Backyard plantings

Detail

The promenade

As it ended up, with poured concrete pillars and a stamped concrete patio/dance floor, it was a spectacular success in my book. Fun to see the sketches turn into something real. (And, yes, I will post pictures!)

Secret Shade Garden

Tucked in the back corner, white hydrangeas and rhodies, azaleas, etc... (well, right now that area is covered in Blackberry vines. But this is the plan...)

The color scheme

Mostly purples and oranges and white. Less yellow and as little pink as possible.

Exceptions are daffodils and flowering almond, and well, a few other things, more as time goes on.

and the bulb order

Priorities

5 years of neglect have taken their toll on the backyard, virtually eliminating any progress I had made. Blackberries send up forty foot canes, our version of kudzu. Mustard takes over, grass invades the flowerbeds. Ivy got out of control and now just flat out has to be eliminated itself.

So I am in a rebuilding phase that is going to take alot of work. Hard work. Every year for the last five years I have taken a stab at it, only to be overwhelmed by the scope and distracted by the political scene that has taken over my life.

Every year I have sworn that this would be the last time I would do this. That I would cement in the area around the pond, lay the fieldstone permanently so that I am not pulling weeds from between the stones where the pretty moss was supposed to be. That I would put in the concrete mowing strip to prevent the grass from encroaching on the planted areas and vice versa.

But I didn't.

This year I will. This year, I will hire a crew to come in and put in the hardscape and the sprinkler system and sod the lawn area.

Then I will work on the planted areas and restore them. And happily plant new things.

Because the good side is that there are now established trees, and rhodies, and lilacs and the like. The plans I had set in motion have borne fruit. The bones and the structure of the garden are there.

And the stage is set to ensure that we will be able, finally, to enjoy the backyard.

The deck, the barbeque, the chairs, the table, the firepit, the playset and the greenhouse turned playhouse...

wish me luck.

UPDATE: Good intentions. Did not come to pass. That was 2008. A few more stabs at it since then, and now it is 2016. I've shed my other obligations entirely. Spent the summer digging out from under the blackberries yet again. Hauled truckloads of green waste to the dump. Got rid of piles of old garden furniture that had rusted.

The good news is, it's cleared, at least an area. Plantings are returning to life. New plants are in. We're clearing the area for sod - long-awaited sod.

And the good news is, there's still the established trees, and rhodies, and lilacs... it can be done.

Remodel/Addition ideas

Alotta people do the over the garage addition, but none of them look like this one. This is perfect

Add a second story

Ideas - my thinking here is that the structure can be engineered so the weight is carried by the outer piers, thus negating the need for redoing the existing perimeter foundation to support a second story.

The Beginning

Problem: No access to the backyard through the house, only access is through the garage or around sideyards. There is a grass alley that gives us vehicle access to the backyard. Virtually no existing landscaping. No plants. No style, no care, no nothing. Nothing has ever been done here.

There are two flowering plums in the front yard (on every lot on the street almost), the lawn is shot, the sideyard has a cyclone fence on one side, and on the other is a broken down fence. The backyard is often 2' high pasture grass. Not really a lawn though it can be tamed with a mower.

Ideas and Plans

In the beginning you have to assess your needs.
Access, trails & pathways, improve curb appeal, give the kids a "place," overall improve livability and resale value. Start with an overview - the skeleton (bones), paths, walks, define areas, and then fill in.

Here, plans include landscaping for privacy, camouflaging the cyclone fence, need a deck, a play area...

Early plan

Early Ideas for a Play Area

The back corner of the yard.

Something to remember - the further the sandbox is from the door to the house, the better. The more time the sand has to fall off the kids...

Thumbnails... Ideas

Choosing Paint Colors

Looking for a warm grey with white trim like the ones in the pictures. Things to consider - most houses have light bodies with darker trim. Using lighter trim will, in theory, expand the building visually, opening up rather than closing in and containing the space... windows will seem larger... interior colors alway appear two shades darker than you think - exterior colors will appear two shades LIGHTER... try samples... ended up picking Behr Meteorite, and learned another important tip - Write down the formula for the paint color you choose. Five years later you won't remember, the company may have discontinued it, or the paint store may have closed.

I like this color. It seems to disappear into space visually, it's very zen, very stealth, not intrusive and not overly trendy. It really sets off the greenery, looks fabulous with white flowers... It doesn't work well with blues (pots and furnishings), that's the only drawback. We have an ongoing discussion as to whether it is grey (I say) or green (John says). Perfect.

The house was built in 1963(ish) and has been painted a variety of colors including a lime-ish minty green, pink, taupe and powder blue. I figure those were subdivision trendy way back when. Will this be looked at that way?

Another early plan

Early plan in color

A deck?

The Plan with Spring Color

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The Plan with Fall Color