Backyard Designs

My plan was to design a maintenance free patio, but now I’m constantly having to pull hundreds of little grass shoots up from my patio and it’s anything but maintenance free! Please help!

We moved into our recently purchased house here in (MI), now that the snow is finally gone and the everything is growing/blooming, we are finding that the landscaping has some issues. The main problem is that weeds and grass is starting to grow through the white landscaping rocks. I’m not sure how long the landscaping has been there. In some of the areas I can see the black mesh material. I want to have a nicely landscape yard, and I guess I actually have that, except for the weeds and grass popping up. Any suggestions?

I am trying to grow bamboo along the wall to block out the apartment building next door, but that will take years and I’m not sure how that will mix with water saving plants and I want grass or something like that. Is that all possible?

I got a lot of space, no fence, i dont even have grass yet. So what software should i do to design a backyard?

recently, I had installed an above ground 12 foot diameter pool. the grass has been killed off around the surrounding area, and I have only had time to put a few potted tropical plants in places.
I wont be doing any major work now with summer almost over, but I want to design over the winter something nice to do for next year. A running deck even to the top of the pool isnt an option. but what about one that is 1 foot off the ground? so that it could be walked on, have pool toys sit there and that way my kids and i dont have to walk in the mud around it?
should it be wood or some other material? wood seems like high maintenance. I guess I could just build a landscaping bed but it might get ruined with too muich water when it splashes out and it drains when i clean it once a month.

thank you for any suggestions.:)

My roommate told me salting the ground would be best…does anyone know anything about this?…please help me out yahooers!!!
I moved in to a house and the city is going to fine me if there is grass growing in the rocks…they already sent me a letter…my roommate told me salting would be best…there is no vegitation around or anything, just the street and driveway…what is the best thing to do?…thanks yahooers!!!

I am thinking of getting about a 300-400 dollar above ground pool. We live in the desert so we dont have grass. We have gravel, like landscaping gravel.
I thought an old comforter then a tarp but what are someother ideas?

I don’t want to let the grass grow right up around it.
Should I use stones or bark and should I put
plastic down first?
Thanks!

I just bought a new house and the yard is fairly small. Nothing has been done in the back since it’s a new house…it’s all dirt. I know I’d like a patio and grass (I have a dog and she needs her grass!) and I’m trying to get ideas for designs. Any help would be appreciated.