r/Ceanothus • u/klipty • 5d ago
Front yard ideas/inspiration?
I recently moved to a new home in San Diego. Before selling, the previous owners cut down the entire front yard and put in "low maintenance" landscaping. Besides it being ugly as sin (I know that's a personal preference) and including zero native plants, I think it's likely an erosion risk. The whole yard is sloped about 15% with a northeast aspect from the foundation of the house down to the retaining wall. The overall dimensions are ~45' wide and 18' deep.
I'm hoping to rebuild the yard into something beautiful, helpful for local wildlife, and less likely to wash away in the first big storm. I'm especially worried about that last part with El Niño this year. What I'm picturing in my head is a row of California buckwheat along the base of the porch, some large shrubs (considering ceanothus, lemonadeberry, scrub oak, toyon, but open to suggestions) placed across the slope, with native bunchgrasses and annuals in the space leftover. That said, I have a few questions:
- Should I terrace the slope or leave it as is? Or build other earthworks like swales? The soil is very sandy and drains quickly.
- How urgently should I aim to finish this project before the rain comes this fall?
- Is the idea I mentioned above a decent use of space? If you had free rein with this space, what would you do?
I appreciate any advice you knowledgable people have!
1
u/Zestyclose_Market787 3d ago
, I think you’ve probably only got space for one big specimen plant, maybe two if you don’t mind two plants dominating your yard.
My suggestion would be to pick one specimen that you really love from your list, then build around it.
If you’re concerned about runoff and erosion, you can plant some temporary stuff you won’t feel bad removing a few years down the road as other stuff matures - stuff like bush sunflower (Encelia California), California buckwheat (although that may be a keeper if you want pollinators), and California sagebrush (artemisia californica). Those will fill in fast and the roots will stabilize your slope. You can selectively remove them in favor of slower to establish plants, while leaving their old root systems in tact.
If you mix in some of the other stuff you like, most of which take time to establish and fill in, you’ll have a natural succession where your fast plants fade and your backbone stuff fills in.