It's a small small world!

It's a small small world plays in my head every time I look at our backyard. Don't get me wrong I LOVE our little patch of green but it's Teeny Tiny!! Seriously, In this picture I'm standing at the back door and that's how close our fence is:

But as they say . . . it's not the size that counts, it's how you use it (yup I just said that!).
The first step in getting the most out of our yard was PRIVACY. Our little fruit trees weren't cutting it . . . they would never be able to provide us with enough coverage for adequate privacy. So they got reassigned to the other side of the house and we replaced them with Japanese Maples!

We were able to buy all 3 maples for a grand total of $75!
Our City has a "Plant a Tree" Program where if you go to City Hall, you can buy up to 3 "tree vouchers" for $25 each. Each Voucher is good for a tree up to $75! We found these Japanese Maples for $100, the nursery was having a sale -30%, so they were $70 each and our vouchers were good up to $75! DONE!
3 good sized trees for $75!! This is my favorite kind of math!

Each maple will grow from 10-15 feet tall, and will spread out 10 to 15 feet. They grow tons of leaves so they are PERFECT for privacy and their roots systems are completely non invasive, so we don't have to worry about them being planted near the house. Within the next 5 years they will grow together and block the unsightly view of our neighbor's garages.

 The Maple at the back will provide us some privacy from our neighbors backyard, although I should say that they are two of the best neighbors you could ask for, but a little privacy never hurt anyone :).

Our next step with our backyard landscaping is to add some layers. I want to look out on to a beautiful garden, not a wood box with grass in it, and layering is the way to do it! So far we have our new beautiful maple, layered behind 3 bushy cedars (for winter interest), and lastly our vegetable beds in front. That about sums up phase one, phase two will involve more perennial plants as well as a frosted glass screen and maybe a pergola :).
I hope you enjoyed a peak into our backyard, I would have added more photos but there's not much more to show ;). hehe