In the third of a series (here are parts one and two), Genevieve Brennan takes a glimpse into the Lower Haight's hidden backyard oases. (Oasi? Oasises?)

When you imagine the perfect backyard, is it, perhaps, attached to a perfectly restored 1892 home with actual gas fixtures? Does it have a sunny deck perfect for barbecuing, a fire pit, and maybe even a bocce court? Ring it with tall old pine trees for some woodsy flair, and know that this yard does exist, not too far from you - on Page and Divisadero - and it belongs to David Piazza. Piazza lived on this block for 12 years before he saw the house up for sale in 2008 and decided it was fate. He moved in after renovating a year later; the yard, however, was still a dust pit. "I had this awesome space," Piazza says, "So I needed to do something with it." He called in the landscape architects from Paxton's Gate, who remastered the outdoor plot, which includes a deck that is larger than many Lower Haight studio apartments. They strung steel cables along one side for flowering vines to grow on, and built a living wall on the other side, topped with an old stained glass panel from the house that was found neglected in the garage. They also installed a long narrow greenhouse in an unused nook alongside the house. There's room for potted plants, a grill, and a dining table. Stairs down from the deck lead to a stone path through the leafy yard. One side is bordered by an old white carriage house that Piazza has been told is in permit limbo and therefore hasn't been touched in years. The building blocks some sun but brings an old San Francisco vibe to the yard, and the inside, he has heard, still smells like horses. Paxton's Gate entirely redid the backyard to include lush plantings of "medieval looking stuff", as Piazza puts it. The modern-looking firepit lights up with the turn of a large brass key. An automated watering system precisely quenches each plant's thirst, be it a potted herb or the many succulents and ferns that dot the yard. Piazza kept most of the bordering pine trees in order to maintain "a little bit of woods in the city." The other original greenery is a large jade plant growing happily under the deck. Gardening now is trial and error, Piazza says, but he gets help from Flora Grubb Gardens. Aside from occasional weeding, he can sit back and enjoy. He entertains more these days, he says. And why the bocce court? "It's the one sport you can play drinking a beer," Piazza says. "Actually, it's encouraged." It's also popular with his friends' kids, he notes - the bocce, not the drinking.

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Thanks to David for letting us feature his outdoor oasis. Know of a profile-worthy backyard in the Lower Haight? Let us know. tips [at] haighteration {{dot}} com.