that's a very small area to keep grass. I'd amend, mulch and re-sod that spot. It will look nice when kept up.

put in some borders around the beds to frame that area and keep out the grass.

You could do some succulents against that other wall. they don't need a lot of water and like the full sun. Snake plants, aeoniums, tall, thin cacti, will be fine there. So will rose bushes, but they need more water.

another option is artificial turf. Or, plant a dwarf citrus tree in the middle. (I would sill have someone come in and level that area, mulch and fill in the low spots.

I'm also in so cal. those bougainvillea plants should take hold and do well. please keep up on the pruning because they can quickly take over that entire wall.

you might try a few Plumerias along the stucco portion of the wall. You could also put them in nice pots. I have about 5 of them around my yard.

I planted those cypress trees 30 years ago when I first moved in. the things are at least 3 stories high now. they will eventually fill in a bit in between each other. do not plant anything in between those trees.

take a look on here at SoCal backyard gardens to get some ideas.

Italian Cypress mature to about 10-15' wide and 30-60' tall. Yours are right up against that wall. Move them out to the center of that area, plant them on 15' centers, mulch around them. Get rid of the bougies along the block wall, but leave the bougainvillea against the wrought-iron fence and as it grows, train it to cover the fencing. Bougies flower on new growth only, so keeping old growth is unnecessary except for structure. A mass of old bougainvillea growth is simply habitat for rats. Let the bougainvillea push out new growth, flower and look spectacular, and then clip it back to within a foot or two of the fence. Repeat. Some small low-water plants as edging along the walkway, for example low succulents like Aloe brevifolia, Aloe 'Blue Elf' (Aloe flowers attract hummingbirds) or Graptoveria 'Fred Ives', or tough heat loving plants like Eremophila (also attracts hummingbirds) or Calylophus 'Southern Belle'. Done.

Low water, low maintenance, foliage and flower color, space filled, no lawn. Mulch regularly to hold in what soil moisture there is, and control weeds.

If you live in a wildfire area, Italian Cypress are not considered a good idea. I love them myself and have five of them, but they are considered one of the more flammable trees you can plant. Washingtonia palms, pines, and Eucalyptus are much worse, but Cypress are also a danger.

I know nothing about SoCal gardening, but it's always a bad idea to plant close to a wall. There is a rain shadow from any wall, so the roots are only getting water from the side - not a natural situation for them. Also the walls get warm and again that's not good for the roots. Since you only put them in a year ago, you should be fine to move them.

Hi Beth,

Thanks for the reply.

I do not want grass. Don't want to have a lawn. Don't like it at all.

The part I want to work on is only a fourth of the length of the side yard.

I will use borders on the other end of the yard, next year.

For now, I just need to come up with a nice, low water/, maintenance and inexpensive design for that area by the fence and patio.

Ahhh...Roger's Gardens...been there many many times over the years. You should go...period. ;-)

chloe,,right? of course, you'll need to rob a bank before you go, but it's beautiful anyway!

Maybe rob a few banks!!! ;-)

Yeah but artificial turf. Easy peasy with planters on the perimeter with mulch or rocks.

A bed of decomposed granite with some art or pot in the middle would require little maintenance. It could be surrounded with mulch. Plants can be added later, next year or after if budget is low.

The main inconvenience of this plan is that it requires excavation to remove about three inches of soil for the mulch and stones areas.

Since you dislike grass I am wondering what you will do to the area attached to the orange square. It would be best if the two areas were not in conflict.

As to the Boug's, it is said of some plants that after planting they sleep, creep and then leap. It explains why some plants don't do much in their first year. I advise patience.

I also like the idea of artificial turf but since you do not like lawn it seems you would not want something that resembles lawn.

In the future place plants at least eighteen inches from the wall. Once they grow you will not notice the space in back.

some ideas

Succulents would be nice and are low maintenance. They aren't fussy about soil as long as there is good drainage. Check out the link below for lots of photos and plant information. The illustration above is pretty, but I wouldn't put a tree that close to the driveway.

