Before and after pictures of my yard in Fallbrook, CA

[Hilo Jason]

Hey Everyone,

I think some of my favorite posts on here are the ones that show before and after shots of people's yards. It's a great way to see what grows where (and how fast), and to see the hard work that you all put into your yards. Since it was a cold and damp day today, I decided it would be a good time to get out in the yard and take some pictures to share with everyone.

My wife and I bought this house in June of last year. It was a foreclosure here in town and we got a great deal, but as you'll see from the pictures, we had our work cut out for us. We live in Fallbrook, CA which is north San Diego county. We're about 12-15 miles from the coast, on top of a hill.

I hope you enjoy.

Here's a look at the front of the house when we bought it (June 2009):

And here's a look at it today:

[Hilo Jason]

Here's a view of the side / front yard. The entire side of the property was covered in huge oleander bushes. We had to cut those all down and then build a fence since there wasn't anything separating our yard from our neighbors once all the oleander was out. We put in the sidewalks, patio area, brick pathways (in the back) and the retaining blocks.

Before:

After:

(Palms in this pic: Sabal ?, A. Cunninghamiana, Dypsis Leptocheillos x decaryi, dypsis decipiens (small in front), Dypsis Saintelucei, A. Tuckeri, Dypsis Leptocheillos, Dypsis Lutescens, Becariophoenix Madagascariensis)

And here's another view of it now:

(Palms in this pic: Clinostigma Savoryanam (left and right corners), Kentiopsis Oliviformis (behind left hand clinostigma), Hedyscepe (center)

[Hilo Jason]

Here's the planter that is right up against the front of the house.

Before:

After:

(Pseudophoenix Sargentii in the front with Hyophorbe Verschaffeltii behind it)

View from the other angle:

[Hilo Jason]

For some reason I can't find my "before" photos of the backyard, but it looked the same as the front, so you can get the idea! Giant weeds, overgrown brush, etc...

Here are a few of the areas in the backyard:

(the right side of the path is lined with Foxtail Palms (Wodyetia Bifurcata), the left has a couple of 1 gallon Archontophoenix Mylonesis (the smallest palms in the pic), some larger Archontophoenix Maxima, and 3 Chambeyronia Macrocarpa in the middle. There's also 2 Schizolobium parahyba (Tower Tree) - one on each side of this path).

And here's looking the other way:

(the small palm you can see on the right is Dypsis Ambositrae. There are 2 of them in there)

Above the planter area is 30% shadecloth. This section gets full sun in the summer so I put this up to help acclimate everything for the first year or so)

And here's looking down on this same section (taken from a small deck):

[Hilo Jason]

More pictures from the back yard:

(on the left is a Roystonea Regia (still acclimating) and Dypsis Decaryi. On the right is a Veitchia Arecina, Chambeyronia Macrocarpa, a triple Ptychosperma Elegans, and then in the middle a Dypsis Betefaka (looks like decipiens) and a Dypsis Carlsmithii. There's a bunch of other stuff too, but it's a bit too small to see in this pic)

On the left: Wodyetia Bifurcata, Dypsis Pembana, Archontophoenix Tuckeri. In the middle: Dypsis Ambositrae, Chambeyronia Macrocarpa, Rhopalostylis Sapida. On the right: Rhopalostylis Baurei (you can only see one leaf and it's hiding a Burrietokentia Hapala), Howea Belmoreana, Triple Archontophoenix Purpuraea.

And here's the same planter from the opposite side:

Hyophorbe Indica on each side of the path (red on the left, green on the right). Small Hedyscepe behind the green one on the right

[Hilo Jason]

Here's some sections that are still in the works in the backyard:

The pathways will be planted with a low groundcover that can be walked on. I forget the name of it. This will go in at the very end, when I am finished with the rest of the planters.

Makeshift shade structure :-)

[Hilo Jason]

And now back to the front yard, here are a couple of different angles of the front and side yards:

Directly in front of the house:

Dypsis Onilahensis in the front, Hyophorbe Indica behind it, 3 - Roystonea Regia in the corner, 2 - Hyophorbe Verchafelltii, Wodyetia on the far right

Slowly moving to the right of the last picture:

A lot of the same palms as seen in the pic above. Others include Dypsis Decipiens (center), Dypsis Leptocheillos, Archontophoenix Cunninghamiana, Bismarckia Nobilis

And further to the right:

Same Bismarck as above, then Archontophoenix Cunninghamiana, Dypsis Leptocheillos, Dypsis Decipiens, Pritchardia Hillebrandi, and Roystonea Borinique on the far right (can barely see it)

[Got Palms]

Great job Jason! Excellent layout just one question why are you keeping that jackaranda tree im assuming for canopy for the moment!

