Research the native trees, shrubs and plants that grow in your area. and
develop your own plan. You live in a great spot in Texas where you can
get many of these diversified natives. They can be obtained by:

1. Joining the Native Plant Society of Texas and get get free plants at
the meetings and events. http://www.npsot.org

http://aggie-horticulture.tamu.edu/o...ndexcommon.htm
- shrubs

http://aggie-horticulture.tamu.edu/o.../tamuhort.html - trees
http://www.npsot.org/plant_lists/deer_resistant.html - deer
resistant plants
http://www.ci.austin.tx.us/growgreen...earchplant.cfm -
recommended plants for Austin
2. They can be dug up off of easements and ditches.
3. They can be grown from seed.
4. They can be bought retail. (buy small and cheap - they will get to
mature size quickly)

Take your time on making selections. It's more fun that way. Get to it
when you can. Nature is on her own time table.

Here's a shot of my old yard before I embarked on a years long project:
http://www.hal-pc.org/~garden/Desert.JPG

Here's a few years later:
http://www.hal-pc.org/~garden/Westside.JPG

Here's the yard after I ripped out everything over a 2-3 period of time
and replaced with natives:
http://www.hal-pc.org/~garden/Dscn0261a.jpg

J
(was a commercial landscaper for 3.5 years)

Exit Stage Jeff wrote:
I'm wondering if anybody here has any experiences with some of the local
landscaping 'architects'. I live on a cul-de-sac in Round Rock and my back
yard is rather wide... and empty! The house is about 4 months old. I have
some basic ideas as to what I want - but I lack the time to take care of it.

The work will probably involve:
1) Removing existing grass as required
2) Installing borders in these areas (cement or steel)
3) Installing railroad ties to create a veggie garden
* You probably don't want to do this*
4) Installation of trees/shrubs

Thanks,
Jeff
--
J. Kolenovsky, 2003 Honorable Mention Award, Keep Houston Beautiful
ô¿ô - http://www.celestialhabitats.com - environmental resource
ô¿ô - http://www.peakoil.org and http://www.endofsuburbia.com -
start becoming attuned to the "new lifestyle" ahead of you
ô¿ô - http://www.hal-pc.org/~garden/personal.html - personal