Never mow again.

Boy, those three words just painted the most wondrous image for me.

Imagine, a beautiful plant-filled ‘yard’ with meandering, shrub and flower-lined stone paths that lead from one welcome view to the next. If you saw the pictures of my backyard you would know I desperately need something to liven it up. It is just so bland and grass-filled right now. The edges are beginning to take shape, but the middle is where the real fun will be.

I have seen so many of everyone else’s yards in your blogs that are filled with plants and paths and I get to longing for my space to look as colorful as those.

I was reading the latest issue of Garden Gate magazine just today and found an article about this very topic. This particular article displays a yard in Colorado, same zone as mine, 5, but on the other side of the Rockies, and it looks like it would be idea for my place. Of course, being on this side of the mountains we tend to get a little drier so that would require a slight adjustment to my available plant options.

In trying to determine just where the paths should be laid out I am using my ‘daily’ trek to the bird feeders as a guide and they should be ‘indirect’ paths, of course.

And of course the path should continue on to the back shed, and then to the raspberry patch, and to the fruit trees lined up on the west side of the yard. and the raised vegetable beds at the very back.

I don’t think there’s a shortage of ideas as to why I ‘need’ a stone path. And then, there is the biggest reason of all. I don’t like to mow my lawn! And I would like the yard to be more…I don’t know, 3 dimensional! Not just north to south and east to west, I want it to go up too.

I envision lots of evergreen shrubs (in several shapes, sizes and shades of green), yarrow, daylilies, dianthus, salvia, lavender, roses, ornamental grasses. Take a breath. My mind is just swimming with possibilities. I’m mapping it out as I’m writing this trying to get as much down as I can.

My back yard covers just under 1,000 square feet so this is not going to happen by next year. I’ll have to figure out how to break it down into stages so it can slowly (and more affordably) get to where I want it.

I love planning and designing. This yard is the first where I have actually been able to put my plans into action. Because of my job, the one I retired from, I could never plan on staying in one place long enough to realize my designs. Finally, I’m going to get to see if those plans will actually come to fruition. So far my wife, family and neighbors like what they see. But it’s so small and new still. I am so exited.

Sometimes I think they all just tolerate my enthusiasm. But, I guess I do believe they like the changes so far.

Let’s see, this is going to require adjusting my irrigation plans. And if I can work out having some fragrant plants near the back deck…oh! See ya.