Probably not what you're looking for, but what about some smaller roses? Maybe some shorter David Austins? You have to water the climbing roses anyway :)

I'm with Lavender. Roses would be perfect there because it would soften the edge of your porch and add a lot of color to your home.

Because of the color of your house, you need something that "pops" and Roses are just the thing.

If you want something easy to grow that doesn't get too tall...like 3 feet x 3 feet, I'd plant Knock Out Roses. They basically take care of themselves.

Roses do need water though, but it's so easy since they'd be located right off the porch.

We have clay soil also, but what I do is when I dig the hole, I mix the clay with some potting soil, then cover the roots of the rose.

And then you'll turn into a Rose nut! lol

I'm already rose crazy, don't worry!

But I worry about there not being enough sun there. I'm pretty sure there was less sun there this winter, but I'm having a hard time remembering.

Aimeekitty- You might want to ask for help on the rose forum, but I'm sure there are beautiful roses that will be the right size and like the light you do have available. So many DA's get huge in the heat, a little shade might be a good thing :)

My confusion mostly is that,... right now (mid summer) the spot gets sun from about 1pm-5pm roughly.

But in October, it doesn't get much sun at all, (see this photo from october:
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Hmmm, so your house faces north-east? Is that right? I'm terrible with directions.

First- to answer your question about the pavers, I was thinking about either bricks or those 5x8 pavers they use to build driveways- the ones made of concrete that are supposed to look like cobblestones- they come in taupe, gray, etc. You could get them to match the sidewalk or to match your roof tile.

Walkways should be at least four feet wide for comfort (and eventually walkers or wheelchairs), but builders save money by making them two or three feet wide sometimes. I can't tell how wide yours is from the photos, but if it is narrow, you can enhance the look by lining it with pavers placed perpendicular to the walk. You could also line your porch with them to give it a bit more depth.

That's pretty shady for six months of the year, apparently. If it was my house, I would extend the porch out about three feet in a semi-circle between the posts, and plant roses in front of the semi-circle. I'd put a little iron cafe' table and two chairs there.

But agapanthus would look nice too.

It's such a pretty house- I can't wait to see your climbing roses in bloom!

Renee

I think the front is roughly N/W ?

I like your semicircle idea a lot! I'll have to give this some thought. I really appreciate your ideas and feedback!

The walk way is about 3 feet... and the porch itself is 6 feet deep.

Unfortunately I dont think I took any morning photos of the front in the winter??

Maybe this will help? Basically, the sun comes up over the hill behind my house... but not directly behind, it's more a little bit towards the left (if you walk out the back door, the sun is on the left side of the back.)

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you can see in this photo of the back (taken in the morning in March) that the shadows on the railings in the back go to the right, because the sun is on the left a little.

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Cute drawing! I love your back patio.

Yeah, it looks like the area right in front of your porch is going to be in shade for at least six months of the year.

Is there any specific reason you want the porch exposed? Or did you just want to avoid the clipped hedge look in front of the windows?

Renee

Renee, Well, I figure if I sit on the porch, then I'd want to be able to see out. So up to 4 feet would be ok, but anything higher than that and it'll obscure the porch, right?

(and thankyou!)

I really like the way your front garden just melds in with the neighbors.

Chris

Aimee, what state do you live in? Do you get heat all year long? If that's the case, then I can't help you because I don't know what kinds of things to plant in warm climates.

BUT...I think red roses in front would be great. Just for the color. Do you get any sun at all next to the porch?

Again, Caladiums are perfect for shade and/or part sun and give off so much color it's amazing.

What about a row of Roses in the middle and smaller flowers planted around them?

Oh, I may have said this before, but planting a row of Carpet Roses next to the sidewalk would be stunning. No upkeep, you just water them.

The only thing your yard needs is deep colors. You could also plant a row of Roses between your's and your neighbors yard to give it a separate area. Carpet Roses would be good there. :) They get about 3' high and about 3-4' wide.

I live in Southern California, inland. Zone 9-10, SW zone 18. We get winters of about 30-36 degree F lows, I think? During the summer we get around 98-110 highs. The summer is usually mid-June through Oct. The rest of the year, bar winter itself, we're very mild, around 70 degrees. um... I think. :) I hope that helps.

I was thinking that I'd have maybe one medium rose in the middle (in the sun) and then smaller roses off of that as it gets closer to the sides/front... and then companion plants of nepeta, yarrow, lavender and thyme, etc... that sort of thing.

In lieu of carpet roses, I have a Heavenly Pink which is a spreading pink mound of fabulousness, or so I've heard, and some Gruss an Aachen roses I'm probably going to get.

The La Reine rose and Barronne Prevost roses are deep bright pink. There's also a baby The Prince which is a deep raspberry. The camellias are red and bright pink. I'm actually thinking more of adding some more subdued colors to mix them all in with each other... like pale mixed yellow/peach/white roses... or companion plants of white, yellow, purple.