For anyone out there looking for ideas on a small pool. Go to the blog "Our New Pool Build in Jacksonville, FL" We call it a Spool or Social Pool. It is approx 10 X 20 and it will be fully screened in. The wife designed it and it will have a water fall, bubbler and 2 external boxes for statues spouting water. It is 3.5ft to 4.5ft and have 2 seating / lounging areas. We went this route because we like entertaining and did not care to be swimming and diving, just hanging out. Take a look and let me know your thoughts. Thanks

Oh no!! You said the "T" word......topping. In the wrong hands this word can lead to permanently damaged landscape plants, especially trees. You could agressively trim, but why go to all that trouble? Just choose plants whose mature size will fit into your space and save your free time to enjoy your pool and landscape. As for vines, there are several to choose from. Forget wisteria here, but perhaps Lilac Vine (Hardenbergia violacea) would work. Lady Banks rose (thornless in white or yellow) grows fast as does Pink Trumpet Vine (Podranea ricasoliana). You don't want Bougainvillea with your pool or you'll be constantly fishing out the colorful leaves/flowers. Heres a link to Landscape Plants for the Arizona Desert which has over 200 low water use plants with photos and descriptions. You'll need to water your new plants correctly for the first few weeks so refer to page 14 of Landscape Watering by the Numbers. Page 9 shows how much water to apply based on the size of the plant. Most of the valley cities have free landscape classes offered by their water conservation offices. Of course folks on this forum always have great advice. Good luck!

CC Thanks! gumby - yes, the 5ft decision wasn't easy. I practiced digging/planting/pruning in the middle of the first bed to make sure I'm ok with it before I built the rest. It helps me a lot that I have a place to sit/step on and reach in. Trellis support (aka el conduit) is still in pieces. I planted rattlesnake and garden of eden pole beans and they will be the first to need it, but not in the next several weeks, I don't think. I should have some their trellis ready by then. defrost - yes I can use a board if I need to, and except for tomatoes, I will keep all my tall plants on the north (top) side of the beds to keep them from shading the rest of the bed. If it turns out it is a big problem, I'll just rearrange them. It will likely be a weekend project to do it. Everything except the blackberries (not here yet), strawberries (last fall), blueberries(last fall), garlic (last fall), pawpaws(not here) and figs(not here) was planted during the week. I can't wait to see things grow in these new beds! Next I'm starting to prepare my tomatoes and peppers. In a couple of weeks I'll plant some more lettuce in the bottom left bed and maybe some more spring crops. It might get too hot for them, but we'll see. The rest of the open area will be mostly tomatoes and peppers, okra and some eggplant.

In general, landscape design looks at the clients' needs and wishes for the property as a whole and the creates a design that then meets as many of those as possible in the most pleasing way. Other than the sheds and the veggie garden, how do you want to use the yard? To my mind, that needs to be answered before any real plans are made. Is privacy (fence) more important than the veggies? Does it need to be there year round, or is privacy only really important in the summer when you will be outside more? Do you want a large open space for games or running around in the center? How much shade is there over the course of the day along the chain link or in other spots of the yard such as along the deck? Do you want a "pretty" yard or a kid-friendly yard or is the growing of food more of a priority or are they all of equal priority? Where will you be most likely to walk or drive and so will need to be left open? Where is water available, and would you be able to add hose bibs in other spots as needed? Do you want afternoon shade for the deck or other areas, and would you be more likely to plant a tree, or add a structure such as an arbor or shade sail? What other wishes do you have for the yard? As others have said, the more sun, the more successful the veggie and fruit beds will be, so too close to the sheds and the nearby solid fence which will provide shade should be avoided. You also will want to change your grouping/way of thinking about the plants from culinary to cultivation. Melons, like all your veggies, are annual plants, while most other "fruits" you have listed are perennials. The annuals and perennials each should have a planting area so that when clearing out and replanting annuals each year you aren't disturbing the perennial plants. The strawberries will need renewing every few years while each of the the shrubs and vines, which are fairly permanent, have different maintenance needs, and so should be planted in separate areas. If you grow herbs, some are annuals and some perennials. Consider overall goals and how else you will use your yard to help determine the best spot for the veggie beds. For instance, if you want the center of the yard left open, then think about putting your food plants along the chain link instead of a fence since it looks like it gets good sun. Or is the solid fence important enough the you should stockpile your soil for now or make temporary beds and then when the fence has been added, create the beds and plant food crops? Could you use the berry bushes and kiwi vines for your privacy instead of a solid fence? They are deciduous, so wouldn't be great for winter privacy. You would need to leave room between the shrubs and the chain link for accessing the vines. Fruit plants don't need as close access as herbs or veggies since fruit tends to be picked in chunks, while veggies tend to get harvested for particular meals, so think about putting the veggies and herbs closer to the house where there is easy access from the kitchen. Would you want veggies as a border around the deck, or does that either not fit the plants' needs or your wishes? So create a list of uses and priorities for the yard as a whole (swimming pool? play structure? bocce court? badminton net? trash can storage? etc, etc), prioritize them, and then start thinking about placement. You have already made one big decision, the shed size and placement, and so before making others, I would stop, step back and look at the yard overall. Take some time over the next growing season to look at sun and shade patterns (if you map sun as it changes from the vernal equinox until the summer solstice, you will have a good grasp on how it will look but in reverse for the rest of the growing season) as well as wind before planting anything permanent if successful cultivation of food crops is a priority. Once you have a good handle on growing conditions and your overall goals for the yard, then you will have a better idea of where is the ideal placement for each of the various uses you have for your yard.