mark out a path, drive, etc that HAS to be there..and then do the rest in plantinig beds..
myself I would put in some absolutely beautiful fruit
trees, like cherries, pears, apples, or whatever, dwarf ones would work well ..and then underplant them with some herbs,
perennial vegetables, and flowers..esp edible flowers.
just rip the top sod off where the beds will go, put in the fruit trees and the plant in your flowers, if the area is large see if you can beg divisions and cuttings from people with large flower gardens, otherwise start out with some fast growing seeds to get things established quickly and add perennials as time goes on and they become avail..
you can leave your paths to grass or put them into hardsurfacing