Contemplation and Validation

So, it's been a while since my last update. Summer gets really busy really fast, and I haven't quite accepted the beauty of winter interest, so that brings us to early spring, and a short timeframe until we host a family event in our backyard!

So, here is a blueprint/outline of our property that the previous owners had commissioned. We didn't like any of the layers of landscaping that were provided, so I'm presenting what has been done, and some of my ideas for additional input and discussion. A little more background, we are in Utah, zone 5 with very hot 100 degree summers and winters that could get down to -15, but don't always. As shown on the map, the back of the house faces southeast, so most of the backyard gets plenty of morning sun and summer afternoon shade from the house starting in the late evening. Also, there's a slight slope away from the house towards the east/southeast side of the yard.

Next, I've attached various recent photos of the backyard. Hopefully, you can get a better feel for the current layout from the photos, and a general idea of my plans for change.

So, here goes...

This is starting in the northwest corner of the yard. It started out as the vegetable garden, until we planted a Gala apple in the middle, but I think we have a little time before the entire area gets covered by the apple tree.

I'm trying to keep reference points as I go along. The Blue Spruce (A) to the east of the vegetable garden is the focus of the next picture, with the garden hose showing an outline for the curving expansion of the garden, as well as the edge(somewhere along there) of the border that will be raised and covered with mulch instead of lawn. Also visible further east is the trampoline, which is in the process of becoming "in-ground", and the northeast corner of our lot.

Keeping that frame of reference, this is taken from the northeast corner of the lot to the southeast corner. On the other side of the sandbox is last year's border project, where we dug out and built up a border around three apple trees (Golden Delicious, Crabapple, and Gala) planted by the previous owners. In the southeast corner is another Blue Spruce (B).

This is taken from the southeast corner next to the Blue Spruce (B) towards the southwest corner of our lot. This is another target for building up a border around the fruit trees on this side of the yard. Our border with the neighbor is a row of Laurel bushes, however, they seem to be experiencing quite a bit of die-back from the winter (they are supposed to be evergreen).

And finally, this is taken from the southwest corner towards the Blue Spruce (B) in the southeast corner. Again, the green garden hose shows the proposed outline for the border. Did I mention that we really love that mountain view?

Now that you basically have the corners, here are some bird's eye views from the roof....

This is from the roof, towards the Blue Spruce (B) in the southeast corner of the lot. Also showing the basement steps and patio, along with the hot tub shelter.

This gives a little better perspective of the proposed border around the peach and cherry trees (Intrepid and Elberta Peach, Black Gold Cherry, not pictured to the right Black Tartarian Cherry planted by previous owner).

Across the east side of the yard is another proposed border. This one using a combined black and then green hose. We would probably place some stepping stones or a path to the sandbox through the mulched border. The two gray boulders in the grass indicate the proposed future locations of dwarf pear trees (Starking Delicious and Moonglow dwarf pears - probably not going to happen this year).

This shot gives a little better perspective on the proposed border, again indicated by the garden hose, around the garden and the Blue Spruce (A) and Fuji Apple. The Fuji Apple is probably too close to the trampoline at about seven feet from the trunk, but it is a dwarf, so I'm hopeful. The trampoline is also about seven feet from the fence, which won't be as much of a concern once it is in-ground.

The livingroom window (directly above the basement steps) looks out towards the peach trees and the Blue Spruce (B). I'd like to add a lot more visual interest into the yard by adding more flowers to the expanded border. It would probably be a few years before the fruit trees actually shade the area.

We put the trampoline in the corner to make that part of the yard a children's area, along with the sandbox. It's visible from a kitchen window, but outside the view from the livingroom window.

We aren't huge entertainers, but we do have large extended families, so we are trying to establish a tradition of hosting a summer event for each side of the family. (This summer will be our third year in this home.)

Almost forgot. This corner, almost completely out of view of anything else, I'm debating putting in a Reliance grape along the fence and a raised bed to transplant some raspberries that are too crowded next to the house. This section of the fence in the southwest corner is about 30 feet long, so there's plenty of room for one, maybe two grape vines. I'm not sure about the size of the raspberry raised bed, but we want more than "cereal garnish" so hopefully it could stretch out to at least 15'.