Plese help me design my backyard.

So, we moved into this house about 3 month ago and the backyard is what seems to me a blank canvas.
There are plenty of ideas as to what we want to do with it but there's also limitations and things that will probably not be possible.

The yard is about 117 Ft across and 75 Ft deep. There's an entrance on the right side (from the driveway) and also the access through the deck and the patio on the lower level.

The entire perimeter is fenced with an old cedar privacy fence 6 ft tall. We wanted to cover the entire thing with Ivy if possible. As you can see on the picture there are some evergreens on the right side of the yard and the neighbor in the back has some bushes on his side. We plan on keeping all the evergreens as they provide privacy.

The picture that I'm attaching basically lays out what we intend to do with the space. We probably end up adding things to it as we see how the space turns out. I'm talking about more berry plants to attract birds, perhaps an arbor to grow some grapes and some flower beds here and there to add color and attract butterflies and bees, maybe one or another dwarf fruit tree, you get the idea...

We want to use native species and also try to create a balance where everything works together as it does in mother nature; I think they call that permaculture (??)

Any and all advice will be welcome as we do not have any experience on gardening in such a scale. The ideas we put into this plan are based on all the research we have done so far and also on personal taste.
Thank you all for your input !!
Willy.

Here's another pic.

And the last one

Fist thing I would suggest is do one project at a time, don't try to tackle everything all at once because it will be very overwhelming.
Then take note of how long each area gets sun/shade so you know what you can plant in the different areas.
Have a soil test done to see if your soil needs any nutrients.

I personally wouldn't recommend ivy, has a habit of taking over...I'd do some flowering vines.
The pond area you notated would probably not be the best choice, you'll get a ton of leaves in it from the trees.
As a warning... the more flowers you have the more bees you'll get, you may not want a ton of them surrounding the deck/patio

You're going have a ton of fun planning this....ENJOY

Looks like a fun project. Were you sitting in a helicopter when you took those pics? LOL

I would suggest doing the hardscape of any area before doing any plantings. What kind of soil do you have? Have you done any amending? I wish we could have gotten a watering system in before we started. It would have helped tremendously.

Thank you both for your advice !!!

We are most definitely doing one project at the time, I can see this taking many years to complete, however, we need to have a plan before we start.

Good ideas, both of you, I will need a soil test before anything, I already know we need tons of amendments to the red clay we have in the yard. I was planing on bringing tons of manure to begin with.

About the ivy, I was not 100% convinced, we had it in the house where I grew up and I don't remember being a problem, but then again I never paid any attention to that kind of thing. You mention a flowering vine, that's a lot more appealing to me, can you suggest any for zone 7b that will keep the foliage in the winter and tolerate partial sun??

Did not think of the leaves falling in the pond, good point; also about the bees close to the deck, will have to rethink that one too.

The picture was taken from the roof of the house, lol...

I did think of running the water lines before doing any of this and also we plan on having a water collection system under the deck using all the gutter downspouts from the back of the house. The water will be stored in an elevated position in reference to the yard so we can gravity feed the water lines.

What are the benefits of having all the hardscape done before planting?? I thought we do one area at the time and that way if there's anything we want to change or move around we are not stocked with the original layout, think that the whole thing will take easy 3 to 4 years and plenty of ideas will flourish in that time.

Thank you both for the great advice and please keep those ideas coming !!

Willy

When you do the hardscape first that will show you how much room you have left for planting...much easier that way.

Climbing hydrandea is really nice
http://www.bluestoneperennials.com/b/bp/HYFFP.html
or false hydrangea
http://www.bluestoneperennials.com/b/bp/SCMOP.html
and clematis are wonderful but you'll have some die back.

I would like to add on to flowAjen's first post
Another problem with the placement of the pond is roots. I don't know how deep or how wide the roots run for those trees, but you will be taking a large section of them out. Not to mention how much harder it would be to try and dig through them (if you're planning on doing it by hand). Make sure you check all your utility lines.
This is a time-consuming project but can be very beneficial for years to come if you want a pretty accurate sun/shade map. Starting when the sun comes up, take a pic of your yard every hour. Try to stand in the same viewpoint. When you are done, scale down your pics to fit approx 4 per page (however many depending on your preference) Print out your pages and add to your garden journal. You can start in the beginning of spring to get a map for spring-flowering bulbs (I don't know what month this is or what type of spring flowers you have for your region), but it's more important to do it after the decidous trees leaves grow. Depending on how much time you have do it a couple times during the year, because an area in full sun during the middle of summer may be in shade during spring/fall.

Melissa is right - if you dig the pond back there, you will have an awful time. It looks from your drawing that those trees are already established.

A couple of things to keep in mind when putting in a pond:

first, most people put in a pond and then wish they had gone bigger. We put in our 3rd pond about 5 years ago and because of the size of our yard, cannot go any bigger.

second- put the pond where you are going to be able to get the most enjoyment from it. If you can see and it hear it from the house, all the better. We hear our waterfalls at night in the summer after we have gone to bed and truthfully I think I go through withdrawal when everything is shut down for the winter. It is very soothing and relaxing. You will also want to consider how easily accessible the pond is as you will want to sit by the pond.

third - waterlilies need at least 4-6 hours of sun in order to flower. They really are better off with full sun,however some varieties do not require as much sun as others. Will you want waterlilies? What type of plants will you want for your pond?

Another thing you may want to do is to explore the Water Garden Forum. There are alot of really nice people there and they are so friendly and helpful.

I also agree with what Jen has said -(hey Jen!). Don't take it all on at once as it will be far too much. As suggested figure out what you want regarding hardscapes first and then go from there.....

Sounds like a lot of fun planning everything out. There is nothing like a blank slate!

Hey Caroyln!!!!

RE Hardscapes......pathway...get that in first, then you can plan anything to surround the path or for stepping on between the stones.
This is a great site for groundcovers of ALL kinds
http://www.stepables.com/default.asp

Start with the backbone stuff first like hard landscape and woody plants then work your way in with plants - maybe do annuals to fill in spaces until perennials are brought in?

Carolyne, FlowAjen and Malus:

Thank you for your ideas too !!
Great!!