We bought this house in August of 2001. We didn’t do much to the yard other than plant a tree in the backyard. You can barely see the little oak tree. It was just a stick really.
In the beginning, we had photinias that were huge. We had a boxwood back there that we couldn’t seem to keep in shape. We had the same issue in the front. The photinias came down after a couple of years because they were dying.
This is several years later. Our little stick of a tree is bigger but no photinias. That boxwood was out of control. We finally removed that as well.
This was our first attempt at a redo of the yard. These cute little bushes with red flowers died in the winter. Those green bushes took over. Now, 22 years later, we’ve finally decided to do something big. With help from our friend Scott at Cross Timbers Design Group we did.
Our back yard was a blank slate. We had nothing going on back here.
Our little patio had a small table, two chairs and an umbrella that we bought right before the pandemic. We always thought our patio was small. It was because we had the smoker and the grill stored there as well.
The front yard was in pretty bad shape as well. We planted a little Sycamore tree that we got from the city of Dallas but that was it. All the shrubbery was overgrown and distressed. I didn't know what to do or who to call. Then we ran into Scott at a family party. When we found out he did landscape design, we were ecstatic.
We were focusing most of our attention and budget on the back yard since that's where we spent most of our time. Scott had a plan and he promised we were going to love it. First we wanted to get all the stuff off the patio so we added a shed to our side yard where we could put the smoker and the grill. Then they added a little gravel area where we can now store our garbage cans. That's the foundation for the shed.
Day 1: The demolition. They dug up all the grass from the back and brought in these big rocks and placed them.
Day 2: They came out to "demo" the front yard. They took down one of the Yaupon trees and dug up all the old shrubbery.
Then they planted this Shantung Maple.
After they removed all the old shrubs, it looked one hundred times better! As far as I was concerned, they could have stopped there.
In the back, they build a little wall to section off the yard. All the beds have been roped off.
Then by the patio where we we originally had that huge overgrown boxwood, they put gravel to extend the patio just a bit.
Then the shed guys came. This shed it awesome! The smoker went in there along with the grill and a few other things from our garage. They added the gravel for the trashcans.
The front flower beds have been started.
We're waiting for a few more plants to come in. I already love what's there.
In the back, we have a desert willow that will eventually (in the next year) have a lovely canopy that will shade us from the sun so we can sit out there and chill.
We have two galvanized bins where we can plant a vegetable garden.
Along the back fence we have more plants. We're still waiting for some Hydrangea plants. (Look at me knowing plant names!)
We also have this Japanese Maple which I'm excited about.
Also part of the plan was big umbrella to give us shade. This one was just perfect. It even has lights!
After a few finishing touches, we're pretty much done. View out to the lawn from the patio.
View of the patio. We have so much more room! We have real patio furniture.
Our beautiful backyard.
Another view. The statue is of the 'bird girl'. We liked it so much that we bought a replica of our own.
And now, to enjoy! Scott said we'd love it and we do!
One year later: Everything looks lovely and has grown in nicely.
Another view.
It's our own private paradise.
