share ideas for http://forums2.gardenweb.com/forums/load/design/msg1214085821098.html?3 I guess you are zone 6. "too ambitious"-----I like,dont worry small space,can plant trees small or big,can control tree grow scale by dirt thin rate.dont worry budget,garden plant is so slowly.we only do some every year,but enjoy our design goal. src="http://i277.photobucket.com/albums/kk80/landscapedesignchina/100_431011.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket"> src="http://i277.photobucket.com/albums/kk80/landscapedesignchina/100_431010.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket"> src="http://i277.photobucket.com/albums/kk80/landscapedesignchina/100_43109.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket"> src="http://i277.photobucket.com/albums/kk80/landscapedesignchina/100_43108.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket"> other ideas RE: Help with landscaping SMALL backyard Posted by: ideasshare (My Page) on Sat, Dec 13, 08 at 6:01 share ideas for http://forums2.gardenweb.com/forums/load/design/msg1214085821098.html?3 I guess you are zone 6. "too ambitious"-----I like,dont worry small space,can plant trees small or big,can control tree grow scale by dirt thin rate.dont worry budget,garden plant is so slowly.we only do some every year,but enjoy our design goal. here link is other ideas: groups.myspace.com/gardenideas RE: Help with landscaping SMALL backyard Posted by: karinl BC Z8 (My Page) on Sat, Dec 13, 08 at 12:56 No reason at all why you couldn't make a nice little ornamental garden here, whether dwarf conifers (head over to the conifers forum for a wealth of photos of plants and gardens) or the less groomed but also attractive perennial/deciduous garden. Almost incredibly, Ideasshare has actually visualized some options for opening up your design options, in particular changing the shape of the pathway. But you don't have to go to those lengths to make the space attractive. I do think I would incorporate some hardscape to give it form; maybe also a meandering path through it - unbroken, even one side is a big space for all garden. I'm still not quite getting a sense of whether you have a slope here or whether the space is flat. If sloped, terracing would be nice but you don't see the walls from above. Nonetheless, it breaks the space up and makes it nice to be in. This being a back yard, are there any functional issues need to be addressed. like a compost, or do you want some privacy? Those should be laid out in advance. I do love those glass balls (I got some in Germany when they were all the rage there) - they have to stay!! :-) KarinL Here is a link that might be useful: One conifer garden thread RE: Help with landscaping SMALL backyard Posted by: nhbabs z4b-5a NH (My Page) on Fri, Dec 19, 08 at 10:58 It sounds like you might want to spend time thinking about how you want to use the space and what you want out of it as well as how you want it to look. Veggies? Lawn? Sitting or dining area? Main entry way to get in & outside when entering & leaving the house? Play area for kids or animals? Privacy from neighbors or city noise? Also, how much work do you want to do? Would you be willing to redo the walkway or the patio? Are you willing to build raised beds or hire someone to do work for you? Because your question is so open-ended, you may not get too many responses. I find that looking at pictures really helps me visualize possibilities in a way I can't when simply looking at what I'm starting with. Here is a link to one designer's portfolio who has done many small urban spaces that seem to be used as outdoor sitting/dining areas. He also has written several books that are well illustrated. He's just one of many designers whose work you can look at to see what you like and to imagine if that type of design would work for how you want to use the space. Your local public library can be a great resource for garden design books as they not only have their own collections, but also probably do an interlibrary loan service that would give you access to other library's collections. Here is a link that might be useful: Keith Davitt design portfolio RE: Help with landscaping SMALL backyard Posted by: bjcoop 5-6 (My Page) on Mon, Dec 29, 08 at 10:34 Wow! With the Holidays, I havent had a chance to check back here. WOW Ideashare. You are a magician with the photos! Lots of ideas here. Never thought of changing the shape of the bricks. Also the idea of how best to enjoy and use the backyard is important. It does need to be low maintenance. It does need to be playspace (and other) for our minpin. Will study all of these ideas. One thing, I plan to keep the gazing balls. Our minpin is stupified by them. (: (: RE: Help with landscaping SMALL backyard Posted by: ideasshare (My Page) on Tue, Dec 30, 08 at 8:27 It does need to be low maintenance------is good idea. Shrubs in general tend to be less maintenance than perennials for many of the reasons,no need for deadheading, dividing, staking, cutting back or cleaning up seasonally and typically require less watering once established due to wider, more extensive root systems. But to decrease maintenance even further, select those shrubs which are recognized as being fully hardy and well suited to climate and growing conditions, drought tolerant (once established), disease and pest resistant and not requiring excessive pruning to maintain health or size. Check with local extension office for their recommendations and visit some of better local retail nurseries in season for ideas. And I wouldn't necessarily want to eliminate ALL herbaceous perennials - some are quite a bit less maintenance than others. A mixed border that includes a variety of shrubs, perennials, grasses, groundcovers and even a few small trees generally will provide year long interest and color with relatively low maintenance. Here is a link that might be useful: share other some ideas RE: Help with landscaping SMALL backyard Posted by: karinl BC Z8 (My Page) on Wed, Dec 31, 08 at 14:57 Just to clarify -Ideasshare is apparently a Chinese forum participant who doesn't have much idea of North American culture or norms but is doing his/her best o join in here with photo manipulation. The results are bizarre but (as in this case) occasionally useful. Unfortunately, s/he has just branched out into giving written advice, which seems to be simply a compilation of plagiarized phrases that s/he probably doesn't even quite know the meaning of - not specifically thought out suggestions for you. Not that it isn't good info, but take it for what it is. KarinL Post a Follow-Up Your Name: Your Email Address: Zone (optional): Subject of Posting: Message: Optional Link URL: Name of the Link: Return to the Landscape Design Forum

