My Backyard Garden in So Cal

[phongvu]

Hello everyone, check out my So Cal backyard garden video at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sQ7FJsXLe6U&t=25s and let me know what you think.  Thanks.

[Johnny Eat Fruit]

Good luck with your backyard garden set-up. It looks very nice indeed. Interesting layout out with the 16" pavers.

Not sure I agree with you in regards to covering up the feeder roots in your sub-tropical fruit trees. Keep us posted in the years to come with the growth and production of your fruit trees. Here are are few of my concerns about your layout.

I don't know of any farmers that cover up their expanding and growing feeder roots in the dirt for fruit trees to keep the grower's feet clean. Growing plants in my opinion are about providing the best environment to maximize growth and quality fruit. Please don't take offense but I wonder when I am watching your video how are these various trees going to cope long term with the environment you placed them in. In drought years how is the expanding rooting going to get enough water.? The paver blocks prevent oxjgen and water from getting to these expanding roots. If we have good heavy rain in winter the water will soak thru your sand in between the pavers but what happens after the soil dries up? What effect will that have on growth and the quality of fruit? I guess time will tell. I see our Florida Growers planting in open spaces with plenty of water. Your situation is exactly the opposite. Not something I would do personally.

Hear in Socal rainwater only occurs 3-4 months a year at the most, (Dec-March). What's your long-term plan to keep the expanding root system healthy. Sorry to be skeptical but I see major flaws in your strategy. That being said I hope it works out for you. Do a video in 2026 and if your trees are flourishing I will adopt your Philosophy.

Best Wishes

Johnny

[Victoria Ave]

In theory if one is so concerned with the cleanliness of their hardscape it could be hosed down once a week and some would permeate into the soil and the pavers would act like mulch. But maybe only the top inch of soil would wet from that action.

[Seanny]

So much space left.
Can I leave some potted plants there?
All I’m for is visitation right.

[Eggo]

I have a similiar setup for my parents with 12" pavers. Going on almost 8 years now.  Citrus, mango, longan, lychee, guavas, wax jambu, persimmon, jujube, anonas. I thought after the pavers some of the plants really began to thrive especially the lychees and a mango on turpentine rootstock.  The only plant that died during this time was a plum tree which may not have liked it but it was also an old tree 25+ years.  I feel that the pavers acted as a natural mulch. There may also be some exhange of oxygen through the gaps between each one. The area is pretty much clay soil, the pavers seem to help a bit with drainage. It doesn't waterlog as long as before like in the past. Also when I lift a paver it was always moist with quite a bit of bugs thriving even in the middle of summer.  Only downside is any dropped fruit would be heavily damaged ahah. Overall, I thought it was a success.

[johnb51]

I'm not sure I get what the reason was for covering your entire yard with pavers.   It seems very eccentric to me, but of course everyone is entitled to be eccentric in any way he pleases.  To me it feels like you're not treating your trees (or your soil) like living things.  I could understand creating paths between the tree with pavers if you have a dirt phobia.

[Seanny]

No need to mow!

[johnb51]

No need to mow!

That can be achieved in other ways.

[palmcity]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sQ7FJsXLe6U&t=25s

and let me know what you think.  Thanks.

Well, I track sand/dirt into my house daily on my shoes/feet/flip flops/ etc. so I immediately like the idea of pavers near the house.

On the side of the house you mentioned flowering plants. If you do not have night blooming jasmine consider purchasing one as the aroma is overwhelming if you like jasmine smell and I like Jasmine. I would set in the swing at night and enjoy the aroma. A lot of people never purchase night blooming jasmine as when they go to the nursery during the day, it's never flowering and not fragrant during the daytime thus unable to smell the aroma and less interest in the plant. If you don't like the smell of Jasmine... Don't purchase it... But it grows easily and fast.

Pros::: Your plants seem to be growing good with the pavers so great. Someone else mentioned how the soil seemed to stay moist under them with more bugs/worms/etc. living there so it sounds like a good idea to try for more of us.
Cons:::Over the long term, it will be hard to get organic material between the pavers and to the roots. I commonly chop & drop most all plants on the ground under the trees to degrade into the soil for the living plants to use. Sooo, not sure how this will go in the long term; but plant growth definitely looks good so far.

Thanks for posting.

[Seanny]

Backyards around here are small.
Most are covered with concrete or pavers.
Mines is around 2000 sf.
Cost only $2000 to fully paved.

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30 year old pavers in my yard.
Pop up pavers where I want to put down a tree.
Pavers keep bottom of pots clean.
No paver sands applied.
It’s weird when I walk into a yard full of dirt and weeds.

[johnb51]

I get it, but I definitely wouldn't have put them so close to the trees, and hopefully he didn't use a soil compactor before laying them down.

[greenerpasteur]

Your backyard is huge.

One thing I would definitely do differently is get different color paver so the wall and ground doesn't match. It's too sterile looking. It's too gray for me.

Also I think you miss an opportunity to lay some pipe down for drip irrigation and have it automatically water it for you.

I have all my tropical fruit trees and herb on drip irrigation system.

[brian]

I don't think the pavers will be a problem.  When I was in India I was surprised to see huge fruit trees everywhere, all along the city streets, surrounded by concrete. 

I don't know if these in particular are fruit trees, but I saw jackfruit, mango, sapodilla, growing on sidewalks like this.