A tall fescue lawn in a northern California winter is going to look a bit bedraggled, and hardly grow much. The thinning of the grass is probably due to lack of sufficient irrigation suitable for best growth in the hotter months, in combination with insufficient top soil with organic content added before you sodded it, and not fertilizing often enough to encourage better health and growth of grass. How many inches of topsoil did you add before rototilling, and how often and which months do you fertilize, and what is the N-P-K ratio of the fertilizer you are using? As to whether 20 minutes of spray irrigation is sufficient for a lawn in northern California conditions, especially if applied 4 times a week on a flat site, if anything this is overwatering, even with heavy root competition from the redwoods and oaks across the fence. It looks to me that you need to build up soil fertility in both the lawn, and particularly for the citrus tree, which shows signs of nitrogen deficiency in particular, and is probably also not getting water in summer sufficient to get rooting deeper. Just adding a mulch with chicken manure in it, or mushroom compost or similar as a 4 inch mulch, ought to help the citrus tremendously. I'd also suggest adding some time release fertilizer such as osmocote and work into the soil in March, for longer term/slow release of nutrients, and check with a soil auger how deep your irrigation is penetrating with the irrigation you are giving it. The lawn can also be top dressed with a light screened mulch after having it aerated with a core type aerator, and the top dressing raked in to help fill the holes, but it might be better to simply use a sod cutter to skim it all off, add a healthy 6 inches of organic compost to the lawn area, and resod. Lawns here typically benefit from several fertilizing periods, at least once in mid spring and again in summer and early fall, or refer to the web site referred to previously for recommendations. You might also consider using a mulching lawn mower that chops up the grass blades so that they return to the soil, and preserve the nitrogen that is otherwise thrown away with each clipping. As to Ink's complaint about "cliche" eyebrow plantings around the edge of the lawn, I don't think you are really looking at other solutions if you mean to keep the existing lawn size and layout, but I do second Ink's opinion that the narrowness of the planting areas against the fence is rather dull and static. Planting of vines to cover the fence, and widening the borders to allow at least some layering of shrubs and herbaceous plantings is entirely possible if borders were widened to minimum 4 to 8 feet wide if you can give up some lawn space. The proximity of those large redwoods and oaks across your fence is definitely tapping into the irrigation you are supplying. The vigor of the trees, and even some of the plants in your own backyard indicates to me that yours isn't so much a soil fertility problem, as it is poorly timed fertilizing and no ongoing attempts to increase organic content of your clay soils via mulching with compost, as well as not checking to see if your irrigation schedule is adequately wetting the soil to sufficient depth to encourage better growth and plant health under drought/heat stress of summer. Having dealt with many California gardens under or adjacent to redwoods and live oaks, the soil ph is unlikely to be the problem, as I am willing to bet your soil is only mildly acidic or even close to neutral. We just don't have moist enough conditions year round to create acidic soils from dropped leaves in a suburban garden setting. The problem is the root competition of water, and any plantings you add will greatly benefit from adding tons of organic component, mulching with compost on a yearly basis, selecting plants that tolerate root competition with redwood tree roots, shade and constant debris, and closely monitoring your irrigation cycles to see that the plants are getting what they need. Beyond a soils test and a landscape design, you need some help from a good horticulturist who can advise you what you are doing wrong/right in your particular circumstances. I'd also make darn sure the natives you have on your plans are compatible with redwood tree competition, as well as potential overspray from the lawn irrigation. Fertilizing more frequently for plantings below/adjacent redwoods is extremely helpful, and if you prefer the organic route, stick with a good organic mulch that has some manure in it, and reapply a couple of inches every year.

tkme4ard, you actually want a layer of clay at final grade, right up against the foundation and running out 2 or 3 feet. Properly sloped away from the home's foundation and into the landscaping, it works to remove water from the immediate area of the ground to foundation "joint" for lack of a better word. Clay is way more water resistant than fill soil or garden soil, no matter how any of them are graded, You can top that with mulch or river rock or your choice of permeable material and then place your foundation plantings in front of it...say two feet out from the home. You don't plant into it, close to the foundation. As the foundation plantings mature, you begin to not even see the strip. We get rain starting in October and it seems to not stop until June. Temperate rain forest is how my area is described. Demand the clay layer be replaced at completion. One of my first homes, years ago, bought for rental needed the perimeter drains replaced. This was a 1,200 sq ft raised ranch. I dug it by hand, took me two weeks and cost me the cost of pipe. All four sides, four to five feet down. Last year we had another one, hired a contractor, he did it in 4 days and it cost slightly under $15,000. This was a fully buried basement so deeper, they tore everything out, wire brushed the concrete, sprayed the black goop (hey! I didn't do it or I'd know the name), dimple screened it, put in proper perimeter and rain drains, wrapped and drain rocked and filled it, clayed it and graded it. That price includes all new rain goods all around the house as well and its a bit larger home. Looks just like the one I did by hand for probably $300. Just a bed time story for your hubby. Mavc is giving you good advice, btw.

