A Productive Sunday in the Garden
We had our second day of garden work this season on Sunday. We successfully cleared the vines from the remaining portion of fence while our neighbor pulled out the old straw fence that had been attached to the metal fence on his side. In organizing the piles of stones and crap accumulated from decades of…
We had our second day of garden work this season on Sunday. We successfully cleared the vines from the remaining portion of fence while our neighbor pulled out the old straw fence that had been attached to the metal fence on his side. In organizing the piles of stones and crap accumulated from decades of neglect, we turned up these nifty vintage gardening tools as well. (Anyone know what that marble cube is? A cornerstone, perhaps?) We’re about ready to hire someone to build a new wood fence and lay bluestone in the center of the yard. We’ve decided against grass for the main center section. Perhaps on the raised portion at the back.
We’re in the midst of doing something quite similar in our backyard: the cedar fence, the bluestone or paving stones, some raised beds, etc. However we’re debating if it’s best to have a contractor carry in and lay the stone or if we should do it ourselves. Any suggestions? And if the vote is for stone contractor, does anyone have a recommendation? Thanks.
I spent about $10,000 on my backyard three years ago, though it might be smaller than yours since my house is 85 feet deep on a 100-foot lot. To give you an idea of what you should get for your money: it paid for completely hauling away the debris, vines and rocks littering the yard; tearing up a small cement area and replacing it with a larger, bluestone patio, including some waterproofing against the back of the house; a comprehensive landscape design, which we discussed over 2-3 meetings; purchase and installation of topsoil and mulch, at least a dozen bushes and plants, a small tree, and two large planters with bamboo plants; and some follow-up cleaning up and misc. stuff. I truly thought I got my money’s worth (although it has also cost me more, as I also bought outdoor furniture, a grill, a hammock, etc.).
must be neighbors who want to stick it to you – after all the work you’ve done to upgrade the property, you’d think they’d give you some time to get to the backyard – you moved in in the fall, right?
sour grapes? anti-gentrifiers? wow.
what i’m confused about is why the city only responds to complaints…? if there is a problem, isn’t it the duty of the city to follow through whether or not there was a complaint?
Ah, lovely neighbors. WTF, couldn’t they have knocked on your door if they had an issue. Would love to see their yard. Maybe they didn’t like the “newbies”. How lame.
for anon 2:09, we found out the hard way that anyone can call you in and, it seems, you get a notice of your “violation” sight unseen. We got one for our back yard, without ever getting a visit from the issuing agency, Dpt of Mental Health and Hygiene (!). Our backyard was cited as a potential haven for rats because we had some weeds. the irony here is that we are beside one back yard that is covered in debris and weeds and throughout the block there are backyards in considerably worse shape. when the aforementoned agency came to inspect, I discovered that one of our kind new neighbours had called in a complaint and that they only follow up in response to complaints, i.e. the city does not cite someone on its own initiative. when I showed the inspector the backyard she seemed satisfied and when I indicated the “potential hazards” around us, she shrugged and said that someone has to file a complaint…long story short; yes you can call in a complaint to the city about your neighbour’s backyard.
Anon 222-tinarina is right. It depends on what you are doing, materials used and how much you do yourself. $10,000 doesn’t seem like a lot if you’re having a lot of hardscaping done and you’re paying for labor. Plant material went up in price last year due to the rising cost of gas. It’s all trucked in, no matter where you get it, so expect higher prices this year, too.
For anon at 2:09: Highest fence you can build is 6 ft. Short of seeing rats, I’m not sure what can be done about backyard filth. A filthy front yard can be turned in to sanitation, but I don’t know about the back. Rats constitute a health hazard, so if you see those, call 311. If whatever the neighbor has back there creates areas that hold standing water, you can call 311 about mosquitos, too. They will come up and demand clean-up if it looks good for breeding skeeters. Or get the name of the landlord- he may have no idea what the tenant is up to and may not appreciate the back yard being trashed.
Anon 222–it’s hard to say if that’s a little or a lot–what does that get you? We spent over double that, but had the whole yard cleared out and significant stonework done.
Does $10,000 seem like a lot to re-do a brownstone backyard?