[Hilo Jason]

And here's a side planter in the front yard:

from left to right: Dypsis Leptocheillos, Dypsis Heteromorpha, Dypsis Prestoniana, Chambeyronia Macrocarpa, Archontophoenix Purpuraea, Dypsis Carlsmithii (smallest in front), Dypsis Manajarensis (Mealy bug! - waiting to plant til next spring), and a Dypsis Madagascariensis is hiding behind the shade structure pole.

This section also has a 30% shadecloth hanging over it.

And last but not least, the keepers of the palm garden:

Thanks for looking everyone, hope you enjoyed. I'll make sure to post when I have updates of new planters that are finished, as well as yearly updates with growth.

Jason

[DoomsDave]

You, your dogs and your garden, all rock!

More pics?

PUH_LEEEEZE!

[freakypalmguy]

Very nice Jason.

[joe_OC]

Great looking yard!

[dogrocket]

looks great,your going to have a jungle

[epicure3]

Flippin' fantastic. Everything looks awesome.

[MattyB]

You don't mess around Jason! That's a lot of really nice work you've done there, and the variety of species you're growing is really amazing! Thanks for sharing. I'm stealing your half circle path idea. Thank you.

[Hilo Jason]

Thanks Everyone! It was great to be able to finally get some pictures up to share. The majority of everything was planted this Spring and Summer so I am looking forward to seeing how it all does over the years. I'll find out what works and what doesn't and I'll go from there. So far I have already been surprised to see some stuff doing really good that I thought would be slow for me.

Matty - glad you like the half circle pavers. There was a 10' x 15' section of those in the back yard when I moved in. I took it apart to build that path and it worked out perfectly with only 3 blocks left over when I was done. It was perfect!

[BS Man about Palms]

WOW.

Your place rocks Jason! (I recognize a past offspring )

[peachy]

No comment.....I am crawling into the undergrowth to hide my shame.

Peachy

[Hilo Jason]

Thanks Bill! Here are a couple more pics of your offspring (which is one of my personal favorites)

[Hilo Jason]

Sorry Bill, I hit post too early. Here are the pics:

And here is another of that planter it's in.

Decipiens in the very front, D. Saintelucei on the left, Dypsis Lutescens (Solitaire) in the middle, and Arc. Tuckeri behind the teddy x triangle

[Jim in Los Altos]

Jason, You've been busy! That yard's going to be really awesome in a few years. How many palm species in there?

[Rafael]

Excelent choices, excelent taste organizing everything, your yard is somthing between a dream and a fantasy!

[yachtingone]

Jason,

WOW!!!

Randy

[Gonzer]

That yard's a sign of some serious dedication, desire, and sweat. Hats off to ya Jason!

[palmpuppy]

Fabulous!! Thank you for sharing your before and after photos with us. I'm amazed at what you have accomplished in only a year! Especially with so much overgrowth that needed to be removed (bet your neighbors are very happy - what a transformation!).

Love the pictures with the furry family members.

Jackie

p.s. Are all those potted plants we see going into your yard, too?

[Kim]

Amazing transformation, Jason, nice work! That's going to be un-Velez-able!

[basilios]

Great, GREAT work!

Two questinons :

1) Are clinostigma and veitchia good long-term choices for your climate?

2) I notice that your garden is very densely planted, with lots of palms no more than a couple or three feet apart. Is this OK? I mean, aren't they supposed to be planted, say, 2-3 meters (7-10') apart so that they can grow without competing too much for space and sun? It's a question, not a criticism, since I'm not very knowledgeable on the subject.

[Palm crazy]

Jason that is one nice fantasy palm gardens, excellent!

[samirbouag]

whaouuuu your garden look beautiful!! good job! you could be very pride!

[Hilo Jason]

Thanks everyone.

