Our Back Yard Design – Easy Designs? Right!

Designing something takes some time and effort to think things through but often the effort it takes to bring the design to reality requires a lot of work. This is one of those times. As we have been looking at this back yard one of the problems at present is the slope of the yard. There is a 24 inch drop in the ground level from the back of the deck to the back of the lot. This really creates some problems, with that much slope in that short a distance. Have you ever tried to sit in a chair on a slope? If you set it sideways you feel like your going to topple over. If you sit facing down slope you feel like your going to fall out of the chair. The only possible way is to sit facing up slope and then you feel like your sitting in an easy chair. Not all bad but getting out of the chair, now that’s a different story.
To solve this problem we are going to level the back yard. How are we going to do that? This is certainly not going to be easy. There is no access to the yard for equipment so this is going to have to be all done manually.

If you look at the diagram you will see we are going the make a terrace garden just behind the walk way to the side gate with steps down to the leveled court yard across from the deck steps. This will give easy access to the court yard and make it a very attractive yard with the garden surrounding it.
After consulting with the owner we will make the retaining walls out of pressure treated timbers. This will give it a natural look and make it a little less formal with all the formal straight lines that reflect the angles of the deck and steps that are already present.
Now we have a level place to sit and entertain and a great space for some Cedar outdoor and Patio furniture from “Outdoor Cedars” for folks to sit on.

Our Back Yard Design – Planning for People traffic flow.

Last time we got things on paper as to how things are. Then we started by eliminating everything we didn’t want any longer in the yard so we could sort of start with a clean slate.
This time I want to talk about traffic flow.
People traffic flow is very important. We can make people flow easy so people can move from one place to the other easily or we can make it so they have to take some time working their way through an area. This is great for a wandering path through some trees to force people (ourselves) to slow down and have a look around. But for getting in and out of our home we want to be able to do that with ease so clear straighter paths work the best.

Here in the back yard we are redesigning you can see the back door of the house, the step from the deck and the step to the right to the drive way. That means this is an important traffic flow path. You can also see the gate from the side of the yard through the Arbor. We also want to allow people to travel in that direction easily. So we have designed a path for them to do that. I also want to be able to get to the shed easily for access to bikes and lawn and garden tools etc. The path from the drive way is there and is cement so we will leave that. I like interlocking brick and it is something that with just a little knowledge and a fair amount of sweat anyone can use. So that is what I will make the other paths with and we will get a color that works with the cement.
Now I don’t want to get ahead of myself so we wont put those in just yet till we get the rest of the yard planned out because I think there is going to be quite a bite of work yet to do.
O by the way did you notice on the left I have got rid of some of the grass I think I am going to put that into garden.
If this was your back yard what do you think so far?
By the way now is the time to start thinking about what style of furniture you would like in your yard. Check out our “Teaks n More” or “Outdoor Cedars” store for all your needs in Garden and Patio Outdoor furniture.
Till next time.

Our Back Yard Design

So here we are ready for a redesign of a back yard.
Step 1- I have looked at the back yard and measured it out. So I know what is there. I have drawn it out to scale on paper so that I can work with it. I have included all the structural aspects of the yard (house, garage, shed, deck, trees etc.). I have also taken note of the terrain (is there a slope to the yard). In talking to the owner I have found out that the soil is sandy with great drainage. We want to know at this point as much about the yard as possible as it may or may not have relevance to the project.

Step 2- is laying it out on paper. As you look at the drawing you will see this is not a big yard. The green space is only 30’ by 32’ between the deck and back fence and the garage and side fence. Here is a little bit of further info. The side fence is along a street that is why the arbor Gate. The back yard slopes down 2 feet from the deck to the back fence this makes setting chairs up on the grassed area difficult. The owner really likes to garden and would love to have some areas to plant perennials. He also would like to incorporate some water into the yard.
Well that is a great start. We have gathered our info. We have it on paper. We know some of what the owner wants to incorporate. Now we need to stop and creatively think about what we have and start to plan it out. We need to think about traffic flow, size, scale, needs, wants etc. There really is a lot to think about as we begin to develop our design. That’s step 3 and we’ll start on that next time.
Where would you start?

Planning for 2008

Last time I talked about looking back at 2007 and analyzing what you did and what you have. This time we will look forward and plan ahead.
Sometimes it seems hard to think about Spring at this time of year but if we really want to make timely change we need to start planning now. If you haven’t already made a plan (a blue print) of your back yard with reasonably accurate dimensions, and the locations of all structures and gardens etc. that are there now then that is the place to start. The next step is to draw a new diagram with everything you want to change left out of the drawing. With this clean slate we can now begin to look at putting in what we want.
Many of us are eclectic. We buy something we like and start using it and then we see something else we like and the price is right and we buy and use it. There is no plan and we sit back and say this isn’t working. We know it but we don’t know what to do about it.
Each time I start a new project I think about what I want to accomplish. Now I am not as manic as some as I don’t make lists down to the last detail. I personally prefer to make several attempts at achieving my goals on paper first. Talk to your friends and see if they have any ideas. I might also go to a garden center and ask them for some ideas. Looking through magazines often helps us know what we like and what we don’t as far as style is concerned. This is the way to develop the plan.
Things we need to take into consideration.
What do we want to do in our yard?
How big is our yard?
What kind of style do we like? Formal or informal? Sophisticated or rustic?
What kind of furniture do we like?
What kind of garden structures do we want? Arbors? Trellises? Gazebos? Etc.
Do you see any patterns emerging?
To help us in this process over the next while I am going to take a small backyard and redesign it completely with your help. Are you up to it? If any of you want us to work with your back yard then leave me a response and I will give you a way of getting the info to me.
Till next time.