12 Great Plants for Mid-Century Modern Homes in Minnesota
When creating landscapes that fit the design criteria of the mid-century modern homes in our region, we look for plants that offer great tonal value, accent without over powering the house, can be used to create clean lines, and can create planes and layers. Here are some plants that we find especially purposeful in our design endeavors.
Garden Glow Dogwood
Attractive chartreuse deciduous foliage turns an outstanding red in the fall. It has clusters of white flowers at the ends of the branches in late spring. The red branches add significant winter interest
Shamrock Holly
It’s compact rounded growing habit and olive-green leaf color make it a great substitute for the less hardy boxwoods. Can be used as an evergreen foundation plant, hedges, masses or an accent plant.
Double Play Blue Kazoo Spirea
The blue foliage and white flowers work with any home color, even orange or red brick, colorful new growth keeps this plant interesting all growing season, and needs no special pruning or other maintenance.
Hetz Mini Arborvitae
It’s naturally rounded shape and small form allows for many different applications. Another good substitute for boxwoods.
Nova Yew
Narrowly upright and columnar growth habit and relatively fine texture sets it apart from other landscape plants with less refined foliage.
Double Martini Sedum
Strongly contrasting maroon stems and olive-green leaves grab the attention. Easy to grow, drought resistant, and nice mounding habit makes this a versatile plant in the garden
Overdam Feather Reed Grass
Stunning as a specimen plant, in borders, or massed. Noted for its variegated foliage and a little more subtle than its overused cousin. Can be used in a host of conditions.
Prairie Dropseed
An architectural grass with year- round interest. Perfect in borders or massed. Easily blends with other plants in the landscape
Designer Genes Hosta
Prized for its brilliant foliage and red stems this plant is a great addition to shadier areas in the landscape.
Allium Millennium
This hybrid Allium blooms in mid-summer with large globes of rose-pink flowers. Mature plants have dozens of globes covering this perennial plant. Attractive, shiny deep-green grassy foliage is very ornamental.
Pagoda Dogwood
The horizontal branching of this tree forms tiers giving it a uniquely architectural quality.
Heritage River Birch
A truly all-season tree with very showy creamy peeling bark with white under bark against dark green leaves that turn pale yellow in the fall.
Specimen plants can be used to create great focal points in the landscape. Here are 3 bonus plants to highlight your landscape:
Scotch Bona Hindu Pan
A dwarf, upright cultivar that in a topiary form that typically matures over time to 6' tall.
Golden Duke Hemlock
A slow growing and stunning specimen tree with foliage that offers year-round interest.
Cutleaf Tiger Eyes Sumac
A great substitute for Japanese Maples in Minnesota with their striking chartreuse foliage and fantastic yellow, orange, red fall color.
For more detailed information on landscape design for mid-century modern homes in Minnesota check out KG Landscape’s page
here
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When Pergolas Don’t Last, There’s Always a Reason After nearly two decades of building outdoor spaces across Medina, I’ve seen what happens when pergolas aren’t designed for Minnesota’s conditions. You can spot them a mile away—posts that lean, beams that twist, and concrete pads that have heaved out of level after just a couple of winters. It’s not because homeowners cut corners intentionally. It’s usually because whoever built it didn’t account for what our climate really does to structures that aren’t anchored right. Medina’s heavy clay soil doesn’t drain well. It holds moisture, freezes solid, and then expands like a hydraulic press pushing on everything above it. When pergolas are set on surface-level post bases, that pressure has nowhere to go but up—and the whole thing moves. Even small shifts can cause joints to separate, wood to crack, and hardware to loosen. That’s how a $15,000 structure starts looking tired after a few years instead of standing straight for decades. The truth is, pergolas here aren’t just about shade or looks. They’re about structure, drainage, and how every piece ties into the patio beneath it. A pergola that stands tall through Minnesota winters is built on the same principles as a good foundation—it’s only as strong as what’s underneath it. If you live in Medina and want to enjoy your backyard without worrying about your investment warping or sagging, start with design that respects the environment it’s built in. That means thinking beyond lumber and stain colors. It means understanding soil movement, water management, and the importance of integrating your pergola with the patio below it.
Solutions for Properties in Minnetonka You can always tell a Minnetonka yard that’s fighting its slope. Water doesn’t lie, it finds the weak spots every time. I’ve walked plenty of properties where a backyard starts beautiful in June, but by September, the patio is heaving, the grass near the pool looks like a marsh, and the homeowner is wondering how it got so bad so fast. The truth is, when you’re dealing with rolling terrain and heavy clay soils like we have around Minnetonka, you can’t just move dirt and hope gravity behaves. You need a plan that manages water from the surface all the way down through the subsoil. This is what I’ll walk you through here. You’ll see what actually causes drainage issues on sloped properties, how poor planning leads to cracked patios and shifting pool decks, and the smart drainage systems that can stop those problems for good. Whether you live near Lake Minnetonka or up in the higher ridges closer to Deephaven or Woodland, understanding how your yard sheds water is the difference between a property that lasts and one that’s constantly under repair. The Real Challenge of Sloped Minnetonka Yards Minnetonka is known for its hills, lakefront properties, and mature trees, but all that beauty comes with a set of challenges below the surface. Most of the soil here is dense clay. It holds water like a sponge and drains slowly, which means after every heavy rain, that water looks for a way downhill. If it doesn’t have a proper outlet, it ends up collecting right where you don’t want it, like along your patio, at the base of a retaining wall, or near your pool deck. I see this every season: homeowners trying to solve slope problems with a quick regrade, a layer of rock, or a simple surface drain. Those things might help for a while, but they don’t address what’s really happening underground. Clay soil doesn’t just get wet—it becomes saturated, expanding and contracting with every freeze-thaw cycle. When that happens under a patio or wall, it doesn’t matter how well-built the surface looks. The ground will move, and that movement cracks stone, shifts pavers, and slowly tears apart everything on top. The other challenge with sloped lots is how water interacts with gravity. It accelerates downhill, gaining momentum as it goes. When it hits a flat area like a patio, the water loses speed but not volume, pooling instead of flowing. That’s why I tell clients that “flat spots” on a sloped property are both an opportunity and a responsibility. They’re the best spaces to create usable outdoor areas, but they have to be engineered to handle water movement. I’ve worked on plenty of Minnetonka yards where the backyard has a beautiful view but terrible grading. You can have a perfect slope on paper, but if it directs water toward your house or creates a bowl effect between structures, you’ll end up with soggy soil and standing puddles that never dry. The goal is to move water off and away while keeping the surface level enough for comfort and usability. It’s a fine balance, but when it’s done right, it completely transforms how a property functions.