I had been saying for a few weeks that I was going to clean this area out. Between all of the "Mystery Bulbs," the encroaching ornamental grass, and the weeds that appear from nowhere, this area had become a complete mess. So I pulled everything out of here except for the rose bushes, the ailing creeping phlox plants, and the ailing Persian Lilac. I also moved some of the ornamental grass away from the wall and relocated it toward the front walk. The next step will be to add some mulch which I'll do later.

This clump of some kind of liriope ornamental grass has turned out to be one of those simple things that has had a great impact on the overall design. I found this cluster in the back yard and relocated it here in 2016.

This is the time of year when the crape myrtles do their thing.

I also have activity on the Crimson Red Crape Myrtle.

The Purple Magic Crape Myrtle was the first one to wake up and started blooming a week ago.

Looking at the front yard from a distance, I think the path of irises will work.

There is an awful lot going on here. It is hard to see the Beardtongues and the Yarrows from this vantage point. But overall, I think the design idea works.

In the places where the irises pass by the larger things like the dogwood tree, pampas grass, and Japanese Camellia, they look fine.

The size of the irises do seem to overwhelm the smaller plants in the yard until you get up close. But I don't think this is bad.