Wow Bodica you have me dreaming :) If you look at the harbor room pic, you can see water out the window, that's the bay, just down the hill and the house has excellent views on that side. The opposite side view is the gorgeous stone court house. In front is a large park owned by the city, and behind is the carriage house now a private home separately owned. I am fairly certain we can't have cows in the city limits :oP But we can walk about six blocks to a fabulous farmers market on the weekends. The furnishings are 85% real antiques (victorian) and a few have come from the original owners (meaning they've always been in the house). A few pieces are spectacular, the balance are your typical eastlake style, but still quite lovely (just not rare). There are a couple pieces not incuded with the purchase that I will ask for anyhoo as part of the offer because they're unusual and special. I'd guess from a rough count it's about 50,000 in furnishings and fittings. The lighting is generally fabulous, with a few changes needed..but I adore antique lighting so that will be fun. It's a state and national landmark home, as well as registered with the national historical society. I'm just starting to look into how that effects our life. In general, because it's such a special home historically, we're not planning on doing anything inappropriate. The only big change would be the kitchen, which has been remuddled over time as a professional kitchen and will be returned to a semi unfitted kitchen when we want to put the money into it. And all of the bathrooms (I think 11?) need to be redone in a more appropriate historical period (they were done in the 80's with formica and cheap tile). A few fireplaces also are hidden or have been replaced with wood stoves. We'll fix those. The three we can see all have fabulous tile...not Morovian, but they have that feel. The whole joint needs to be deflowered! (this thread will now pop up in some unusual searches on google LOL) I mean there are flowers on top of flowers with flowers on the bed and flowers in vases (fake) and flowers in the lace....egads flowers. I'm sure I'll be having nightmares about those flowers for years as I slowly remove them. When it comes to the decor, we'll be historically sensative. I believe that in a softer way, the victorian style is an easy style to live with. The sofa's will be softer, but still elegant, but I'm totally into the heavy draperies and lush carpets :) It will be a "home" but still be appropriate for charities to use for the victorian home tours and special events held now annually there. We plan on allowing that to continue. I grew up in the town in another special house there (Smith house, which was the first cabin in town and is now a modest victorian home). It's not my dream home (French house in Duluth) but if one has to "settle" this is one heck of a home to settle for isn't it? :) (Believe me I'm not feeling deprived at all LOL). It will provide us with a wonderful home for my son and his friends in the future, and if we're lucky a baby or two. And if we're not, the three of us will muddle on just fine there :) The only downside to this is I have to move away from my husband (he'll do one week with us and one week here). But we have to do it for our son. PBJ they can't get me into all of the rooms until the end of the month, and I'm not flying down until I can see every one of them, so we've agreed on the last Sunday of the month. I'm working on my checklist for the visit now :)

@ Melissa...If you were to test you slab TODAY you would find the moisture levels would be extremely high. Please be aware that your flooring experts who ran the test BEFORE putting in the tile *might have shown a lower level of moisture. That is NORMAL if the concrete was bare or had carpet over it for a few weeks/days before the new tile was installed. You will find out (either in court or from your attorney or via a building engineer who deals with soil conditions) that a moisture test is ONLY GOOD for the DAY it was taken. The moisture level tested on THAT DAY is a 'snap shot' in time. Like a photo of a sunset. The photo lives forever (the numbers on the moisture report) while the sunset slips away into darkness (like water draining from a bathtub). It is ENTIRELY POSSIBLE (and I am not making this up) that 2 weeks after your slab was 'capped' (again...porcelain is a cap...it does not allow water to go anywhere but through the grout lines = ground salts sitting on your tiles) that a second moisture test would have shown your slab had turned from "OK" for tile to "disastrous". And in court/building law, if the contractor/installer can PROVE that the numbers were ACCEPTABLE on that day....they are not responsible for issues that came later. Sorry...I know...that's nasty to hear...but that's the way it works. Now if you had a second set of numbers that stated a HORRIBLE water level in your slab on the DAY they started the install, now you have a condition that makes them responsible. But again, a wet slab that does not show itself on the day the contractor measured it means the contractor could not REASONABLY have anticipated high moisture levels LATER. Your ONE SAVING GRACE is the fact that the numbers were "too high" for wood but were "OK" for porcelain. This could be a false statement. Porcelain tile and thin-set have MAXIMUM moisture ratings. Any amount of moisture above the thinset's rating = flooring specialist needs to tell the homeowner to STOP the flooring install and to CONTRACT a wet-slab specialist to do the $5/sf fix (see below). That is your one leg you have to stand on. You will need to have a building expert make such a statement on paper and you need the actual number the installer came up with (and the test used) and the name of the materials (thinset is EXTREMELY important). You will need to have all of this documentation in your hand when you sit down with the lawyer for your first visit. The only other thing you could try would be sump pumps to drain the water from underneath the slab. That is often needed in settings like yours. Florida has water tables that sit higher than peoples above ground pools! Other than a sumppump addition, this is a complete redo. The tiles have to come up, you have to engage the use of a wet slab/wet basement expert and have them come in a seal your slab from above. That includes shot blasting the surface (old concrete doesn't like to hold onto sealants). Then they will add 1-2 coats of epoxy sealant (usually 2...especially when it is this bad). They might have to use a primer (either before or after the sealant is put down) and then they have to add a microtopping of new cement over top. Once the top layer of cement has dried, you can then move forward with new flooring. But to get this to work PROPERLY you have to do the entire house. Cause if you miss a spot that has carpet on it, all that back-pressure is going to POUR into your carpet. And then you have another mess on your hands.