Thank you for the responses. Patio design - should it be straight lines or curved? Steps - one continuous or two separate? We have suggestions for both and the companies that have come out go back and forth between them. Is there a rule to follow as far as design goes?

"The large deck ... is structurally sound, the boards are not in good shape." What exactly does "not in good shape" mean? ... that the surface is not good but otherwise they are OK ...? That sounds like a couple of decks that came with a house I once owned. They were functional but ugly from years of weathering and no attention whatsoever. They were transformed into completely acceptable, nice actually, merely with pressure washing, a quick, coarse sanding, and two or three coats of deck paint (not stain) applied with a paint roller. It was not a huge, horrible job and they looked almost as good as new. They were much easier to keep clean with a hard paint surface. The cost to fix it this way, if DIY, would be a couple hundred bucks. If not DIY, a few hundred ... vs. $17K. If you could get another dozen years our of your deck and have it look nice, too, would that be acceptable? Landscaping is a discipline where one must not ignore site conditions or impose unrealistic solutions if they expect to produce a result that is pleasant, lasting and maintainable. I question the overall direction of making a small porch with steps down to where all the landscape features would be. This seems intrinsically less useful than would be having a decent sized deck immediately off of the main living space. I see a grill but not a dining table. Where does the outdoor dining happen? If the kitchen is separated from outdoor dining by a full flight of steps, it will surely be made much more inconvenient. But the real deal-breaker for me is the imposition of "no groundcover," which is driven by unrealistic beliefs based on emotion, when the site itself is demanding groundcover for practical reasons: there is slope and there is shade. Are we really going to spend $50K in order to change this into flat, sunny ground? It's going to require significant retaining walls & grading in addition to all the other new hardscape and planting. On the subject of husband's allergies to pine, I presume you're talking about allergies to pine pollen (since contact with the plant itself can be easily avoided)? Getting rid of the pines is going to make virtually no difference if there are other pines in the neighborhood or region. During the pollen season, which lasts for a couple of weeks, it can blow statewide and there's no escaping it. One's best hope of avoiding it is to stay indoors as much as possible during that time. I think you should begin with the budget because it will determine what is possible vs. what is fantasy. Re-contemplate the goals ... not how to achieve them, but simply the objectives themselves ... what activities do we want to do outside? How convenient do we want them to be? How private should it be? ... etc.

It looks like what you have done is created some needed level space at the bottom of the property on a fairly steep slope which sits above what looks to be a wetland/marsh that is meant to move some significant amounts of water at times. The problem I see from a design perspective is that the two finished sections, left and center, and what looks to be a third in progress on the right side are all individual units with no connection or flow between them to make them work as a unified design element in the landscape. You have a bird's eye view from above and the land seems to have you restricted somewhat to a linear DIY approach without some major retaining walls and terracing. I think you need to make all these separate elements work more as a whole integrated unit. The seating area and firepit should be one larger integrated space. Get creative with the overall outline in your bird's eye view. Softening things may not be the best idea when you should be going BOLD. Make your stone work stand out and say something.