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Yes this is the time of year to plan and research so good for you.

Thanks! I have a photobucket account already! (What parents of small children doesn't LOL)

Posting very soon.

Here is what the space I want to work on looks like. The pics are taken facing West, taken this morning. This is only one half of the yard. The other will be worked on once this side is done.

The white fencing is coming out and the yard is being extended by about 4 feet.

Also the "bush" by the white and brown fences is an off shoot (from before we bought the house)from the tree you see in the neighbors yard. We would like to take that off shoot out, but we like our neighbors and are afraid it would shock their tree (newly trimmed), thus causing it to die.

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You sure have a blank canvas to start with. That can be nice...no removing anything.
I can't tell what type of bush/tree that is, but chances are cutting it off it will just grow back or sucker again.
I assume you still want plenty of grass for play area or playset?
Something to think about if you put in a/c you will need a place for it if not room on the side of house...depends on where your furnace is.
Since removing the white fence do you want a shrub border for your daugher and furkids? Slopes can be a hazard.
Somethings to think about and ask yourself in your design:
Is there any color preference?
Low or high maintenance in care?
How about a space for veggies?
Fruit trees?
Drought tolerant or natives?
Are you coastal or inland SD?
For something to hide the brown fence quickly but won't damage or climb it put in a few honeysuckle tecoma capensis. It will attract honeybees but they don't sting.
It comes in red, yellow or orange flowers. Make the bed about 5 feet wide will allow for a few annuals in front.

Pick up a Western Garden Book to browse thru and also Pat Welsh's Southern California Gardening book. Both are great!

Hi there Mrsh04. Congratulations on becoming a homeowner. That's a big project you have ahead of you. It made me smile when I read that you have finally decided the interior will never be "done." I have been working on my house since 1989.

I can't quite see what kind of a tree that is in the background, but I don't think you would kill it if you cut off the part on your side. I'm not sure I would want to do that, though- can it be pruned into a nice shape?

People will be better able to give you suggestions if you look at gobluedjm's list, and find out your Sunset zone.

Honeybees do sting- gobluedjm meant to say they are not troublesome when they are busy collecting nectar (Gobluedjm- I hope you don't mind that I just spoke for you).

My main suggestion is BIG BORDERS. I always make them too skinny and the shrubs get too big and eat the flowers and I am constantly pruning. Had I planned the size of the beds around the background shrubs' eventual size, I could get out and about occasionally instead of spending my weekends with the Hedgehog.

Good luck with your project- it will be fun- especially compared to plumbing.

Renee

Thank you for your responses. We are in zone 10 (at least according to garden web). We are not quite coastal and not quite inland in SD. Pretty much in the middle. It gets pretty warm here in the summer (downright hot at times). But for the most part we do catch an awesome breeze that blows us around pretty good.

gobluedjm: Funny you mentiona swing set. We just tore a faling apart wooden one out from that exact space. Thinking we are going to put up another one, connected to the tree house on the other side of the yard (to come later). Love the idea of honeysuckle. Good idea. I hate looking at that fence. Yes, we do want plenty of grass. The kids love having it to run and play in the sprinkler with their little sister(not only do I have a toddler, but I also have teens).

When we pull that white fence out, we have to put in a retaining wall to extend the usable yard. We are planning on having a rock wall extend up off of that.

Really not looking to put edibles in the upper yard. The slope is to be tiered and used for veggies and shorter fruit trees.

We have a pretty expansive view facing south and hubby doesnt want to block it off. So I have to be careful of what to plant (heighth wise).

Really really need some shade though. If and when we decide to go with an a/c, it will most definitly fit on the side of the house.

LOVE lots of color. Not one in particular. I like vibrants. So cheery to me.

Hosenemises: I dont think that bushy tree thing is shapable. It really is way out of control and takes up so much space on that slope. There are probably about 50-75 off shoots. Plus hubbs thinks (and I kind of have to agree) if we take that out, it will give that area a little more of an open look. That thing is so dense and no light gets through there.

