I want to do something a little unusual with my lawn, I have absolutely no physical experience, just research, and my questions are really complex, so please forgive the "wall of text".

Some important facts. I live in NE Tennessee, Zone 6b, I have three large dogs and two small children that are a very important factor in everything I want to do. The dirt currently seems to be red clay and very depleted, and very hard packed. There are several large trees involved, some dead, some needing care, others needing trimmed, the current state of the trees leaves the majority of the one acre yard in shade, but not deep dark shade, most of the day, with dappled sun being the direct light they do get.

The overall plan. I want to turn the yard into a partial sun natural looking area, with some very "woodsy" type of raised beds, and a "flowered meadow" kind of feel to the lawn. The area we are in is very wooded, and the lawns surrounding us already have something of this look due to nature encroaching, the other residents either ever tried or gave up trying to keep the perfect manicured lawn. I have started a compost pile, which is quite modest at the moment, but its getting there.

So, on to the questions.

1. The trees will be the one of the first things to get work. I will be removing the ones that must be removed, getting treatment for the sickly ones that can survive with care, and trimming out the healthy ones just enough to promote health create the partial shade Im fairly sure I need to get the look Im trying for. My question is, if it is possible, should I strip the leaves (if any) off of what comes down for the compost pile? And is it safe to chip the wood for the pile as well, or start a new pile with just the wood and incorporate it later after it has dried and broken down some? Would any disease in the tree survive composting? I have no plans to use the chips in the landscape, just as compost if it can be used as such.

2. I know the soil needs some major help, and I want to go about it in as natural a way as possible, since the kids and the dogs will be on it when its finished. Im not in a big rush, and I must work on it in sections anyway since I cant keep everyone off of all of it all the time it needs. So my thoughts were to do some cover crops, and let nature do some of the hard work for me. My thoughts were to do a summer cover crop and then a winter cover crop, then plant in the spring for each section. Would this work? Is it over kill? What would be the best crops for this? Or should I stick with the alfalfa and its growing season, which Ive been reading is the best for soil rehab?

3. Whatever cover crop I do, I plan to mow and turn by hand, not till, Im afraid of damaging the trees, which are quite old and have very ranging roots. Not having any experience, at all, just research; is there a best time for this? Or a best method? A lot of what I have been reading simply does not go into the mow and turn method; it just says it is an option.

4. Once I have done all that, I plan to plant a custom mix of seeds, not all of them grass, to get a flowered meadow kind of look through the warm months, and hopefully some color during the cold months as well. This list includes some grasses, herbs, and other plants that will lend to the over all "wild" feel. I can find no information on how to decide the mix ratio of these seeds. How does one decide how much of each seed to use in a mix?

5. As I mentioned, I want to do some slightly raised flower beds. I hope to do a few of these, as yet undetermined the size, shape, or number, and I hope to have flowers and perhaps some fruiting plants. Should I go ahead and plan in the boxes, get them set up and ready but not planted, or go ahead and get the lawn established, and then work the boxes in?

I know, its a lot, I'm sorry. I just like having the info I need before I dig into something. Thank you so much for any advice you can offer.

Char