Side yard becomes private oasis

+ Side yard becomes private oasis
Spanish Main Yacht Club residents Jim and Phyllis McGuire decided to put their green thumbs to use this past winter by creating a small oasis in their side yard.

With the help of their new neighbors, Mike and Cathy Landis, the foursome transformed the space between their two houses into a little park, bench and all. A shell pathway, dotted with potted plants and flowerbeds, curves around a giant palm tree and leads from the McGuires’ front sidewalk and the Landis’ back porch area.

After hours of planning and planting, the garden has become a place to sit back, relax and, sometimes, interact with local wildlife.

“It’s a beautiful area with lots of wildlife visiting us,” said Phyllis McGuire of her new garden and the mangrove behind it. “I even saw an otter the other day besides the usual egrets, herons and ducks.”