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It didn't always
look like this... |
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Pictured above is our... well, our 'domain', as it were. It's
undergone somewhat of a transformation since we moved back here in the
middle of 1993. At the time what we had was just a flag lot (this
means wa-a-ay back on a little driveway behind other houses--perfect, as it
turns out, for quiet and privacy, which we value highly. (Also
great for pretending we're somewhere out in the country when the town
around us is mushrooming at breakneck pace, paving over open land and
strawberry fields with tracts and shopping centers.) Basically, we
had a small old cottage on a dry, exposed plot of land. With a
little work, a little water and some very fast-growing trees and vines,
our dry, tan plot has become a secluded, shady sanctuary. You can
view the transformation below:
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 Pretty
parched-looking, isn't it? Open and glaringly sunny. I really
wanted a cozier look. |
So I figured at least I could color it up with a few
flowers and a little water, which I proceeded to do. By the way,
that's our webmaster over there in his much younger incarnation. |
 A catalog
inspired me to order some quick-growing poplars and willows, the closest
thing you can get to instant gratification in a tree. This was in the
summer. Note the 'twig with leaves' at center. |
 The poplar
grew even faster than they said it would. That's it in the
middle--18 feet in one year. And that little vine has completed its
conquest of the rail fence and has crept across toward the property
line fence. |
 Six years
later our formerly dry, exposed side yard has been replaced with this little oasis.
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Behind the house we did the same thing--planted trees and a few other things. I made the little fountain at left from a Mexican clay pot I got at a nursery. |
Same view as at left, but a few years later, Nicer, isn't it? The willow over the fountain shades the whole kitchen area in summer now. And the trees at the corner, a pine and two little redwoods, have grown incredibly. |
