Want to see my yard design?

[Marmee]

My yard, not me designing it exactly.  It's my front/side yard...meaning corner lot where my house actually faces one street but my address is the other.  Confusing, no?  I'm in the city in an old brick 2 story, so itty bitty lot.  Our concept we gave her was modern Potager garden.  The front is raised concrete planters that'll have herbs & veggies.  The rest is too shady for veggies.  We are doing a metal & mesh fence surrounding the whole thing..keeping the many dogs & people  that pass my yard out.  The back path leads to a back door/apartment we currently do not rent out but we are keeping as a future option.  Anyway, let me know if you have feedback.  Still have time to change stuff.

Attachment Deleted

[boiler717]

So cool!! Did you do this yourself? What program?

[treedimensional]

The layout works, but
1. Not enough diversity, no support for pollinators.
2. The scale is wrong- buckthorn is shown as same size as coralbells.
3. Buckthorn is invasive.
4. Where are the Hydrangeas and Viburnums I see on the plant list?
5. Why a gravel border outside of a mulch border? Maintenance nightmare, esp. flanking a public sidewalk.
6. Where's the water source?
7. Table and chairs on concrete blocks, not a good idea. What is the hardscape component "breeze"?

[Marmee]

Apr 17, 2014 5:49:04 GMT -5 boiler717 said:

So cool!! Did you do this yourself? What program?

No, I hired a landscape designer. I don't know squat about plants.

[Marmee]

Apr 17, 2014 7:48:19 GMT -5 treedimensional said:

The layout works, but
1. Not enough diversity, no support for pollinators.
2. The scale is wrong- buckthorn is shown as same size as coralbells.
3. Buckthorn is invasive.
4. Where are the Hydrangeas and Viburnums I see on the plant list?
5. Why a gravel border outside of a mulch border? Maintenance nightmare, esp. flanking a public sidewalk.
6. Where's the water source?
7. Table and chairs on concrete blocks, not a good idea. What is the hardscape component "breeze"?

Thanks for the feedback!  I'll bring some of it up to the designer.

The plants are not set in the least yet.  She had hydrangeas & viburnums in the old plan (& no boxwoods) before we put the walkway in back in.  I love hydrangeas so I'm hoping to get one or more in somewhere.  I do not like red flowers for our house color scheme so the red roses are definitely going out.  Any suggestions?  

The gravel is actually river rock which is supposed to be between the sidewalk & fence (whatever the set back is) but we already nixed that (I do not want river rock anywhere), she just hasn't changed it it guess.

we have a sprinkler system, it'll just be redone.  I live in arid Colorado, it's a must.

Breeze is a term she uses that apparently is used here.  We requested DG/crusher fines.  It should be the type that packs down and becomes solid.  Not sure what we'll have in terms of furniture, we never requested it but we liked the idea when she purposes a place for potting/garden work and for the kids to hang out.  So I'm not sure how it'll pan out exactly.  

[treedimensional]

Knockout Red roses are not true red, they're actually magenta.
If you're trying to grow food, you have to feed the bees FIRST. Something like salvia will work better than coralbells for that. Consider dwarf Itea instead of boxwood (similar size, good for pollinators, and will work well with your irrigation system). Get rid of Bucktorn, replace with Viburnum tinus (for similar growth habit) or Deutzia, for another dwarf flowering shrub along the lines of Itea.

[mrspez07]

I'm guessing she's specifying the columnar buckthorn, which isn't invasive here in CO, it's different than the glossy, etc. that are invasive, it is a tall narrow shrub used for screening. The CSU extension here is good about tracking the invasives and the nurseries stop selling pretty quick. You can always call the extension office in The county and ask though.
The only thing I noticed is the pavers. Are they custom poured in place? Bigger than the size you can buy yourself? Those will get pricey quick. Also, if the pavers are done under the table with a tight joint, they'll work, but if spaced, furniture legs will get caught up.
Just a heads up.
Itea will likely struggle in CO, and aren't sold locally, same with the Deutzia Treedimensional mentioned as a buckthorn replacement. I don't think we get enough humidity for either one.

[Marmee]

Apr 17, 2014 22:27:02 GMT -5 mrspez07 said:

I'm guessing she's specifying the columnar buckthorn, which isn't invasive here in CO, it's different than the glossy, etc. that are invasive, it is a tall narrow shrub used for screening. The CSU extension here is good about tracking the invasives and the nurseries stop selling pretty quick. You can always call the extension office in The county and ask though.
The only thing I noticed is the pavers. Are they custom poured in place? Bigger than the size you can buy yourself? Those will get pricey quick. Also, if the pavers are done under the table with a tight joint, they'll work, but if spaced, furniture legs will get caught up.
Just a heads up.
Itea will likely struggle in CO, and aren't sold locally, same with the Deutzia Treedimensional mentioned as a buckthorn replacement. I don't think we get enough humidity for either one.

Thanks for the feedback also! Everything they do is custom, I know it's gonna be $$$$$. Ugh. We'll see how it prices out, some things may get value engineered out...lol.