Ok, didn't realize the beds were raised. As far as being below average....we don't get rain during the summer that amounts to much, in fact between June and mid August we were still at a 4" deficit. Actually that is Spokane's deficit; here we are 30 miles south and they get more than we do during summers; most storms and rain fronts split and go right around us. Our average ANNUAL precip (that's rain and snow) is 17" with the majority coming in April/May and starting again in October. I use grass clippings and straw for mulch in some beds and none in others. The most drought/heat tolerant perennials I have in non-amended gravelly sandy loam soil would be: Lavender Thyme sp. Blue Flax Salvia officinalis Ratibida Coreopsis Gaillardia Saponaria (stays in check too) Knautia Echinacea sp. Dianthus Bergenia Hosta Sedum sp. Sempervirens Helianthus maximiliani Heliopsis helianthodies perennial alyssum Hollyhock Yarrow Daylily Bearded Iris Foxglove (D. ambigua) Lemon Balm (keeps it in check too) Chives Nepeta mussinii Grasses As for annuals I'd say: Sweet Alyssum Linaria Coreopsis tinctoria Zinnia Tithonia Amaranthus Snapdragon Clarkia Moss Rose Mirablis Rudbeckia hirta Larkspur Nigella Scabiosa atropurpurea Sunflower African Daisy (Vinidium) Cosmic Orange Cosmo.

We've moving soon (only two miles from our current place), and all the threads on various forums about bad neighbors scare me to death! I currently live in a triplex, with a family with three kids and two dogs next door. Common wall is cinderblock, so I can hear the occasional sounds but never unreasonable or at crazy times. Neighbors in the single family home on the other side are the kind who pop over randomly for coffee, we have dinner together occasionally, etc. I can't relate to the bitter property line disputes I read about because we don't even know where the line is and neither of us cares. We use their water to fill our hot tub faster than just using ours, and they put their trash in our can to avoid hauling their out...just little neighborly things like that. We do have one "outlier" family on the block with dogs that bark for literally hours and a total disregard for others in many ways, but thankfully they're a few houses down from us. We also have a new family who apparently doesn't understand that grass needs to be mowed, but given all the horror stories I've read, that's practically paradise. I'm so spoiled with our current neighborhood that I'm having all sorts of scary thoughts of ending up with the neighbors from hell in the new place (another town home). We've moving for space and better expressway access, but there's no way to tell the character of the neighborhood because it's brand new construction. I visit every day, and the people I've met so far are all very nice, but I'm still a worry wart. I already know parking will be a challenge because of the way things are set up. We'll have a garage, but it may be hard to get in/out with the way the alley is set up. Oh well, our side yard is extremely private, so as long as we don't have insanely loud crazies next door that pump bass through the common wall, I think we'll be okay.

An elevated bed would be a huge amount of hassle to maintain, would not be able to accommodate anything large enough to act as a screen and would just look weird, imo, out in the middle of an essentially natural-looking woodsy yard. If you can live with some wire netting fences for a while you should be able to get a variety of shrubs and small trees established. There really is a huge range available, both evergreen and deciduous, and you have masses of space.

Carol, that song had not been shared already - at least not this time. "Down in the boondocks" sound a bit like "down on the bayou," and so you may have been thinking of that. Fat Boy Slim Right Here, Right Now "Right about now.." the Funk Soul Brother