Monday, August 30, 2021

The Backyard Landscape — First Phase

Hello, friends! Welcome back to my backyard! You may remember that we completely renovated/redesigned our yard, patios and deck last year. That saga was shared in Backyard Renovation Reveal Part 1, the Reveal Part 2 and Deck Update - Railing Installed.
 
Where we left the landscape portion of the project last fall was that we had installed sod between the driveway and the upper patio and five upright conifers. I had planned to install shrubs and perennials throughout the backyard in the spring. However, my plans went out the window when Greg had to have emergency surgery the first week of March. He came through splendidly and has continued to recover (yeah!!). But landscaping went to the bottom of the to-do list, along with blogging to some extent.

    
I managed to finally begin the process of planting in May (which is very late here in Georgia) at the same time that our new puppy had begun to go outside.


In terms of the "backbone" of the garden, I planted two Japanese maples, a variegated red bud, three loropetalums, one weigela and two camellias. You can read about my other puppy-safe plant selections as well as these in Puppy Challenges in the Garden.

  
As you can see, the backyard is predominantly stone and pine straw for now. As more plants are installed and grow, the pine straw will be much less prominent. The furry ones do not much like the pine straw and tend to walk along the flagstone paths, lol!


At six months and 45 pounds, Finn the Mischief Maker always finds fascinating things in the yard, most of which he either chews or eagerly brings inside to Mom and Dad. I don't mind the odd leaf or stick, but I drew the line at the toad the size of my palm!


We continue to enjoy the new pond and have added a few more low-voltage landscape lights around it as well as various ferns.


The pond plants are thriving and bring a jolt of much-needed green.

  
In several of the pictures you might spy some pink flags that mark the location of the irrigation system's water lines. We had wavered over installing the system, which we had never had before, but Greg convinced me I didn't need to be dragging hoses all over the place, particularly with the number of plants we will have out here. The flags will stay in place for Phase 2.

 
The view from the swing is both cool and relaxing. The mature trees shade most of the backyard, making colorful plant choices that are puppy-safe hard to find.
 

This end of the middle patio has only received the Japanese maple on the left so far. The one on the right is in the lower patio and has been there for about 15 years.


Various pots contain colorful annuals, some of which are doing great with all the rain we've had, some of which are feeling water-logged. These are on the deck.




It's hard to get a photo of Finn when he's still but not asleep! I'm hoping I don't find tooth marks on the copper moon, lol!


Next week I'll be joining a blog hop featuring fall tablescapes! Hope you come for a visit on September 7!


  

 
    
    
    

16 comments:

  1. Love your garden, Sandra, and Finn is handsome! Like you, we're in the post-tropical path of Ida. It's gonna be a major rain event clear up here in the mid-Atlantic. Be safe.

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    1. Thank you, Rita! We're having a bit of a break in the rain bands at the moment, which is very welcome. In for a full day of rain. Finn is so cute -- he's befuddled that it's raining out both the back door AND the front door, lol.

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  2. Hi Sandra! I'm popping over from Debra and Amber's party! Oh, your back yard looks great - the water feature and all of your plants. But the thing I like the most is your beautiful job!
    Be a sweetie,
    Shelia ;)

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    1. Aw, thanks, Shelia, what a sweet thing to say! I'm glad you stopped by and hope to see you again.

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  3. Beautiful! The pond is so nice. The puppy is adorable. :-)

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    1. Thanks, Lynda! We are so happy with the way the pond has turned out. Finn is so cute and he loves exploring every inch!

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  4. I love your pond. This is the first house that we've lived in that we haven't had a pond. Alas, there is no room! Finn is so handsome!
    v

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    1. Thank you, Tammy. This is our second pond here. The first was large but not deep enough so we lost lots of fish over the years. (And Finn says thanks too!)

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  5. I have enjoyed watching your garden/landscaping progress! Thanks for sharing at Vintage Charm!

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    1. Thanks, Cecilia! It certainly is a work in progress. As soon as cooler weather comes I'll be planting like crazy.

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  6. Your yard looks lovely Sandra, I love the pond with the waterfall, and you won't regreat having an irrigation system so you don't have to lug hoses around! Your puppy is adorable :)
    Jenna

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    1. Thanks so much, Jenna! I wish you could hear the sound of the waterfall, and the fish skipping and the frogs splashing. The sounds change throughout the day and evening. I sure won't miss hand-watering!!

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  7. I love how huge your yard is, Sandra!!! Finn looks pretty happy there and he must enjoy the pond to walk into in summer... How lovely! Happy to feature your First Phase post here at Share Your Style #317 this evening. :)

    Enjoy fall planting,
    Barb :)

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    1. Barb, thank you for featuring my post and for saying sweet things about Finn! He's delightful even though he's entering that stage of "you talking to me?", lol. Actually the wonders of perspective and photography exaggerate the size of the yard. It's only about 1/3 acre (back and front yards combined), just slightly larger than average suburban yards here. Defining areas of the yard helps make it seem bigger.

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  8. Your backyard is gorgeous to me! Mine is a mess with trees laying around that we have had to remove for hopefully a new larger fence to go in this Fall. You have made me consider a pond again though. Thanks for sharing it again. #HomeMattersParty

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    1. Ponds are a wonderful addition to a yard. I love the look and the sound of the water. This is the second pond we've had, and we've also had a series of aquariums (I prefer the ponds). Our backyard was long overdue for a redesign and there's still lots of planting to do!

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