There are tons of beautiful shrubs and trees that are native to this region that grow well and easy to care for but when I suggest these a lot of customers shy away thinking they will go against the grain of what they know.  They are reluctant and ask how hard they are to care for compared to the tried and true variety.  Even when they are the same in care, it is hard to pull the die hard's away from their beloved boxwood - which most people around here call every kind of holly.

Then there are the true adventurers of landscape design but can be just as possibly problematic in their choices.  They go on the internet looking for something cool and different for their yard that the neighbors will be envious of.  They often don't look to see if they grow well in this region or are even available in this region of the US.  These folks will bring a mile long list from the internet of all these plants they have chosen only to find out they don't grow and/or aren't sold in this area.  Then I show them alternatives that will work well in this area similar to what they chose but they don't always measure up to the cool tropical garden plants they found. 

What is the lesson here?  When you want to do something new with your landscaping talk to a professional first before you start shopping.  They can give great advice on what will work well with your yard that would be different than the typical holly but also will grow well in your yard.  Be prepared in possibly getting your soil tested (free from the NC Department of Agriculture).  Look at your yard - where are the shady spots and where are the sunny spots in relation to where you want to plant?   Look at where an what types of large trees are in your yard.  This impacts your soil quality and will dictate what you can plant near them.  This very helpful information that will make your nursery shopping and landscape planning experience go very smooth.