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front garden

saradelpozosaradelpozo Posts: 37
edited September 2018 in Garden design
Hello,

I'm looking for a bit of inspiration... this is my front garden, a blank canvas... would you please help me to pick some plants?

Nodoby in the area seem to have any fence or boundary, and I've got three conifers stumps at the fronts that I doubt i could remove anyway. All my ideas so far are:

 1. No paving, other that the path to the house and under the window.

 2. Ideally no lawn, I live at the bottom of a slope and I find it difficult cut, and well... I don't really like grass.

 3. maybe a rockery... would it be better at the front in lieu of a fence? what plants would you use?

 4. I like the idea of a strawbery tree or bush (arbutus unedo). An obscure sign of where I'm from (Madrid, Spain) and apparently birds like it's fruit. Ornamental grasses are also growing on me.

 5. Wildlife friendly.

 6. Behind the road sign  grow loads of aquilegias and little poppies  wich I love, but nothing past june. Any bulbs/ flowers you could suggest to last all summer and autumn as well?

  I live in a corner plot in the north east of England, so  anything will be at the mercy of a lot of bitter winds in winter. The pavement is in the east side, my neighbours cars  to the south, and the path to the house is in the north side of the garden. If the soil is anything like the back garden, it'll be full of clay. Currently I get the sun till about half three/four o'clock on the pavement side.
All the little annuals are my neighbours... I also own about a foot or two after the path, but I need to clarify the exact boundaries with the council .

Posts

  • B3B3 Posts: 27,505
    Sarah, it might be a good idea to delete the pic with your road name on it. 
    In London. Keen but lazy.
  • saradelpozosaradelpozo Posts: 37
    edited September 2018
    thanks... it was to give another idea of the plot


  • B3B3 Posts: 27,505
    Click on the flower icon top right and you will find d the edit button
    In London. Keen but lazy.
  • B3B3 Posts: 27,505
    Well done :)
    Someone will be along with some useful advice
    In London. Keen but lazy.
  • Lizzie27Lizzie27 Posts: 12,494
    Hello Sara, Are you thinking of taking up all the grass? If you don't want the area paved or grassed, that only leaves gravel, for which you will need to lay a membrane underneath.  I'm thinking of your arbutus unedo in the middle (but check whether it's hardy enough for your area) with some big rocks here and there (rather than a proper rockery - which can be a pain to maintain). You could have planting pockets in between for your ornamental grasses, some perennial plants and various bulbs such as dwarf daffs and crocuses in the Spring, Alliums in early summer, autumn crocuses and possibly snowdrops in a shady area tucked in by one of the big boulders. It would initially be a lot of hard work so perhaps you could some quotes from a professional.

    Hope this gives you some initial ideas - I am sure the others will have some good suggestions as well.
    North East Somerset - Clay soil over limestone
  • JennyJJennyJ Posts: 10,576
    Planting with a bark mulch might also work, if you don't like the look of gravel.
    Doncaster, South Yorkshire. Soil type: sandy, well-drained
  • LittlegrowerLittlegrower Posts: 80
    Try adding organic matter to your clay soil to make it more free draining

    For Spring flowering you can get tulips, daffodils, ranunculus

    For Summer, gladioli, freesias, oreintal lillies and begonias 

    My personal favourite for late summer and autumn is are dahlias, there are so many shapes, sizes and colours and they last up until the first hard frost. I love dahlias!

    With bulbs you can make a 'bulb lasagne' which just means planting bulbs at different depths so you'll get a succession of blooms rather than all the bulbs blooming and fading at the same time. 
  • saradelpozosaradelpozo Posts: 37
    Thanks everybody for  the suggestions.... I forgot I had posted this!

    I'm going to investigate further the strawberry tree, and then not sure what else... I had tought of a small rockery somewhere and different areas, each with different plants: meadow flowers, bulbs... not sure if it'll look too busy though

    I just hate mowing the grass but I think it'll have to stay. I think it's a shame just to get rid of it when you don't need to.
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