garden wishlist

I've been suffering through a mild but annoying sniffle this week, so there hasn't been much doing to report -- on my part at least. Toby, on the other hand, took the week off work to start constructing an awesome, new retaining wall out back. This wall -- while it may not sound sexy -- is very exciting to me. I dashed home as fast as I could at the end of each work day to check out the progress. What's so great about a wall that holds dirt back? First, we live on a hill, so keeping the earth where you want it is key. Also, this central-axis wall will be the "bones" of the backyard, the beginning of defining the space into zones and uses. Consequently (and since I don't feel like doing much else), I've been daydreaming about the future of the garden.

My wish list for our approximately 1100 sq ft plot, as it stands today:

• lots of seating for entertaining or just resting in the shade
• more shade for hot days (it cooks back there some days)
• attractive but productive vegetable patch and herb garden
• fruit trees: lemon, lime and apples
• grassy playspace for Jacky (anyone know of a water-wise grass?)
• composting area
• potting bench or area
• decorative borders: low-water perennials and succulents galore
• even more succulents!
• comfy lounge chairs
• vertical garden on back wall of house (smaller scale, but similar in spirit to Flora's)
• fragrance, especially lavender
• other bee-friendly plants
• modern, decorative lath screens (to hide old walls and neighbor's yard)
• grass or creeping thyme growing between pavers
• natural, textural aesthetic
• croquet! (it's the new bocce)

What's not (any longer) on the list:

• outdoor pizza oven. Boo! (I know, I know -- major mistake. I did some research and we simply don't have the space to do it properly. And, the mister (who wasn't a fan of the idea anyway -- even though he's the pizza-making guru) reminded me the other night that we could *just* build one up in Montana (at the family property) instead. Brilliant, I said! Yes, let's do that instead! .....Of course, the chances of this ever happening are slim... well played, Toby. Well played.)

Image: Martha Stewart's mind-blowing vegetable "garden" (more like farm), from marthastewart.com