I would encourage you to replace the deck. It will add to the resale value of the property and pea grave is a major PITA to deal with - it travels all over the place and is hard to walk on or set patio furniture.

Another vote to replace the deck - and I agree with the frost two comments reasons for doing so.

Replace deck with new deck. It's great and not broken, so don't fix it with pea gravel, replace it with what is already working for you! If the area under the trees is bugging you, cover it with nice mulch and give it a defined border. If you want an area of raised beds surrounded by gravel, that's OK too, but the gravel in that application is for paths, not for a deck. OK for walking around your herb raised beds. But crushed gravel and decomposed granite is better, not the pea stuff. To me, pea gravel is for dry areas with little organic matter accumulation and small decorative applications only. Around a small fire pit area like you have, away from the house, fine. A zen garden.

I can hear the kids playing in the pea gravel and throwing it around now. For those with the budget the best stone surface is blue-stone. Failing that there is also concrete landscape pavers. Or even brick. These aren't as noisy as gravel or crushed rock, more like an actual paved surface.

But it sounds like for you a replacement deck might be cheaper than this anyway. Of course, if it is to impress people shopping for your house it probably shouldn't end up looking cheap.

Box blight is currently spoiling box in parts of North America and will probably become a general problem. Susceptibility varies with the specific kind of box and the cultural conditions, but the time of relying on these plants to be durable architectural elements (hedges, topiary, formal specimens etc.) in the garden may be coming to a close.

voting: replace deck

Replace the deck and maybe remove some trees? If the view is good

We have lots of gravel. It looks really good, but it's not comfortable to walk on and the chairs sink into it. I like the deck better.

We have a combination of deck and gravel, so there may be a compromise here. Perhaps you can replace the deck and add a gravel section where the grass doesn't want to grow.

My backyard.

Replace the deck.

Replace the deck. Anywhere it rains, pea gravel is EVIL.

If your husband disagrees, send him here. I know where there are yards and yards of pea gravel paths to weed.

Replace deck. I second the notion that pea gravel is EVIL. Been there, done that. Bad idea. Especially with kids.

replace the deck. odds are the footings are good and maybe some of the support. you dont necessarily have to rip it all out.

consider removal of one of your trees, evergreens can be evil. my husband never let me cut any down where we used to live, when we drive past our old house now the new owners have done some judicious removals and it looks sooo much better. your house will sell better if you have areas of shade and areas of sun, not a deep gloomy backyard that cannot grow anything.

We had a very similar situation with a rotting deck and tall trees that dropped needles and created shade so it was hard to grow anything. We replaced the deck with a stone patio - so much better! - and created shade-loving perennial planting beds along the perimeter of the yard. I regret not replacing sod lawn with artificial grass but it was not in our budget.

Another thing that helped was to prune the canopies of the large trees. It was amazing how much light was let in from doing that and it helped to grow the grass.

Yes to the deck. We had a similar problem around the tree where nothing grew. We had it landscaped with a bed of gravel in a circular design, and then had hosta and boxwood planted in the gravel bed. Worked very well, and as the hosta grew from year to year, it covered more and more of the gravel bedding.

Pea gravel won't stop weeds unless you constantly rake it and pull any seedlings. Not at all labour saving compared with just sweeping off a hard surface

We purchased a house with a wood deck in the front area and a composite deck in the back. I do not like composite at all! It is hotter than heck- I made the mistake of thinking I could run out and water quickly while barefoot and fried the bottom of my feet; now I worry about my dog's paws when I let her out after the sun has been hitting the composite. The wood doesn't seem to absorb the heat as much. We'll be replacing our composite.

Pea gravel is mushy, hard to walk in and tracks into the house. We had a large area with it and I always thought decomposed granite would have been a nicer more stable cover.

That said, my vote is for a real wood deck replacement or stone:). Good luck!

Replace the deck and have a professional tree trimmer prune the pines.

Also, you could build boxes with paths in grassy area, but if you're moving fairly soon I think you're better off to add compost, reshape and reseed lawn- define the space so it doesn't just peter out under the trees. You can add dark mulch under the trees; my favorite is the lawn mix.

New deck & trim back the pine trees. No to the pea gravel.

No to the pea gravel. Since your deck is so low to the ground we recommend a topical hardwood over composite. Let us know if we can help and what you ultimately decide to do! Here are some tips for building a deck low to the ground "How to Properly Ventilate your Deck" https://www.soluslumber.com/gallery-how-to-videos/