Beginner Gardening: Round or Square, and overall layout, 1 by tanker1812

tanker1812 wrote:
All,
I have been working on a few landscape projects and here is what I have for idea so far?

1. I will be building the two retaining walls shown in the diagram. These will be build from cinder block then faced with stone. Any hints or suggestions there. The walls will be under 3' each. I tried to look up the NC builders code to see if I needed a permit. What an endless search that was? Any insight or links I can get the answer from. There will be 2' between each wall and stone stairs going into the main garden area. I was thinking of building an entrance over the stairs and putting a clematis on it? suggestions....

2. As you can see from the diagram I am thinking of putting a pond in the open area by the royal red hydrangea's. Again, my first landscaping project ever.

3. I am putting stone pavers from the back deck to the garden. Do you think it will be a major clash if I face the wall with stone? I plan on matching colors or should I make the walkway from the same stone? I wanted to use pavers because of their durability and lifespan.

4. As you can see the main circular planter in the middle is close to where I want to put a patio area. I was going to build this out of the same pavers as the walkway. My question here is should I build it circular like the planter, would a square patio area look geometrically odd ?

I have been working my fingers to the nubs with my wife on this project, however it is our first. The total area is 50 yards by 75 yards for our garden area. Any suggestions would be beneficial. You can see a picture of the ground on my other thread

http://davesgarden.com/community/forums/t/819443/

Thanks
Michael and Ei The'