Out the front, we will have slow-growing quality grass (as used for golf greens) and flowerbeds on the right of the driveway (looking from the street), and a rockery and pebbles on the left (which will double as extra parking space, if required).
Along the left side of the house, we will have a fernery, with a river-stone pathway.
We will have an unpainted trellis-topped wooden fence around the property, excluding the front: our covenant prohibits fences within eight metres of the front boundary. There will be gates on both sides, with a double gate on the right to allow trailer etc access to the back. Inside the fence will be a line of trees, raised by half a metre or so, for privacy.
Through the gates on the right side of the house we will have a herbal lawn, which doesn't need mowing and has a pleasant smell. We will also have a small vege garden.
Next to the patio, we would like to ultimately have an in-ground swimming pool with a built-in spa (hot tub). It would be a custom-made pool, made to look as natural as possible, with a rock feature on the far side.
In the back-right corner, we will have a waterfall, or rather a cascade of small waterfalls, which will flow into a fairly large pond that will be a main feature of the section. The pond will have a small island with a feature tree, and a Japanese-style wooden bridge. There will be two outlets for the pond: a short stream that appears to flow into the swimming pool, but actually recirculates under a rock, with pool water starting and flowing in a waterfall into the pool. And secondly, a longer stream that meanders through the Japanese garden, with a couple of stone bridges.
The back part of the section will be a Japanese-style garden, with stone pathways, benches for contemplation, trees and bushes, and so forth. The pond and stream will play a major part, and will be surrounded by suitable plants. We'll also have a hammock and a swing seat for relaxing. And we'll probably have a Zen garden (raked sand), unless the cats decide it makes a good bathroom!
Hopefully most of this will happen over the next few years. We definitely want to do the pond and Japanese-style garden, and other areas, but some parts, like the swimming pool, remain in doubt. We'll see how things turn out -- we fully expect it to be a work in progress for quite a few years. Should be fun!
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