That means landscaping new areas, brambles and hedges to manage, paths to mow, 3000sqm lawn to mow, woodland to manage and prune, lake to keep clean, property maintenance, production of compost, firewood,... it never ends. A full time job, hard at times and doesn't pay and yet I am happy and wouldn't dare complain.

I recently had a paver patio installed with a permanent wood-burning stone fire pit built directly on top. The fire pit uses proper fire-pit blocks, has no metal insert, and the bottom is currently just the regular patio pavers.

I’m in Massachusetts, so we get plenty of rain, snow and freeze/thaw cycles. I’d like to protect the patio pavers from direct heat/coals without creating drainage or moisture issues.

I’ve seen recommendations ranging from leaving the pavers exposed, to stone dust, lava rock, or 2–3" of coarse sand topped with dry-laid firebrick. I’m leaning toward sand + firebrick, but wondering if that’s overkill.

For anyone with a similar setup, especially masons/hardscape installers, what would you use for the floor and why?

Hey everyone, looking for a quick sanity check on a quote I just got for a rental property.
The beds around the house are about 378 sq ft total. Right now it's old 1-2" river rock that's full of dirt and weeds from years of poor maintenance.
A local contractor quoted me $2,000 to clean it up. Here’s his plan:
Leave the old, dirty rock right where it is and dump new river rock directly on top.
Cut a natural trench edge around the lawn.
No tear-out of the old stuff, no weed fabric.
He originally said it would take 15 tons of stone, but when I questioned him on it, he changed it to 10 tons.
A few things aren't adding up to me:
1. Isn't 10 tons of rock for under 400 sq ft completely insane? By my math, 10 tons is like 7 cubic yards, which would put the stone over 6 inches deep.
2. If he doesn't dig out the old dirt/rock mix or lay heavy fabric down, won't weeds just shoot right back up through the new rock in a couple of months?
3. Is $2,000 way too high for a job with zero actual prep or haul-away work?
Appreciate any advice from landscapers or other landlords on how you'd handle this!

Just edged my lawn with a weed eater for the first time and got absolutely obliterated by debris. Tried a few different angles, but nothing seemed to help. What am I doing wrong, or is getting pelted just part of the experience?
Eye protection was definitely necessary. But damn, my lawn looks amazing.

Hey everyone,

We recently moved into our home and are still learning about the property as we go. With all the heavy rain lately, we’ve discovered that a large section of our backyard floods pretty badly. The water can sit for a couple of days, and it’s gotten bad enough that it has started killing the grass.

I originally started researching French drains and other DIY drainage options, but while inspecting the yard I discovered this large pipe/drain opening in the lowest part of the backyard (photo attached). I also found what looks like a pipe outlet near the front of the property, so I’m wondering if there may already be an existing drainage system that is clogged, blocked, or no longer functioning properly.

Does anyone recognize what this is? Could it be a catch basin, dry well, French-drain access point, or something similar?

If it is part of an existing drainage system, what would be the best way to troubleshoot or clean it out? Is this something a reasonably handy homeowner could tackle, or would I need a plumber/drainage contractor to inspect it?

I’m definitely willing to do the work myself and learn as I go if it can save me some money. Any advice on what I should check first would be greatly appreciated!

From what I see there are few options:
Option 1: Cut pavers, put concrete footings and install pergola posts on concrete.
Option 2: Bolt directly on pavers
Option 3: put footings on top of pavers as in image below.

I live in East Bay (California) so no issues of heavy snow/rainfall as such, and I have a Aoxun 10x12 pergola.
From what I gathered, Option 1 is the most stable and recommended by most but it seems a lot of people mount directly on pavers in Bay Area.
I wanted to check if that’s okay or I should definitely go for option 1.
Option 1 installation cost is quite significant.

Option 3 image attached.

Please suggest.

I moved into this place about 2 years ago and this hedge was very misshapen and overgrown. Additionally, there were 2 trees unintentionally growing in the centre. I tried trimming the hedge back to reshape it and removed some very dead hedge from the centre, which left a large gap that the trees helped fill in.

I trimmed the hedges about 15 months ago, but they never regained their foliage. It looks okay from the house, but pretty bad from the street. Now I wonder if they will ever recover and if I should:

A) remove the trees

B) remove the hedge

C) remove everything

I am also concerned about whether these trees might act as a weed since there were several smaller red ones growing from around the base. Additionally, I included some pictures of spotty leaves and a growth coming from one of the green tree branches to see if anyone thinks they are diseased.

Any guidance shared here would be greatly appreciated! I do not have much knowledge in this regard.

Thank you!

Could someone please help identify exactly which palm tree is dead? My HOA says one dead palm needs to be removed, but I’m currently out of state and the property is rented. I’d like to confirm the correct tree before hiring someone so I’m not overcharged or told that additional trees need removal.

I have about 1,500 sqft of dead grass and compacted soil that I want removed and replaced with hardscape.

I was quoted $18,000 to add walkway pavers and pebbles , bermuda sod and some raised garden beds from stone. That also includes adding new plants and drip irrigation system. Demo and haul away.

Is that a reasonable estimate in SoCal?

