Along with the joys of gardening and landscaping, unique problems can arise in your outdoor spaces – from deer eating your carefully-grown plants to nosey neighbors peering into your backyard. 

Luckily, certain plants spare you from headaches and do the work for you. The following five plants are up for a challenge. 

1. Dwarf Mondo Grass

 

Especially in Georgia, deer can become an arch nemesis for the plant grower. The solution? Plant deer-resistant plants such as Dwarf Mondo Grass. 

Dwarf Mondo is a compact, evergreen ornamental grass with arching, dark green foliage and small, bell-like purple flowers that bloom atop leafless stems in summer. The flowers are followed by pea-sized, blue-black berries that are often hidden in the foliage. 

Along with planting specific plants, here are a few other ways to scare away deer: 

• Irish Spring soap; shave off a few slices around areas where deer come through. They tend to get spooked by the smell. 
• Coyote urine; nasty as it sounds, predatory scents can scare off deer.

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2. Savannah Holly

 

Sometimes, you want a little privacy in your yard, especially if you live close to your neighbors. Instead of putting up a fence (which is not always allowed by Homeowners Associations (HOA)), use privacy plants to create a green buffer.  

One beautiful option is the native Savannah Holly (a Southern favorite). This low-maintenance plant is an open, pyramidal evergreen shrub with sparsely-spined, light green leaves and pea-sized berries. 

This plant is a natural buffer that also offers a little shade. Birds love them and your fence line will too.

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3. Butterfly Bush

Want to attract more bees, butterflies, and other pollinators to your garden? Look no further than the Nanho Blue Butterfly Bush. This gorgeous plant is a perfect source of food for pollinators. Its bright colors also make your landscape pop. 

The spreading deciduous shrub sports arching branches and vibrantly colored blooms. The willowy, gray-green foliage is topped by mauve-blue flowers that bloom through summer and sometimes continue until the first frost, attracting bees and butterflies.  

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4. Powderblue Rabbiteye Blueberry

 

The grocery store doesn’t have to be the only place you get your food. Instead of paying for fruits and berries at the store, grow and harvest your own! Powderblue Rabbiteye Blueberry is one excellent option. 

This tall deciduous shrub produces many firm, sweet, powdery light-blue blueberries that ripen late. The large, elliptical blue-green foliage turns shades of yellow-orange in fall. The white flower clusters bloom in spring. 

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5. Carolina Jessamine

 

Do you feel like your landscape is looking a little drab? Brighten your space with a sunny plant like the Carolina Jessamine.

Carolina Jessamine is a sprawling, native evergreen climbing vine that can also be a groundcover. The shiny, lance-like, light green leaves can develop yellow or purple hues in winter. Trumpet-shaped bright yellow, fragrant flowers bloom late winter to spring. 

It’s also a wonderful early nectar source for hummingbirds, bees, and butterflies. The dense growth provides these pollinators with shelter in the winter.

Enjoy These Plant Solutions

These plants offer a natural solution to common gardening problems. Look through ServeScape’s many options and plant them today. 

Need more help? ServeScape also provides professional landscape design services by licensed landscape architects so our community of customers will know they have the right plant for the right place. Sign-up for an on-site design consultation.