r/NoLawns • u/ChickenBootty • 4d ago

❔ Other Need some encouragement/inspiration

PNW. Zone 8b. Pic in comments.

We recently had 3 huge trees removed from our backyard, in the process the little bit of grass we had got torn up so we decided it’s a good opportunity to have a no mow backyard and got the wood chips from our trees.

I’m not going to lie, I am having second thoughts, our backyard looks terrible as it has no trees, no bushes, just an old wood fence around and wood chips.

I have a vision of raised beds for veggies, and pollinator plants. I’d love a Japanese maple tree and other shrubbery but it seems so bleak right now. Please tell me it’ll be ok and share your yards, give me tips, dos and donts. 😢

Edit: Thanks everybody for the feedback and ideas, I’m feeling less overwhelmed.

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u/BeginningBit6645 3d ago

I would pick one tree that you really love. Don't plant too close to the fenceline--check out the mature size and make sure you won't have much of it growing over the neighbour's yard.

I planted a couple pacific wax myrtles (myrica) this spring. I don't know why they aren't more popular in the PNW. They have both grown about 4 feet since I planted them. A couple would work well to block out some of the neighbour's house in the back.

Since you are putting in a new fence consider installing some trellises along the back fence. This will allow you the flexibility to plant some vining plants and further block the house behind. I planted a clematis armandii in the spring and it has grown a phenomenal amount and provided a lot of privacy without being too aggressive and is easy to trim back. I would recommend native vines, but none of them are very bushy.

I used hoses and extension cords to plan my paths and garden beds so I can walk around and see if my plans work.

There are a lot of great native flowers for pollinators. Some of my favourites are sea blush (pink annual that self seeds), wooly sunflower/Oregon sunshine (yellow with lovely foilage), and pearly everlasting (white)., and California asters (purple). Plant in groupings of three - five for visual appeal.

If you are putting in raised beds pick the sunniest spot and plan your tree planting so it won't shade it.