Since they are evergreen, what about a citrus of some kind? There is SOME mess - spent flowers, old leaves falling off to be replaced, but they smell lovely in flower, and you could pick your own fruit - oranges, tangerines, lemons, limes or grapefruits. You would probably have to do some limbing up if you want to sit under it. As well, since you don't say what the surface of the courtyard will be, may I suggest a large circle of gravel (6' as a minimum, but more would be better) around the tree, especially if the rest of the courtyard is to be paved? This will allow for watering, and for air-exchange with the tree roots. It would eliminate most root problems, since usually ('though not always, I grant) surface roots are a problem in the 2-4' next to the trunk.

>> He reminded me about the migratory Junko birds that ate much of our bare April fescue seeding last year. You get those too? Around here, they're year-round residents (sometimes). The average Junko (as well as other sparrows) are incredibly lazy. If you scatter just a bit of peat moss atop the blank areas when you dormant seed, they won't be very effective at finding the seeds and tend to do the job of burying them for you. No protection is required when seeding into a partially sprouted stand of grass. You can certainly add KBG to the mix if you like, but keep in mind that it'll tend to take over the lawn over the very long term (many years). Personally, I liked the resulting Abbey/Kenblue bluegrass lawn more than I liked the tri-mix that spawned it. So much so that I renovated to nicer bluegrasses! Under normal circumstances, pre-emergents for incidental weeds go around the time the forsythia blossom (or, when soil temperatures rise over fifty degrees). That takes care of most oddball stuff. You won't be able to apply any pre-emergent at this time as your new grasses will still be sprouting and have to be three mowings old before you use any pre-M or herbicides. Crabgrass sprouts warmer, but may get started in any warm snap in April or May. For that, I'd apply pre-emergent (Dimension, Barricade, most of them work on CG) around June first and realize that it's not going to be perfect. Spot treat any sprouted CG with Weed B Gon Crabgrass Control in July or so when you see it--the lawn will be old enough by then and more.

That is the most Amish looking sidewalk I've ever seen. Not wanting to do anything until you have a plan is the most reasonable position to hold. You are rare in a world of people who start working with only partially baked ideas! The first plan you need is a "master" plan. This is not a plan of construction details, but of general ideas that shows what goes where. In it you might determine where a shade tree goes, even though you might not know until two years later that the tree is a 'Crimson Glory' maple. You'd locate things like walks, drives, buildings, trees, hot tub, etc., figuring out how much ground space each thing would need. Later, when you actually build, you may need additional plans that show more details and specificity. Maybe you change your mind about some details along the way, but generally, you follow the master plan as a guide to development. In order to develop the master plan of proposed improvements, you must start with a base plan that shows existing features, to scale. You might have a plot plan plan that you obtained at the closing of the house, that you can start with. If not, you can measure and draw it out. If you're not used to drafting, you can use graph paper so all you do is have to count squares. The base plan is necessary for anyone who is going to create a master plan and the best part of making it is that you don't have to have a single idea yet of how you might develop the property. All you're doing is graphically recording what's already there ... the existing features. Creating and posting the base plan here would instantly make your property easier for viewers to understand, which they must if any are to be able to help. You would understand your own space better, too. Once the base plan is created, one can use tracing paper over it, or draw on copies of it, in order to brainstorm ideas. So far we've heard about hot tub, horseshoes, fire pit and patio. In the meanwhile, think if there is anything else you'll want added to that list. We've gotten a taste of your back yard through the two pictures, but everything is at quite a distance. And we don't know what's off to the sides. Maybe a must-see view? Or maybe a landfill? We don't know. Another way you could help familiarize people with the property is to take the camera to the center of the backyard (because it is to long) and take a series of slightly overlapping shots that show a complete, uninterrupted, 360* view.

nickel_kg, I did what I could... :^) That really does show how narrow the plot is, but yes, it goes back a fair piece. That's a field behind the house (currently soybeans), and we don't have much problem with surface water; what does come off tends to run down the alley. I'd very much prefer trees, but I was also thinking about movable shade, a canopy of some kind that can come down in the winter. Not sure how feasible that is. There are a lot of things I'd LIKE to do in the space -- quoit pits, BBQ/outdoor bar shack, firepit lounge, grape arbor -- but there's only so much we can actually put in there without it being stupidly busy. So we want to make the best use of the space. We also have to consider that this is a retirement home, so we'd like at least one space for a car that's close to the house, and a level access to the door from there. So much to think about.