I purchased a ¾ acre lot (125 x 260 feet) 6 years ago with a similar slope and woods on the back half. The front of the house is at street level but the back of the house is about 3 feet above grade. The lot continues to slope down another 2 feet to the back property line. During construction, I discovered the back half of the lot flooded with over 3 feet of water that remained all winter. The developer graded the subdivision but did not grade the woods. (I wouldn’t have any trees if he had.) I was left with what the locals call a frog pond. I tried adding about a dozen loads of sand to the lowest areas but I was afraid I would smother the trees if I added too much. After several unsuccessful attempts to get the developer to help I called the county board of supervisors. The county engineer was called in to inspect and the developer was “encouraged” to assist me. Luckily, the drainage ditch at the front of the property was about 5 feet deep and the developer was able to install 200 feet of 15 inch culverts from the drainage ditch to the back yard. The slope is only about 1-1/2 feet for the 200 foot length but it is enough to allow the yard to drain. It’s not perfect, when we have a lot of rain the yard holds about 10 inches of water for a day but the trees get plenty of water that way. I built a cinder block catch basin and had someone dig a shallow trench with a ditch witch from the middle of the backyard to the catch basin near the property line. I make sure the culvert doesn’t get blocked with sticks/leaves after a storm and I clean out the trench about once a year.

wow John! awesome job on the tropicals. Did you make that taro leaf for the waterfall?? I made a very similar one, not as big and painted same color! I'd love to email you and find out more info about your plants. I am a collector and grower of tropicals too. Boca Joe Here is a link that might be useful: Boca Joe's Tropicals

I must say starting an orchard as a first for growing edibles is bold. I would encourage you to contact your county agrilife extension service and see if they have any information that would help you be successful. Plum, pears, and peaches are commonly grown in your area. I use to live in the Dallas area and do not remember anyone growing apples or cherries. The close space fruit tree growing seems to work best in dry climates like California. I would pay attention to what scottfsmith on this forum writes since he has similar humid conditions like you have. Someone closer to home is Neil Sperry. I think he still has a call in show on one of the Dallas radio stations on Saturday. He talks more about flowers than fruits but is knowledgeable on both. You will need to watch out for fire blight on the apples and pears. Peaches and plums are bad about getting brown rot. This forum has been very interesting for me seeing what everyone is growing and if I have a chance to grow them in southeast Texas. It has saved me money and time by finding out what might be possible and what would be a waste of resources. Just remember, all of us have made mistakes and over time we can be successful growing something.

"I don't know what to mix in this case - any thoughts?" Sorry, but I can't suggest appropriate plants as I've spent little time in your part of the world, and none in northern LA. I've spent several weeks based in NOLA for work, that's it. I just wanted you to be aware that you won't get an even dense hedge of one species with the variability of light levels. I have a more casual style (I live on an old farm) than what appeals to you, so instead of hedges of one species, for the most part I have mixed shrubs, with multiples of each species, mixed along the length of the shrub border. Only in one spot do I have a row of all the same species, and that is in full sun from all sides so that the plants grow at a fairly similar rate. My usual suggestion in this type of situation is that you visit neighborhoods where the gardening appeals to you to get ideas, or if there are garden centers or nurseries with demonstration gardens or if there is an arboretum or public park or botanic garden where you can look at the various types of plantings that they have. To get an ID on a particular plant (if it's not in a situation where it is labeled) take photos of leaves, blooms or fruit, branches and the whole plant, and post on the Name that Plant forum. Or visit the public library and look for books that have landscaping photos for your general area or look at photos here on Houzz that are from your part of the US and see what inspires you. You want to keep in mind that you don't want a huge amount of pruning (so check growth rates once you know names) and that you don't want excessive amounts of shedding of blooms, leaves, seeds, and branches, so something that blooms all summer might be messier than you want to groom. Here's a photo from Derviss Design/Michelle Derviss - she sometimes participates in these forums. Though her area is different (CA coast) it shows a similarly shaped yard with varying light levels around the perimeter and so a mix of plants. She hasn't tried to totally cover up the fence, but there is a mix of different textures and foliage color and varied plant heights. If you look at the closer photos of the pots (go to link below) they also rely largely on foliage rather than flowers. I am not suggesting that you try to emulate this, just that this is one way to approach your problem. http://www.houzz.com/projects/312471/napa-valley-outdoor-living