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How to improve the look of the front of house
ferrara.fabriziaG1NoYdg3
Posts: 14
Hello all :-)I’m doing a little planning for when the good weather arrives. I’d like to improve the look of the front of the house. I’m based in the UK, Epping precisely which is just outside of London, towards east.
The house is east facing.
I don’t have an actual photo handy but I can add it, if this one doesn’t help.
I’m a beginner at gardening and always lived in flats.
The first element I’d like to tackle is the driveway. I have pressure-washed it but it’s still dirty and weeds grow constantly. Any suggestions on how to improve the look of it without spending much money (ideally a diy job)?
I don’t have an actual photo handy but I can add it, if this one doesn’t help.
I’m a beginner at gardening and always lived in flats.
The first element I’d like to tackle is the driveway. I have pressure-washed it but it’s still dirty and weeds grow constantly. Any suggestions on how to improve the look of it without spending much money (ideally a diy job)?
Where you see the number 1, I’d like to put a big pot with wisteria. I’d like it to grow on the front of the house. Not sure it will work given the fact that I’m east facing. I’d like not to put the wisteria in the ground as I’m worried of it damaging the house.
Where you see n.3 there are stones at the moment. I’d like to remove them and just have grass? There are weeds growing here as well so I’m hoping to workaround the problem with grass?
N2, I’m planning to attach some trellis to the wall to make it a little prittier and not just a white wall. The space behind the white wall is quite spacious (not sure the photos makes it justice. In a previous post I was suggested to have some vertical plants on the back and at the front plants that would grow over the white wall to cover it a bit which I like as idea. I’d put the bins (which are in the left corner in the picture) in some kind of wooden structure.
That’s all I have thought of for now. I’d like to have some suggestions from more experienced gardeners on whether what I have thought is doable (particularly the wisteria) and if maybe you have more suggestions?
in general, I like a relaxed not fancy look. I live near the Epping forest so I’d like to have a lot of green and perhaps hypstery look. Anything that smells good as well!
That’s all I have thought of for now. I’d like to have some suggestions from more experienced gardeners on whether what I have thought is doable (particularly the wisteria) and if maybe you have more suggestions?
in general, I like a relaxed not fancy look. I live near the Epping forest so I’d like to have a lot of green and perhaps hypstery look. Anything that smells good as well!
Thank you!
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Posts
I wouldn't bother with a small patch of grass - it'll be a pain to maintain.
Why not plant something low-maintenance there - many tall grasses would look (and sound) good e.g. Calamagrostis karl foerster and I'm sure there are many, many more plants and grasses that would suit.
Once your drive is clean, you could use Pathclear to stop the weeds and Patio Magic or Wet & Forget to keep it clean. You'll need a sprayer, ideally with a long wand which will save a lot of backache!
Those are the products I use on my drive and it works very well.
Billericay - Essex
Knowledge is knowing that a tomato is a fruit.
Wisdom is not putting it in a fruit salad.
I had done a little research and read that wisteria can be grow in a pot as long as it’s a big one and that the Chinese type grows anticlockwise. I was hoping to cover a little the bricks and give it a different look. Any other suggestions on how to achieve that?
In my opinion a "domestic" power washer doesn't have the strength to cope with a really dirty drive. My neighbour used his power washer on his, and although it made a difference it wasn't all that good. He then employed our window cleaner who has an industrial power washer and it did a fantastic job. (In fact l was so impressed l got him to do our old patio and was very pleased).
He then sealed the driveway. This was around a year ago and apart from the odd weed which l think is inevitable, it has remained in good condition as far as l can see when l took a parcel over the other day.
I appreciate you may be on a tight budget but it might be worth looking into the cost of getting someone in, or hiring a more powerful one yourself.
@WonkyWomble 's suggestion is a good one if you can manage without having the whole area paved.
Pots are OK but they can be tricky to maintain. Bear in mind that if you have a Wisteria, even in a large pot, you will need to take into account the "rain shadow" from the roof.
I can appreciate your wanting to soften the whole area, but it might be better to concentrate on planting in the driveway section and use it as a distraction from the house itself
@Emptyheadtime
I took a note of the product, I will give it a go. I am assuming it is not too difficult to use?
Also I did not mention that I have weeds growing also to the side of the driveway so @Pete.8
the reason why I thought of having grass to the side of the driveway is so that I could stop having to deal with weeds. I like the idea of trees and bulbs @WonkyWomble
but what would I put under the trees? Would there be bark or just soil? The weeds would still grow back, no?
I might give up on the idea of the Wisteria then - there is nothing else i could do, is there?
@AnniD
ah good to know - thinking about this mine might be a not good one. Do I power wash first and then fix the joints I guess?
@ViewAhead
not a silly question at all, and something to think about since sometimes there are 2 x cars parked there (not regularly though)
Any thoughts on the trellis on the wall? It should work right?