Most Toronto and North York rear yards are small. Small is not the problem; fighting it is.
One surface, not three
A single material across the whole yard reads as larger. Three zones in three finishes chops it up.
Full-width layout
Run the patio the full width of the lot instead of leaving a token strip of grass on each side. That strip never gets used and always looks like leftover.
Build the seating in
Seat walls and benches take up far less room than furniture and never need storing.
Height for privacy, not footprint
Columnar trees and layered screening give privacy without eating floor area, which a wide hedge does.
Light it
A lit yard reads as a room and extends the day. In a small space this matters more than anything else.
What backfires
Diagonal patterns on a tiny patio and a circular feature in a narrow yard. Both fight the shape of the lot and both create a lot of expensive cuts.
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ReadHow to phase a landscape project without wasting money
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ReadFree estimate
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