This yard was a hot, dusty weed-fest completely exposed to neighbors after the owners had built their new home & already laid down concrete pathways and a deck. We strove to create privacy with a combination of fast-growing trees & shrubs as well as slower-growing long-living trees. A Tipuana Tipu tree will eventually help provide shade for the artificial grass putting green, bench & deck and vines over an arbor-covered swing will shade the spectators. A pond-less fountain helps “cool” off the owners with its sight & sound as well as the preponderance of cool purple & blue flowers & burgundy leaves. The drought drove the decision to direct rainwater from the downspouts to perforated pipes in the landscape & a swale surrounding a 600 sf berm, providing a passive irrigation system during the rainy season. Most of the yard was filled with drought tolerant plants that attract beneficial insects & birds but a small area was hydro-zoned to satisfy the owner’s love of aromatic roses, camellias, hydrangeas, maples & fruit trees & bushes. Thought was put into plant placement that could eventually hide the bright concrete & red fence that the owners wished to keep as is. Within 9 months of installation, the owners have eaten their own avocados, blueberries, figs, raspberries, oranges, lemons, herbs, passion fruits, persimmons, pluots, & apricots & planted a vegetable garden in their raised planters.