Hi. We are looking at cleaning up this bed in the side yard. It was done by the previous owner. Over the last year we’ve owned it, the gravel has become dispersed, irrigation hoses are showing and the plants aren’t doing well and weeds are coming up which I have not kept up with, but could have managed. There is weed cloth starting to show. We are looking to do fresh planting and maybe a few large boulders. For the base, options we have been given are:
1. Put down larger river rock on top of the gravel (or replace the gravel with larger rock).
2. Take everything out and replace with mulch and add a dry creek at the bottom edge.
3. Put mulch on top of the gravel!
I know rock and weed cloth are not the most popular, and I’m leaning away from that, but want to get thoughts on what to do. Thanks!

I just wanted to thank this community for taking the time and thoughtfully responding to a post I made a week ago asking for help.

We added a Sandcheery tree, a sky rocket juniper and a limelight hydrangea tree.

Soon to be followed by some native shrubs to fill in some of the spaces and add visual interest during all 4 seasons.

Thanks again.

Any ideas what to do under the stairs to make it more aesthetic?

Edit: To the right is also covered by my deck and I will make a patio hang out area there. The space under the stairs doesnt necessarily need to be functional I just want it to look more intentional. Looking for creative ideas vs functional/cheap

Had promised my girlfriend a garden in her dead patio. Did most of things, helped her deciding some stuff! We are very happy with the results! Still missing a bench on the back of the path close to the fence!

Some contractors using a bobcat completely tore up my front, and backyard, and completely destroyed my water lines, and low voltage lighting. I basically have to start over, and I have been slowly cleaning up their mess, and I am now getting ready to fix what they broke.

I want to hire some people to dig trenches to put new PVC pipes going in different directions, and eventually have the PVC pipe connect to drip lines to get water to trees and bushes.

1. Since I am starting over, is there a certain type of PVC pipe I should consider getting? A specific size? etc.?

2. I plan to have the trench dug about 12 inches for the PVC water pipe, and I would like to put the low voltage line in some conduit right next to it in the same trench. Are there any issues with placing the conduit for the low voltage right next to the PVC water lines?

3. Are there any specific type of conduit I should get for the low voltage line?

4. Anything anyone else can recommend since I am starting over?

Thanks!

Have a house built in the 1980s. As you can see here when the house was regraded in the mid-2010s, the backyard essentially starts level with the brick ledge or the brick ledge is under the dirt. (Side - I’m going to get the tuck-pointing done all along here as well)

For sake of discussion, assume I can’t dig deeper but an inch or two due to grading out beyond this point needing to flow away from my house.

What approaches can I take to keep water from potentially coming in this brick ledge ? Ideally looking for something relatively economic to try before doing something too expensive. We think water came in here during a significant rain recently when water pooled around the closeup picture here.

Things suggested locally so far:
— use self adhering flashing tape along the brick ledge and then use hardy board / tar the hardy board all along the brick ledge. Then you can build up the dirt even a bit higher than it is now against the hardy board a few inches so water runs away from the house and doesn’t pool there
— (too expensive) have someone come in and remove the bottom bricks and put a new brick ledge somehow and reflash / water barrier it behind the brick bottom
— (too expensive) full on waterproofing from just under the window down to the bottom of the foundation with external drain tiles
— just try the tuck-pointing and see what happens

Thank you in advanced for any thoughts or stories / experiences you can share on what worked for you or clients!

I got a cement slab patio and didn’t realize I’d have to deal with this grade issue. What do I do with this exposed edge? It’s an awkward length. Do I build a retaining wall or try to level it out

We are wanting to plant a row of arborvitae along our neighbor’s fence line but feel totally out of our element!

Questions which we have no idea how to answer:

- do we plant the arborvitae first or make mulch beds first?

- how do we make the mulch beds? Zone 6b, super clay heavy earth. Do we just dig shallow holes for the arborvitae, then put a mound of soil/compost, then mulch? Do we lay landscape fabric to keep out weeds?

- how do we prevent the raised mulch beds from merging into our neighbor’s fence? Edging?

First time homeowners so please go easy on us.

Hello, I want to build a retaining wall but neighbor has huge trees. What type of retaining wall would yall recommend??

Is there any real consumer demand for artificial turf in the Southeast? Would love to hear from pros.

I offered it in San Diego when I had a company there, but never really considered it as a service in North Carolina until now. Thanks!

Hi. We are looking at cleaning up this bed in the side yard. It was done by the previous owner. Over the last year we’ve owned it, the gravel has become dispersed, irrigation hoses are showing and the plants aren’t doing well and weeds are coming up which I have not kept up with, but could have managed. There is weed cloth starting to show. We are looking to do fresh planting and maybe a few large boulders. For the base, options we have been given are:
1. Put down larger river rock on top of the gravel (or replace the gravel with larger rock).
2. Take everything out and replace with mulch and add a dry creek at the bottom edge.
3. Put mulch on top of the gravel!
I know rock and weed cloth are not the most popular, and I’m leaning away from that, but want to get thoughts on what to do. Thanks!

Hey there,

Last summer I spent a good weekend removing most of the spreading roots from that tree (my neighbor's). This summer rained more than usual, so these new trees are growing like crazy in my backyard now. I tried removing them but they keep growing and now the roots seem to be even thicker (can't be pulled by hand anymore)

How can I permanently (if possible at all) stop these little trees from growing all over my lawn? I want to avoid applying chemicals that would also kill the grass, but that might be the only way.

I don't know much about landscaping (or trees), but I'm very hands-on to try anything suggested.

Thanks in Advance!