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Totally overwhelmed...the usual stuff

kasjkkasjk Posts: 137
in Garden design
It's the usual issue....bought a house, loved the fact that the garden was a clean slate, and now I'm stuck for ideas.

I have spent hours, days, weeks, trawling through Pinterest, Instagram, internet in general, watched all kinds of gardening programmes, read gardening books... And yet I still can't seem to figure out how and where to start!

I just know that I want a beautiful cottage garden with lots and lots of flowers, greenery and not a flat, boring lawn. I have attached an image and as you can see I have made a start (albeit very small).... I have started planting a hydrangea Annabelle 'hedge' to the right and I think maybe I want it to go the length of the house. And maybe put in a gravel path all along the side of the house. 

The one tree that has a red dot is coming down and the area will be a compost bin/vegetable/fruit garden. The orange line is where the property ends and they neighbour's begin.

I am really at a loss as to how to start as I want to have a clear plan before I start digging, but I just can't seem to get anywhere. Can anyone please help? Any input is very much appreciated... 

Posts

  • K67K67 Posts: 2,506
    Is this in th UK?
  • Hostafan1Hostafan1 Posts: 34,889
    measure it all out and draw a scale plan .
    Decide what you want, be it room for swings/trampolines for kids, a veg area, beds, hedges, whatever you want and just doodle with a pencil and rub out when it's not right.
    Devon.
  • GemmaJFGemmaJF Posts: 2,286
    Have you tried specific books on cottage gardens?. Geoff Hamilton's Cottage Gardens and Carol Klein Life in a Cottage Garden are two I would really recommend. Geoff did a great job of exploring the history of the cottage garden and modernizing it to include modern cultivars and methods. Also available as DVD.
  • kasjkkasjk Posts: 137
    @K67 no this is Norway. I'm from here but lived in England for nearly 20 years, most of my adult life, it's really what I am used to, especially when it comes to gardens and houses. This is the first house I own over here :)

    @Hostafan1 I've already drawn everything up, but haven't measured anything, I should probably do that. I suppose as well with a garden, it's not instant. It takes years, and I can add and take away as I go along. 

    @GemmaJF I have actually watched the series with Carol Klein, but haven't read the book. I'll have a look into Geoff Hamilton's book too. I follow Wollerton Old Hall on Instagram and that is such a spectacular garden, will use some of their ideas, although on a much smaller scale :)
  • KeenOnGreenKeenOnGreen Posts: 1,831
    @Hostafan1 is absolutely right, get your plan sorted on paper, and avoid buying specific plants now (even though you are probably itching to do so).  When you do come to thinking about plants, split them as follows, to make the many choices not so overwhelming;

    Trees - Every garden should have a tree, and every gardener should try to plant one (at least).  Think about size especially, habit, foliage colour/fruiting/flowering, etc.  Be really careful about where you plant them, as it's not easy/great to move them later
    Shrubs - These are the backbone of a garden, whether evergreen or deciduous.  Try to get a few good shrubs, with contrasting foliage/texture/flowers, and place them strategically
    Perennials - You have a reasonable size plot, better to buy them in 3's or more, and create sizeable groups.  It rarely looks good when you just buy one of lots of different ones, they just get lost
    Annuals - You can choose these each year, and they will give you instant (if temporary) colour

    You look like you have roads bordering either side of your plot, so you may want to think about whether you use fencing or plants to screen this off from the neighbours (but that may be a peculiarly British custom!)
  • FairygirlFairygirl Posts: 55,117
    Absolutely draw a plan to scale. Otherwise, you can end up with what looks like room for half a dozen shrubs, only to find that there's really only room for one.
    Ditto seating/dining areas etc. It's a common error when designing a space  :)

    You need to also research what will actually grow in your area and your climate. It's another basic, and if ignored, just leads to lots of disappointment and plants which don't thrive. 
    A wander round your area, and maybe asking people what plants they have is always helpful. I appreciate it's a bit tricky just now though. Following @KeenOnGreen's method is also the way to go, but make sure you have an idea of what you want it to look like. Once you have a scale plan, copy it, and then draw rough outlines of areas for planting etc. Remember to think about verticals too.  :)
    It's a place where beautiful isn't enough of a word....



    I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...
  • josusa47josusa47 Posts: 3,530
    A traditional cottage garden is surrounded by walls, fences or hedges, which yours is not.  Are you allowed them?  In the UK there are some housing developments where "open plan" is enforced and people cannot raise boundary structures.  Though I see you have a hedge on one side.  Walls, fences and hedges all have their pros and cons.  Are you on good terms with the people beyond the orange line?  Maybe you could start by agreeing a partition of some sort between their plot and yours, and work together to build/plant whatever you decide.

    And don't be disheartened by the time it is taking!  Gardening is a marathon, not a sprint.  Mistakes made through lack of research or planning can be difficult and costly to put right; for instance, if you put in permanent plants near each other and later decide to move some, it might be difficult to dig some out without disturbing the others.  Developing a new garden is particularly difficult at present with so many retail outlets closed and mail order suppliers struggling to fulfil orders.  So take your time and enjoy the small successes along the way.
  • kasjkkasjk Posts: 137
    Thank you all for the comments, you all make so much sense. Sometimes I think when you're on your own in a project it gets very overwhelming and you end up not seeing the forest for trees haha. 
    @josusa47 yes, luckily we are allowed fencing/hedges. And I do agree, it's probably more of an English thing than it is here, but then again, I'm half and half :) and my boyfriend is from England and the first thing we said was 'we need to plant a hedge!'.
    It's very flat and open here so I'd love some trees, large shrubs and a hedge.
  • JoeXJoeX Posts: 1,783
    kasjk said:
    Thank you all for the comments, you all make so much sense. Sometimes I think when you're on your own in a project it gets very overwhelming and you end up not seeing the forest for trees haha. 
    @josusa47 yes, luckily we are allowed fencing/hedges. And I do agree, it's probably more of an English thing than it is here, but then again, I'm half and half :) and my boyfriend is from England and the first thing we said was 'we need to plant a hedge!'.
    It's very flat and open here so I'd love some trees, large shrubs and a hedge.
    Plant up some planters while youre making your plans :)

    If thats Norway, I would definitely not make any British assumptions on gardening - have a look around the gardens and parks in your town, see what they have done (there is probably a good reason for anything that seems unusual thats worth knowing).
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