The Southern Front Porch is synonymous with southern hospitality. And a warm and inviting front porch adds great curb appeal.

As we head in to mint julep season here are few tips for your Southern Front Porch.

1. With pollen counts reaching into the red zone, it’s probably best to wait until the yellow dust stops falling before giving your front porch a deep clean. Most of the pollen can be washed a way with water straight from the hose. For a deeper clean I suggest adding a little dish detergent into the mix. The sudsy water is a great way to deep clean some of the winter grim and thicker layers of pollen from outdoor cushions and table tops.

Note: Dry your cushions in the sun if possible, especially if they become water logged. Wet cushions can lead to mold and mildew smells which are difficult to remove.

2. After pollen season spruce up your front porch with a coat of paint. Do you use haint blue for your porch ceiling? Porches across American feature blue painted ceilings, but historians say the tradition was started in South Carolina. It was believed that ghosts (aka haints) could not cross water. By painting the porch blue, the spirits would be think it was water and would not be able to cross into the home.

There is no actual haint blue color. The nick name is used to describe any shade of blue painted porch ceiling, though it’s often a pale tone. The good news is you can pick any shade that appeals to you.

The blue color also offers a cool and calming atmosphere to relax in. And recently I heard it wards off spiders and wasps – if anyone has any feedback on this I’d love to hear about it.

3. Add color with a few potted flowers. Traditionally you will see hanging potted ferns grace the front porches of the south, but there are plenty of flowering options as well. As a rule of thumb any flowering plants that requires full sun tend to loose their flowers if placed in a shaded area; so it is important to know how much sun your porch receives when picking flowers.

A few annual plants to consider are:

• Sedum, thrives in sun or shade and are drought tolerant.
• Angel’s Trumpet, likes full sun and makes for a great hanging plant – will require moist well drained soil.
• Summer Snapdragon, full sun, moist well drained soil. Can add a touch of white, pinks or purples to your porch all summer long.
• Salvia, heat and drought tolerant with deep blue flowers.
• Lantana, likes full sun with well drained soil, offers multiple colors – yellow, red, pink, white and orange.

Decorative and non traditional items used for planting pots can add a little flair to your front porch.

Note: consider ease of passing through your front porch space when adding plants and decorative elements. Pinterest is full of unique and decorative ideas for the southern front porch.

Does spring cleaning have you excited to try something new on your front porch this year? I’d love to hear about it.

For more information about living in the Richmond Hill Georgia area please contact Melanie Kramer at 912-658-1390 or melaniekramer@kw.com.

Melanie Kramer Keller Williams Realty Coastal Area Partners
912-459-5001 Office
912-658-1390 Cell Direct