Bewaterwise

That's as large as that dwarf shrub/tree gets.

DigDoug,,,lovely as usual!! I wish you lived near me ;)

Thank you Beth....just send me some pics of areas that need help.

Hi Maggie,

I never thought of putting a little pond in that area. It would probably look nice. Don't think I have the budget for it. Thanks, anyway. :)

Hi Doug,

You gave my beloved Italian Cypresses to my neighbor! :D

We thought of putting light color gravel in there but I see that the earth tone gravel would look nice, maybe even better.

Where you put the dwarf three I have a sweet pea shrub which I hope will triple its size and help disguise that odd area of the walkway.

The rest of that narrow side yard (about 70 feet in length) has a different type of sod which I also want out.

A 7' fig tree, which I planted last October, is behind this shot.

We have been thinking: Kill all the grass and

1. Cover the whole thing with gravel and do something with cacti.

or

2. Sow micro-clover and do nothing else.

or

3. Do a checker pattern of micro-clover + 18" x 18" concrete squares.

If we go for the clover alone or with the concrete squares then doing a cacti theme near the fences would probably look funny... But I do love succulents and would really like to plant some.

What do you think?

I'll work on something for you tomorrow.

some ideas

I'm in SoCal too. Not sure but thinking micro clover will dry out with too much sun and not enough water. Our ornamental strawberry plant ground cover was like corn flakes even with regular watering. You need to find out what kind of soil you have. A lot of areas have basically sand or DG fill which do not retain water. Also the cypresses get huge and smell bad. And be careful because along a wall as above, with no shade, some vines will burn.

If you want low maintenance, thick mulch and a few low hassle dwarf fruit trees; e.g. parfianka pom, violette de Bordeaux fig, and maybe a ultra dwarf weeping santa rosa plum. Avoid citrus as it is high maintenance with all the newly imported critters and diseases.

Good luck and let us know what you decide to do!

Thanks a lot, Doug, those are really nice. I like the third one a lot. :)

Suzyq53, I have hard as rock clay but around the plants I water frequently it does soften up nicely. I could dig in those spots with almost no effort.

Molewacker, thanks for the suggestion. I had never seen pomegranate trees, they are very nice. And that plum tree, what a gorgeous thing. :)

I guess it will take some time for me to find the right plants/design for that yard but I will post pix when it's done.

First, know what's buried beneath -- utility lines and pipes -- before considering digging.

In lieu of digging up your flower bed (or at least rather than digging deep), consider creating a raised flower bed and add some good quality potting soil and top soil mix. Have the top of the raised flower bed at a height that is just below that metal fence.

https://www.pinterest.com/explore/raised-flower-beds/?lp=true

Also consider adding either a plain concrete bird bath, choosing one that is wider at the top edge rather than a straight side design ,

http://shenandoahcastings.com/wp-content/uploads/concrete_bird_bath_2.jpg

and/or a shepherds hook (the sturdier the better)

https://www.lowes.com/pl/Garden-stakes-shepherds-hooks-Garden-decor-Outdoors/4294612849

https://www.duncraft.com/Quad-Birdfeeder-Hanger

and/or a post with a solar light and/or brackets for adding hanging flower baskets to your new garden.

For your bracket, choose a strong heavy weight bracket (a longer one will enable you to hang larger baskets)

http://www.amagabeli.com/shop.php?c=GoodsPc&a=goods_lists&cate_id=634

or choose a triangle shaped one

http://www.amagabeli.com/shop.php?c=GoodsPc&a=goods_lists&cate_id=634

for supporting more weight and has a good full curl (rather than just a bend or dip in the end) so that your hanging baskets and/or bird houses and/or bird feeders and/or wind chimes and/or lantern are less likely to fall off or get knocked off.

The utilities will come out and mark your lines, pipes, etc before any digging occurs for safety reasons. This isn’t just good practice, in most locals it is the LAW. Only a fool would put a spade into the ground not knowing where the live wires and gas pipes are located.

suezbell, thanks a lot for all the suggestions. :)