Name: George P.
Location: Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Size: 221 square feet
Your Favorite Thing About Your Outdoor Space: I love the sense of enclosure afforded by the mature trees and my neighbors' plantings. Sometimes it is hard to believe that I am in the middle of the city. The yard was actually one of the primary reasons for choosing the house in the first place. The small size is one of the yard's best attributes...it means I can really let the plantings be the showcase.
Biggest Design Challenge With This Space: Shade and Mosquitos. Although a shady backyard is a delightful retreat in the summer, it severely limits what I am able to grow. The amount of sun in the photos as about as much as I would get in the course of the day. I've been able to use the shade as a means to limit the color palatte in my yard. And mosquitos unfortunately limit the amount of time I can spend outside unprotected.
Tips for Creating a Great Small Outdoor Space: I truly believe small spaces are much more elegant than large open backyards. Creating a sense of enclosure will make your yard feel like an extension of the home. For instance, even though my yard receives very little sun, the canopy of the umbrella overhead becomes a key component of the ensemble. Work with existing elements and use plants and elements you love, but don't be afraid to edit. A balance between softscape and hardscape is key.
Thanks, George, and good luck!
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Absolutely enchanting! I also have a shady yard in philly & I'm pretty sure the previous tennant was cultivating a mosquito farm. I just moved in and might just copy your yard!
The density of plantings really upend the sense of scale -- it's "small" like a small clearing in a huge creeping jungle. Love it!
And yes, Philly's got a serious mosquito problem -- in addition to the regular brown ones we have Asian tiger mosquitos that feed all day long and can breed in half a thimble of water. So you have to be really vigilant and get rid of every little thing that will hold water, down to a crumbled plastic bag under the bushes. I hates 'em!
This is beautiful! Bummer on the mosquitos- they've been especially bad this summer I think. Oh how I wish we had a yard. It's on wish list for our next West Philly apartment...
Love it! Mosquitos are the bane of our patio existence here, too. Love to hear if anyone has a good solution (getting rid of water won't work for us, as there's a storm drain that frequently holds standing water near our house that we believe is the culprit, and the city won't fix it despite repeated requests).
Thanks for the kind words! I really don't have a solution for the mosquitos. I can control the standing water on our own property, but I can't control the water on the adjacent 4 properties within 10 feet of our patio. The shade also apparently does not help, because water takes longer to evaporate. I definitely have come to enjoy the spring months before the mosquito situation gets out of control.
Handsome space. The path, the border plants, and is that a water fountain? - come together for a lovely retreat
Yeah for West Philly! I hear you on the mosquitos. Because of them I basically ignore my backyard during the month of August.
would plants like rosemary & lavender help reduce the amount of mosquitos in the yard? just curious... i just had this conversation at my house earlier on how we'd like a few lotus' in water pots, but are worried about the mosquito nesting ground... i live in Indonesia, where mosquito = dengue fever...