Here is a garden I'm itching to see unfold: a suburban yard that has been rebuilt as a native plant habitat, including wetland. Kory and Emily are yard-novices like Chris and I. They did their overhaul the scary way: in one fell swoop, with big equipment. Follow this link to see photos of their yard as it was transformed, and be sure to read the captions!
I am particularly intrigued by their use of a pond liner filled with dirt to create a wetland. Our yard has plenty of wetland, but it's all back in the shade, so I can't grow cranberries or carnivorous pitcher plants. Nor is there much I can do to it, legally, since it is protected land. Not that I mind: it's perfect already. Perhaps there is a full-sun wetland patch in my lawn's future, instead. . .
If Kory and Emily's yard had been mine, I would have done a few things differently. Being a lazy cheapskate, I would have mostly built up instead of digging down against those nasty roots. Here's a fantastic example of a prairie built up on a pile of free fill. (And I do love free fill!) And I would likely have chosen to develop the yard in bite-sized chunks, out of some irrational fear of living in a temporary construction-induced moonscape. But that's just me, and I know my approach to ecosystem gardening is only one of many.
I envision Kory and Emily's garden in the future being filled in with ground-covers instead of mulch, dotted riotously with flowers, and perhaps including a little meandering path so that visitors can get up close and personal with the wetland plants. Please continue to post photos of your yard, guys! I'll be eagerly watching.
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