Agree with you that designing a landscape plan can be overwhelming - especially one the size of yours! You have a blank slate to start with & what looks like new build. To get useable suggestions you’ll need to provide more info about your location. Climate is everything for a landscape plan. Even with that info though I think the top suggestion you’ll receive is this - Hire a landscape designer! That will be $$$ well spent & you will absolutely regret it if you don’t take that first step. Seek recommendations from local nurseries - not big box nurseries but a real nursery. Talk to others with properties the size of yours & learn who they used - many surely sought Pro expertise. A good designer will create a plan that you can install over time but that includes your vision for future adds - like that pool. If you want that, it’s wise to plot its location & landscape accordingly so you’re not ripping things out later to install. A real $$ waster. With a plan you can install over time & DIY as much as you’re able to conrol costs. The hardscaping should be installed first & most often needs professional installation.

@KW PNW Z8 you're right 😫 we should probably hire someone. We're just very hesitant due to the cost and how much we love the diy approach. We are (obviously) in a rural area so options are limited for local landscape designers as well. Maybe I'll do some research for online services. AI has not helped much.

We are in zone 6. Great drainage on the lot, harsh winters though.

I also love your tip on talking to local nurseries for recommendations. Thank you!

Absolutely what you should do. Gather ideas from several designers before choosing. Lovely place. Good luck!

Yes this is unfortunately outside of the realm of free internet help- you don’t need tweaks you need everything. Fencing. Grading. Shade trees. Shrubs. Turf. Lighting. Hardscape. Decks. Get a solid plan, get the shade trees planted asap, the rest can happen over time.

@Webs6 - Okay, you’ve given us a little hint about location = zone 6 & harsh winters. But, that’s not enough - tell us nearest large city. The reason that’s important is my zone 8 in the PNW is very different than the zone 8 in deep south! About that cost of hiring someone. Here’s another way to look at it - take it one step at a time. You’ve built a beautiful home & I think you spent considerable $$. You must’ve had plans drawn by a qualified architect even if your home build involved lots of sweat equity. Your landscape should be done the same way. You really don’t want a piecemeal approach - a plan for the entire landscape is so imporant. First thing is creating the plan. Talking with designer(s) will help you formulate & firm up your vision for it. In the overall scheme of things it really will be chump change -if you’ll pardon the expression - compared to what you’ve already put into your home. The next step is hardscape which might not need to be 100% installed right away - like the pool. Maybe it comes in a few years but at least you’ll know where it will be & plant accordingly. If you’re able to operate larger equipment you can rent it & DIY - maybe. Next is the planting of largest elements - the trees. They’ll also likely be the most $$ depending on size. There will be many pieces of the landscape you can DIY & you can plant in stages too. So, the $$ spent can be done in stages that will be much longer than it took to build your house. Something else too - I found that when I visited nurseries with either my plan or my plant list in hand & told them I was doing DIY for planting of a new build lot they were happy to give me a discount for all plants I bought from them. It’s worth asking. And, for the record, my slightly rural lot is tiny compared to your massive landscape!

Also, anyone who is going to make suggestions needs to know how you envision using your backyard-entertaining, places for kids to play, a gardener's dream, combination of those or others? I agree that speaking to a local nursery and/or designer is a good idea.

I would and have done exactly what Hallett sugests-get the trees planted first. It is a good idea to plant trees native to your area.

"We're just very hesitant due to the cost and how much we love the diy approach."

Neither of these should be considered as limiting factors. The actual design process is probably the least expensive aspect of developing a landscape. The preparation of a master landscape plan by a professional designer is an investment of only a few hundred dollars or so (depending on property size). It is the implementation of that design - the labor and materials - where the higher costs come to play. Many designers will prepare a design-only plan that you can implement yourself as your time, skills and budget permits.

Do give KW's comments regarding hardscape installation serious consideration. If you have not had experience with grading, drainage or laying masonry, then hiring a professional is very much advised. It is too costly a process to bungle :-)

And, once you have the plan, you can DIY as much of the implementation as you have the knowledge and skills for.

You need a landscape designer/architect who can make that yard FABULOUS. You can DIY a lot of it yourself (even over time), using whatever budget you have for the bigger/more complicated parts of the plan.

Mmmmmk. You're all loud and clear - Landscape designer.

Since you are living INSIDE the house, you could star a wishlist/ noodling list on which rooms you spend time in , times of day/seasons, as to what might be fun to see blooming, or leaves changing; where strong sunlight is a problem, or not (sure, a job for solar shades or other coverings, but also potentially for siting larger shade trees); where are your current egress/ access to the yard, pathway from kitchen to potential grilling area, and so on. Activities you hope to do. Pets?

I was able to find a landscape designer who agreed to do a design-only plan with the understanding that we would DIY the work in stages. I paid $900 for a quarter acre property, front and back yards, about four years ago. He was so helpful with placement of sheds, patios, hot tub, reducing irrigated turf grass areas, and shaping planting beds. It was a worthwhile investment. If you truly cannot find anyone local to do this for you, check out Bobby K Designs out of St. Louis, MO, as I believe he does remote work.

For those interested, here is the best AI mockup I was able to produce. The thing I like most about it is way the land is lowered a bit so the view from inside isn't obstructed. I think the prompt I gave was sitting area, shade structure, firepit, organic modern.

Ai is getting better and it is certainly a fun starting point but it’s shortcomings are funny, like the left hand most dining chair just out in the bushes.

Hallett - I hadn’t noted that but I see it! While admiring the scape I pondered the lack of shade & wondered about the orientation - if this is a south or west facing back yard, there won’t be much sitting outside in blazing sun. A small detail but the bird feeder caught my attention too. Without trees there won’t be many birds which is a good thing because the feeder is too close to the windows & that reflection will cause many bird casualties flying off the feeder. Other than that, the mock up looks nice. @Webs6 , addding trees for shade or just definition won’t obstruct the views from inside. The trick is to choose the right trees & place them in the right spot. It’s the gardeners mantra - “right plant, right place”.

Yes. The bird feeder is coming right out of the table 😆 The house faces west (slightly northwest) so before noon the only "shade" we get is from the house. Then we bake until the sun sets. We planted two tulip trees a bit out from these pics kind of on the periphery but they're twigs. We will need a canopy, awning or cantilever umbrellas of some sort. But again, it's hard to do those things without blocking pretty views.

@Webs6 Yes there might be some compromises but those views are something a good designer should help you preserve! The pieces that provide shade & shelter so you can actually use your yard to live in can be strategically placed. All the points that @marmiegard_z7b noted are what you’d need to record as priorities before starting that conversation with a landscape designer / architect.

The AI design is just stupid. It has some stairs coming from the house where 1) the land is flat and 2) there's neither a door nor a path to the stairs. It has a tiny spot for the dining table where you can't get seated without stepping in the garden. The firepit has no connection to the other landscape elements.

This is the problem with AI ---it ignores your site. You have a large lot, it stuck a bunch of cramped little features in. It put in stairs to nowhere because that's a location where many houses have a door.

Frankly, if you drew a plan using graph paper, it would be a hell of a lot better than that. The visuals wouldn't be there, but in real life, it would be a lot better.