We ended up putting in about 50% sod, with perimeter of rocks, boulders, and mulch. I made a note of shadows/sun in the morning, afternoon, and evening, then placed: three evergreens on the north boundary to eventually provide a wind break, two dwarf fruit trees on the south boundary (the most/longest amount of sun), and one oak on the west boundary (to block summer sun into home). I started out wanting to place flowers in our perimeter mulch beds, but have since decided on vegetation (bushes, grasses, etc.) native to the area- they need less water, and I spend far less time weeding. And its still pretty.