I have been a little out of touch lately because we are up to our ears in a backyard landscaping project. From last season to this season we had eight different landscapers out to provide a quote so that we wouldn’t have to do the whole job ourselves. Let me tell you… a) getting a landscaper to show up to the appointment and b) getting a quote from the landscapers that do show up to the consultation appointment proved to be a difficult task. Out of eight companies we received two quotes. The first landscaping company took nearly two months to get the quote which meant they were immediately out of the running. We had the second company quote only the patio area. They were impressive and a great company but we simply decided we wanted a paver patio instead of stamped and stained concrete. So alas… we are doing this project ourselves.

We have no intention of completely finishing the backyard this year but initially the plan included the bigger items:

• Paver Patio
• Plant a handful of trees so they have time to mature
• Put in a dry riverbed

What it has turned into:

• Paver Patio + Gas Fire Pit + Small Retaining Wall (around portion of the patio)
• All of the trees will be planted including: Aspens, an Evergreen, a shade tree (probably an Ash or a Maple), and a Royalty Crabapple
• Dry Riverbed + Rock Bubbler (cancel the Rock Bubbler and install a Pond + Waterfall instead)
• Decorative Rocks near the trees and around the patio

Thank goodness one of us is a mechanical engineer that grew up on a farm. He knows how to do things. It’s a amazing the amount of work that is behind the scenes. French drains, re-routing sprinkler system zones, managing roof gutters to connect to french drains, building support for the pond liner, digging a trench for the gas line, and so on and so on.

During all of this most of my responsibility has included loading endless wheel barrels of dirt into a trailer to be dumped on a friends property. Even dirt can be re-used! Our friends need it to manage erosion on their five acres near our home. I’ve moved rock and pulled some sod but that proved to be more difficult than I originally thought so I focused on taking photos and listing Craigslist items (source for funding assistance for this project).

The following pictures do not do justice to the amount of work that has already been completed. We work for about 12 hours each weekend day and then as much as possible during the week. Mother Nature finally decided to rain (and snow) this month. Winter in May, who knew! As a result our work is slow going…. but going. I say all of this this as it is poring rain and hailing. I hope this hail doesn’t rip up our new trees and the pots I just planted with annuals. Crap, I just ran outside and moved the small pots but the open space is now white. It looks like it just snowed however it is hail! Oh this weather!

Back to what I was originally talking about… sharing photos in a sort of progression. We started with sod, a rock border, and a pea gravel sitting area that was overgrown and housed a dirt pile from last year’s landscaping in the front of the house.

Let the digging begin. This sod pile is the first of an unknown but high number of dirt and sod piles to be removed.

We planted a Royalty Crabapple. It stays a nice burgundy color which gives contrast against the house and in the spring it flowers red. This tree is much bigger than the photo reflects. It’s about 10 feet tall already and was crazy heavy but with the help of the wheel barrel we put it in place.

Note the large dirt pile… again.

After sprinkler systems and french drains and what not we finally loaded up a zillion rocks and put them in place for the dry riverbed. The waterfall and pond will be near the fence. This has been reshaped and morphed a few times in this process but so far it’s looking pretty good.

Our dog Pika looks perplexed. Trust me, there is a vision to this madness of rocks and dirt. Eventually we will get there. Oh, and another new dirt and sod pile is in the background. I wish these photos gave a better perspective of the space. Hopefully I will be able to get some better shots when one of the many projects is complete.

When all is said and done for the work to be completed this season we will have spent 25% of the budget quoted by the only landscaping company that gave us a price for a paver patio, six trees, three bushes, and gorilla mulch. The best part is, we are paying for this project with funds we make by selling the excess of things we needed to purge from closets and the garage (bicycles, lamps, extra camping equipment, you name it and we have probably sold it). Craigslist, as much of a pain as it can be, has been a success so far… we are paying for the project and de-cluttering at the same time!

Please forgive me for the sporadic posts this month and most likely until this project is complete. In between the landscaping I am sorting closets, organizing home offices, and purging the things that have been hoarded over the years. It isn’t a glamorous job and pictures would be just plain boring to share on my blog so I will spare you. However, as we accomplish each landscaping project I promise to share. Additionally, if anything else interesting strikes me I will try to share that with you as well. Until then… more digging, lifting and placing rocks, and moving dirt shall be done!

P.S. Next year we’ll put in the plantings including grasses, flowering perennials, and such. I may sneak in a few here and there this year but our intention is to get the big stuff done so that we can enjoy at least some of the summer.