Thanks again!
Amanda

The soil looks like the builder may have buried all the left over masonry and concrete scraps into the backyard. It is cheaper than hauling it away. Before I would plant anything there I think it might be a good idea to dig around and see what treasures you might find. Al;

You are right Renee, I should have said they will sting if you make them mad. I've had no problems yet and have at least a dozen on plants when deadheading.

A rock wall can be colorful unless you mean a block wall.
For a tree you might look in crape myrtles and one that tolerates mildew from fog. You won't have to worry about kids climbing it...I don't think. Their bark is pretty in winter and you'll get sun thru it.

I'm a big believer in starting with the big picture first and leaving the specific plant details for the last step.

Do a design on paper.

Ask yourself and your housemates what you really want and need in a landscape. Not just "what plants".
What "rooms" to you need to take care of the activities you'd like to plan?
How are you going to separate and define these rooms?
Where are the main traffic patterns or where should they be?
gobluedjm had some great questions.
Do you have at least a general "style" in mind (formal, informal, naturalistic)? Do you have a specific style in mind? (Tuscan, English Cottage, American Woodland, "Mediterranean")
What "elements" do you need in the landscape (benches, decks, water features, etc.)
What shapes do you like? Circles, angles, rectangles/squares?
After the hardscape (paths, decks, etc.), what is really left for the plants?
Make sure you:
"Connect" the landscape to the house. In lines, scale, style.
Avoid the "periphery syndrome" -- don't make skinny borders along the back and side fences and skinny borders around the house. Design in "rooms".
Design the front landscape, too. It's yours; it does not belong to the people who pass your house on the street.
Think hard about how much water and care a lawn needs if you're thinking about putting one in.
Keep maintenance in mind when you design.
Make the landscape practical first. Form follows function.
Keep the design on the simple side and don't have too many elements, hardscapes nor plant varieties.
Do color schemes.
Add vertical diversity.
Define the criteria of your landscape environment and choose plants that fit your site. Don't rely on others' "favorites".
Create a style that runs throughout your landscape.

And heed calistogaÂs (alÂs) advice.

Joe

I bought the Sunset book "Trees and Shrubs" and have used it a lot in the 10+ years I've had it. It offers a guide to choosing trees based on your needs, including categories like "Fast-growing Trees", "Good shrubs for screens", and most importantly, the "Good Trees with Bad Habits" section, which tells you what trees to stay away from because they make a mess, have very invasive root systems, things like that. I've also walked our neighborhood to see what trees people have planted that I like--it's the best way to find out what will grow well in your area.

So I have done a little research on the web to start figuring out how I want our backyard to look. I don't really think I want a particular "style". I do want to be able to entertain in a relaxed manner (think family backyard bbq - nothing formal). I do want a place for us to go outside to cool off during the summer when the house becomes to unbearably hot. Someplace the kids can go play or hang out with their friends, without having to worry if a errand ball or frisbee lands in a "prized" garden.

So this is what I came up with. I used the planner on Better Homes and Gardens website. I have two pics of the plan. One with the shade tree and one without. The one without is so that you can see the stone work under it.

The patio and line of green hedging is right up and connected to the house. Just didnt think it was necc to include our house in the plan. I know its there. lol

Under the patio there will be a comfy seating area as well as our current surround sound system. (Hubbs likes this because it means he can get a new one for the living room. lol)

And I forgot to put it in, but the area beside the deck and house (where the hedges on the right side are, will be our bbqing area. We have a moveable (on wheels) gas grill that will go over there at first. Eventually it will transformed and a permanent built in with brick gas grill.

Under the deck will be lattice doors that lock. They will have shelves that will hold pool chems and pool toys & towels. Also at the top of the stairs to the deck will be a locked gate. I do have the youngest (my almost 3 yr old with Ds) to consider. I am thinking the deck is going to be 4-5 ft tall.

Havent decided on the particulars of what plants and trees yet, but the plan gives me a good starting point.

Oh and last but not least - the tree in the upper left corner is already there. It is a gorgeous pepper tree that has a tree house built into it and the ground. Planning on keeping that. Still very sound and "fix-up-able".