To answer a few questions:

Jim in Los Altos: I have just over 100 species, not quite all of them are in the ground yet, but most are. I have just over 160 total palms in the ground right now, with probably 85 different species.

palmpuppy: A lot of what's left in the 5 gallon pots will not be planted. I got carried away when I first got into palms and would buy a bunch of small 1 gallons just to have them. Now I'm realizing I went a little overboard with those and I plan on selling / trading them sometime soon. Most all of the palms that are under my makeshift shade structure are in 1-3 gallon pots and those I plan on planting eventually. Those consist mostly of small dypsis and other little gems that I'm waiting til they get a bit larger.

basilios: I realize that the Clinostigma and Veitchia are pushing it a bit, but I figured I would give them a try and see how they do. The Veitchia Arecina is struggling, but I have a Veitchia Spiralis (can't really see it in the photos) that is planted under a Jacaranda tree that is doing great. I bought it as a 1 gallon plant 2 years ago and it's now over 4 feet tall. Both of my Clinostigma's have seen 2 winters outdoors in Fallbrook while in pots and seem un-phased so far. I've seen some really nice Clinostigma's in other parts of San Diego, so I am hoping they do okay for me.

Also, I agree that everything is planted really close, but after going to Ralph Velez's garden, I saw that not only could it work, but I love the jungle feel of it. I got bitten by the palm bug pretty bad and it's made me want to collect a lot of different species. Since I only have a 1/4 acre lot, I'm limited with space, so that's why I'm packing it in thick. I've tried to layer it in a way with the tower trees, Foxtail, Roystonea and various Archontophoenix serving as the "pillars" of the landscaping that will become the canopy. Then everything else gets filled in under them. I'm sure some stuff will not make it, but others will end up thriving. So it's all a big experiment for me! And since I stick with mostly 1-5 gallon size palms to start, it's not too expensive of an experiment.

Also, just to add in a little more info about the area where I live. Before living in this house, I lived just a few blocks away on top of a similar sized hill, so the climate was identical to what I have now at this home. I didn't live here during the freeze of 2007, since I moved to Fallbrook in May of '07, but since then the coldest temperature I have seen is 35 degrees. And that was only for 1-2 nights each winter. The front yard of our property faces south so we get nice full sun in the front all year, which is where the Bismarck, Dypsis Decipiens, Royals and Spindle palms are all planted.

Also, a fun fact is that I got into palms in the summer of 2007 when I saw a large Caryota Gigas at a wedding that was held at a palm collectors property. Seeing that in all of it's glory is what got me hooked and opened my eyes to all sorts of cool palms. And I also want to say that being on this forum has really helped a lot. There's so much information shared here! Thanks everyone.

[Shon]

Great lookin garden Jason.

[hanapalms]

You seem to do it so well and fast, so must have time to work on another garden too? Maybe from 3 AM to 5 AM?

I know just the place

[BeaumontTropics]

Jason,

Right on, Left Leg, Brother! You're a DIY-er to the max! The hardscape is really dialed in and the landscape speaks for itself! Nice varities, groupings, and separations of plantings! When that stuff gets big, look out! That will be a massive canopy! I'm one to be very familiar with a shovel, and I know that must have been a lot of work! The house looks so much better, too! You're an inspiration to all of us, and keep up the good work, thanks for setting the bar high, my wife will never let me away from the yard now!

FINS UP!

-eric

[Miccles]

Stunning work Jason - not just on the garden, but the house looks fabulous as well. Hats off to you.

That garden is going to take off and have such an intimate jungle look and feel to it....a real credit to you.

Regards

Michael

[ariscott]

Nice work, Jason... especially with such a short amount of time... Let's see updates in a couple of years time

Regards, Ari

[palmcurry]

Wow thats allot of work for 1 year. Looks good. I like the palm corridor in the backyard. Interesting to see what it will look like in 10-20 years.

[Hilo Jason]

Hana Palms - If that is an invitation to work on your garden in Maui, I'm sure something can be arranged!

Eric and Michael - thanks for the compliments on the house as well. It was a lot of work, but I had a good friend who is a construction guy who helped me with everything I couldn't do on my own.

This winter's project will be a bridge that goes from my hot tub deck to the roof of my garage, and then a deck on the roof. That way I'll have one more viewing area for the garden and a nice view looking out over town and the surrounding hills. I'll make sure to post pictures when I do that. This idea was inspired by Mardy Darian's catwalks. Mine will just be a little miniature version!

[Palmzilla]

looks like you've been busy! I bet you've broke a few shovels! I like your doggies too!

Braden

[palmpuppy]

.....

This winter's project will be a bridge that goes from my hot tub deck to the roof of my garage, and then a deck on the roof. That way I'll have one more viewing area for the garden and a nice view looking out over town and the surrounding hills. I'll make sure to post pictures when I do that. This idea was inspired by Mardy Darian's catwalks. Mine will just be a little miniature version!

Dr. Darian's garden was amazing and that was one of my _favorite_ parts!

Jackie

[ghar41]

Awesome Jason! Wow, what a list of palms!