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Ideas: Backyards

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Backyard Eating Area
CatMint
Purple Carpet Creeping Thyme
Blue Fescue
Provence Lavender
Smoke Tree
CatMint

Common name:CatMint
Botanical name:Nepeta X Faassenii

Nepeta faassenii makes soft, gray-green, undulating mounds o 1.5 ft. high in bloom. The small leaves are attractive to cats. This perennial has lavender blue flowers in late spring, and early summer.

Purple Carpet Creeping Thyme

Common name:Purple Carpet Creeping Thyme
Botanical name:Thymus polytrichus britannicus

This perennial will grow about 3" tall and 3' wide. It has small, dark green leaves with clusters of purple/lavender flowers that bloom in spring and summer. Leaves are fragrant when crushed, can be used for seasoning.

Blue Fescue

Common name:Blue Fescue
Botanical name:Festuca glauca

This ground cover/grass will grow less than 1' tall and has small, blue-green, evergreen leaves that are very thin and hair-like. Flowers appear in the summer but are insignificant. This dependable but short-lived ground cover prefers full sun in coastal areas and afternoon shade in warm inland areas. It needs well draining soil and is drought tolerant once it's established. Leaves may burn during the summer but trim in winter to keep it looking refreshed. Does not tolerate wet soil.

Provence Lavender

Common name:Provence Lavender
Botanical name:Lavandula x intermedia 'Provence'

With tall, 24-30" stems, 'Provence' has true, lavender colored flowers that are fragrant and excellent for cutting. It flowers in early June and has large, gray/green leaves.

Smoke Tree

Common name:Smoke Tree
Botanical name:Cotinus coggygria 'Purpureus'

A deciduous shrub or small tree that grows up to 10' tall, the "Purpureus" is grown for its wispy, thread-like flower clusters in summer. Its green foliage turns a brilliant purple and then yellow to red in the fall. This shrub is a show stopper! It prefers full sun but will do better with afternoon shade in hot inland areas. This attractive shrub is drought tolerant once it's established.

Designer: Michelle Derviss

Backyard Eating Area
Image: 9 of 29

Photographer: Michelle Derviss

Soils and Compost:

Practice grass-cycling by leaving short grass clippings on lawns after mowing, so that nutrients and organic matter are returned to the soil.

Integrated Pest Management:

Remove irrigation water and fertilizer from areas where you don't want weeds to grow.