{"id":34077,"date":"2021-07-31T00:01:55","date_gmt":"2021-07-31T07:01:55","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/barbarafalconernewhall.com\/?p=34077"},"modified":"2026-06-06T12:37:23","modified_gmt":"2026-06-06T12:37:23","slug":"side-yard","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/server.stagingweb3.net\/barbarafalconernewhall\/side-yard\/","title":{"rendered":"Fixing Up That Homely Old Side Yard — At Last"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"transforming<\/a>
Jon and I put up with this dilapidated side yard for 43 years. When the amateur brick work started to cave, we had it reinforced with those homely pipes. The green sprouts are the very aggressive crocosmias, which have marched their way down from the top of the stairs over the years. That shrub under the deck is what’s left of the rosemary I put in before I knew how flammable rosemary is.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
Transforming Our Side Yard<\/strong><\/h5>\n

It’s happening. Our funky old side yard has been dismantled and the fresh new elements are getting installed.<\/p>\n

It’s a steep space, and it took some planning, but our contractor and his crew have risen to the task.<\/p>\n

\"transforming<\/a>
Demolition began with breaking up the old concrete stairs. Things looked a bit hopeless on the day I took this picture.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Brand new redwood decks are taking the place of two saggy, broken-down concrete landings.\u00a0One of the two decks is at the main floor just outside our TV room.\u00a0The other is at the lower level just outside my office. I can see it from my desk as I sit here and write.<\/p>\n

\"transforming<\/a>
Things started looking up once the concrete stairs and crumbling brick were removed.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
Mid-Century Dilapidation<\/strong><\/h5>\n

The treacherously uneven concrete stairs have been brought up to code. And, in the planting beds on each side of the stairs, a series of tidy retaining walls have replaced the slapdash brick walls somebody installed sometime in the middle of the 20th century.<\/p>\n

The work will be done soon, and when it is, I’ll give you a tour of the new spaces — backyard and side yard, top to bottom.<\/p>\n

Almost there!<\/p>\n

The backyard is getting redo as well. Read about that at “When a Widow Laughs. Or, a Backyard Work in Progress.”<\/a>\u00a0 Want to see a really spectacular garden? Go to “Point and Shoot Heaven: Photographing a Flower Garden Just Before Dusk.”<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n

For a tour of the finished stairs and landings, go to “Come Take a Walk.”<\/a><\/p>\n

\"landscaping<\/a>
Framing for the new side yard stairway was installed and the concrete poured. From now on, the stairs will be up to code — 36 inches wide with consistent 7-inch risers. And, yes, there will be a railing.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"almost<\/a>
Almost done! Any ideas for how to beautify our neighbors’ massive concrete retaining wall? Photos by Barbara Newhall<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

\"dilapidated-side-yard\"<\/a><\/p>\n

It’s happening. Our funky side yard with its treacherous stairs and shabby retaining walls is getting a new look. Read more.<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":49476,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[10],"tags":[34,472,2287,1188,2288,2494,2164],"class_list":["post-34077","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-a-case-of-the-human-condition","tag-dont-miss","tag-garden","tag-hardscape","tag-house","tag-landscaping","tag-side-yard","tag-staircases"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/server.stagingweb3.net\/barbarafalconernewhall\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/34077","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/server.stagingweb3.net\/barbarafalconernewhall\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/server.stagingweb3.net\/barbarafalconernewhall\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/server.stagingweb3.net\/barbarafalconernewhall\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/server.stagingweb3.net\/barbarafalconernewhall\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=34077"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/server.stagingweb3.net\/barbarafalconernewhall\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/34077\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":49481,"href":"https:\/\/server.stagingweb3.net\/barbarafalconernewhall\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/34077\/revisions\/49481"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/server.stagingweb3.net\/barbarafalconernewhall\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/49476"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/server.stagingweb3.net\/barbarafalconernewhall\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=34077"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/server.stagingweb3.net\/barbarafalconernewhall\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=34077"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/server.stagingweb3.net\/barbarafalconernewhall\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=34077"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}