamental grass added height and texture between the front windows, while maroon-leafed weigela brought dramatic foliage color to the front of the planting border.
To create movement and a light, airy feel within the garden, gaura was combined with longer-blooming perennials such as daylilies, phlox, and echinacea planted toward the middle and back of the beds.
The Chosen Garden Design
The Chosen Garden Design
The homeowner ultimately selected a design featuring a vibrant red, orange, yellow, and white color palette. This combination provides strong visual impact while maintaining a classic garden feel appropriate for a Cape-style home.
Tall penstemon with dark green, almost burgundy foliage anchors the ends of the garden beds. Long-blooming red daylilies are paired with early-blooming phlox on the left side of the garden and liatris on the right, creating balance across the front entry.
Melon-colored echinacea frame the front steps, providing midsummer color and attracting pollinators. Soft-textured lamb’s ear fills the left bed, while silvery artemisia creates contrast on the right.
For winter interest, euonymus ‘Gold Splash’ was included to provide evergreen color throughout the colder months. The planting is finished with salvia and agastache - both known for their exceptionally long bloom periods.
This new front garden was installed by Garden Design Maine in 2024.
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