that said, i have at least installed gutters and rain barrels to irrigate our garden(s), which is good… i just haven’t actually made a garden yet. oops! we do have two pounds of native cover crop seeds that we’re going to sow at the beginning of September to start healing our rough, uncared-for dirt yard

I'd suggest doing some decompaction (if needed, and assuming you don't have topsoil), before you seed. Add any compost or amendments you've got on hand (if any) too, and mix them in. as an aside, alders are super tough, and nitrogen fixing, and drop a ton of biomass (organic matter). Not sure what your objective is, but you could consider them, assuming you don't mind taller shrubs.

Great basin sounds cool! I'd love to see birtsle cones!