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Before committing to the shade tree think about it's litter into the pool.
Think about an outdoor showerhead as it might be nice and useful.
Watch on HGTV Yard Crashers or any other DIY shows, its a bit extreme for what you want but you might just get ideas.

I like it with the shade tree. I also really like the shrubs on the sides of your patio- that will make it feel very green and enclosed. Is your patio big enough for everyone? You could extend it past the patio roof on one side using pavers or rocks, so that the rain goes through the pavers or rocks instead of back into your covered area.

Wood decks are very expensive and hard to maintain. You would also need railings around it so that no one backed off the deck. Take a look at the posts on the Home side of this site to get the scoop- I tore mine up after reading about the nightmares people had maintaining them. Especially with water...

Consider instead putting the wood stairs up the side of the pool, and just facing or enclosing the front of the pool with a short wood fence or some shrubs so that you can't see the sides from the patio.

I would also change the shape of your beds just a bit. Instead of two semi-circles, consider one bed with a sort of a kidney-shaped curve at the front. For the beds up against your house, think about a scooped out triangle instead of the "L" shapes you have- connecting the shrubs in yellow with the ones up against the house with some lower plants in between them.

Consider how big shrubs get as well. I have a heck of a time finding good shrubs that I really like that are under 6 feet wide, unless they are really lacy and kept trimmed. I don't have a lot of fun when I am trimming back my shrubs. I would much rather be in your pool :)
I would give eight feet between the pool and the fence for shrubs.

I like your plan because it can be expanded as time and funds become available.

Thank you all so much for your thoughts. They have been very helpful. Like I said before, just a beginner and you all have given me some things to think about and figure out.

I really have my heart set on having the shade tree. Had to fight with the hubbs over that. He was concerned it would ruin the view. In reality, it probably will for a period of a few years, until it gets tall enough. The shade on the other hand is more important to me than any old view. Comfort before beauty I always say. lol

hosenemises: You certainly have given me something to think about as far as the deck. I guess I just have this over the top vision of being able to lounge on it by the pool under the shade of our neighbors tree with a tall glass of ice tea and a good book. lol Going to have to think long and hard about that one.

The flowers beds shape is not set in stone. It was more put there to show that is where I want them. I am almost considering making them raised beds. Maybe in brick or rock (not cement). I have seen some in the "nicer" part of my neighborhood, and they are pretty nice looking.

As for the shrubs along side the house, I was tenatively thinking of putting in verigated pittosporum. Makes a great filler greenery in vased fresh cut flowers (which I plan on having growing in the yard). I use to work for a florist and the designer used it all the time. And from what I have seen, they are very controllable. As far as trimming them, I will leave that to hubbs to do when he does the monster of a hedge that is out front.

Oh and I really like the idea of doing a scooped out triangles instead of right angles.

One other thing to assist you in design and planning a project is go to Lowes or a bookstore and look at magazines. Lowes has a ton of them covering everything inside and outside on fixing, repair, design etc. They also have DIY books.

gobluedjm:
We have a DIY book from Lowe's. We LOVE it! It's their "Complete Landscaping" book. Everything we want to do with the backyard is in there showing us "how-to".
Only thing I am a bit bummed about with it is it has pics of only very "designed" landscapes. We are wanting our backyard to be less designed and more functional and relaxed.

I think its more difficult to envision less design than envision more. You need just a basic book or a starter book. There must be magazine or books for functional and not formal gardens.
Talk to neighbors, friends, family etc about their decks...what would they do different if they could change their own. That should help you in addition to what Renee said.
Take the time now to research, plan etc and get it right the first time then you can relax for years.

Beware the variegated pittosporum- they grow very large. My sister-in-law has hers trimmed into trees you can walk under. You may want to plant a few green shrubs in there too- the variegated shrubs don't give you much of a green "feel." I also recommend the Golden Breath of Heaven shrub for flower arrangements- the chartreuse color is very pretty.
Renee