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How do you garden?

Slow-wormSlow-worm Posts: 1,630
edited May 2022 in The potting shed
Do you have neat rows of plants & flowers, maybe you group them? Do you go for a Japanese look? Do you grow for show, or have a dominant favourite? Are trees your thing? Maybe you're really weird and like vast patches of bare gravel with a minimalist look? 

For me, it's all about wildlife, and as little faff as possible! I have to have 'organised mess' and full borders.
I rarely plant anything that needs a lot of care, or needs special soil, or that slugs & snails like (although that doesn't always work out, lol). I love flowers - 99% of my plants flower. 
My rule of thumb has always been 'if it doesn't do well after a few attempts, don't buy any more'. I very rarely feed anything, I don't like pots although I have a few because I can't stand killing healthy plants e.g. mint, saplings.
I do not like things with thorns, not even roses - I'll happily throw them out if I can't give them away.
A shed is absolutely essential - as is a small paddling pool (for us, not kids!).

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  • B3B3 Posts: 27,505
    I just act as a referee in most of my garden. I have been known to rearrange the pots on the patio for aesthetic reasons. I dislike straight lines in my garden so I'd never do rows.
    In London. Keen but lazy.
  • nutcutletnutcutlet Posts: 27,445
    On the edge of wilderness. Or maybe over the edge as I've got older. Wildlife first


    In the sticks near Peterborough
  • JennyJJennyJ Posts: 10,576
    I don't like to see bare soil so I plant closely and let things self-seed where they will, then it's a matter of refereeing and making sure the more vigorous things don't crowd out the others.
    Doncaster, South Yorkshire. Soil type: sandy, well-drained
  • bertrand-mabelbertrand-mabel Posts: 2,697
    We garden with wildlife in our eyes but also with fruit and veg for us another must for the whole year.
    Our small orchard has paths so that we "humans" can walk through but the fruit trees (areas around them are cleared) have long grass and wildflowers for the wildlife...and maybe one day we will get a barn owl in our box.
    Some may visit our garden and think it is a mess but we believe we have got the balance for us and wildlife.
  • robairdmacraignilrobairdmacraignil Posts: 782
    Promoting wildlife is the priority for me in the garden here as well. Nice to get some vegetables and fruit also and experimenting with plants I haven't grown before. Latest additions to the garden are some clearance shelf skimmia and a curry plant and a budget supermarket bought olive tree. Have salsify just started blooming since planting it last year for the first time and not harvesting it. Wildlife about the place causes the odd problem with the plants but makes the garden a much nicer place to spend time. Planted my beetroot in multiple places today in the hope it will confuse the badger who got almost all of them last year.

    Happy gardening!
    https://www.youtube.com/user/sustainableveg/videos
  • IlikeplantsIlikeplants Posts: 894
    My garden was full of leylandii type firs and various big trees looking very dark and gloomy - I think they just wanted evergreens that needed little attention. I’ve slowly put my stamp on it, removing those and adding more flowers and flowering shrubs and fruits and veg. I’ve also grown quite a few things from propagation. It’s still a work in progress.
  • WAMSWAMS Posts: 1,960
    I like a mess. But also obelisks. And trellis. 

    My big enemy is grass. It creeps into my borders and so I have to weed...

    I have given up on taking nettles out of the borders because of the caterpillars.

    Don't spray but don't condemn those who do.

    I have a lawn for the kids/dog but it has bare patches and I can't bring myself to care tbh 


  • Slow-wormSlow-worm Posts: 1,630
    Great to see so many wildlife enthusiasts! 
    I remember my grandparents' gardens - all flowers, trees, shrubs, veg, some lawn to sit in deck chairs on.. and ours when I was growing up - some flower borders, a few trees, a rough wild patch, and a big lawn that we scraped patches out of by playing, and yellow patches where our dog wee was - nothing was perfect, nobody used pellets or chemicals, and the wildlife was just a natural part of everything. 😊
  • ShepherdsBarnShepherdsBarn Posts: 401
    Photos would be great, everyone! 😊
  • Valley GardenerValley Gardener Posts: 2,851
    Im a bit haphazard,cater for all the birds,I would describe it as a cottage garden,a few herbs dotted around,I grow things that the bees like,hate rows and love perennials,only grow bedding plants for the tubs,plus a few Cosmos, No lawn,but wish my path was curvy.
    The whole truth is an instrument that can only be played by an expert.
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