It looks quite a charming garden and just in need of a little bit of maintenance. It will look terribly bare with just grass. I would have no compunction in getting rid of that brown conifer and that grassy hump at the middle of the top bit. The lawn would look a lot better if it was edged properly.
However, back to your plan. I don't think you will need to put more topsoil on. Dug, levelled, raked and turfed would be the way to go. The gravel will be a bummer to lift unless it's on a membrane...............
'Optimism is the faith that leads to achievement' - Helen Keller
just think of the education having a well stocked garden will be to your young children. Watching the development through the seasons and wildlife it'll attract. You have help them identify birds and bugs etc, More so than a football pitch can ever do.
The gravel is on membrane. I do not just want a square patch of grass with bland fence panels, I do want to add some raised borders ect. The garden in its current state is just not our pup of tea.
MrToast, you may not get the answer you want here. This forum is filled with people who love gardens and gardening. You, yourself, said that the garden would suit someone who loves gardening. We love gardening and you are asking our advice on how to dig it all up.
Dordogne and Norfolk. Clay in Dordogne, sandy in Norfolk.
Well, it's Mr Toast's garden and he wants to put his mark on it and has asked for advice - my advice is to do it bit at a time - divide the garden into small areas and decide how you want each area to look then tackle them one at a time.
Doing the whole job at once would undoubtedly result in loads of mud whenever it rained, and with a family about that would get carted indoors and would cause loadsa stress.
While you're working on one area give the children free rein to play in the rest of the garden - my children would be building camps behind some of those shrubs, son would have been playing cowboys, leaping out on us from behind a bush and daughter would've been in a Fairy Dell, wearing an old bridesmaid dress and having a fairies' picnic with her toys. (Quite gender stereotypical my two, until daughter learnt how to climb trees then she turned into a tomboy )
Then, bit by bit you'll have worked around the garden, changing the borders and making raised beds and a place for a climbing frame and a sitting out area etc until it's as you want it - then you can lay a new lawn and it will unite the whole garden - doing the lawn last will mean it doesn't get messed up by all the other work you're planning to do.
When you turf a lawn you have to keep off it for quite some weeks, even little people's feet will damage it and you'll have to do it all again - so the longer you can manage with that lawn while they're growing a little older, the better it will be for everyone's stress levels.
Some of the plants you've got will probably be fine where they are, they'll just need an occasional prune once a year and a bit of fertiliser. If you can show us pics we'll tell you what they are and when and how to prune them. If you prune shrubs at the wrong time of the year you risk losing all the flowers. If you get it right the garden will look a picture.
If you show us pictures we'll also tell you which plants are past their best and might as well be scrapped, and which ones you could dig up and replant in more suitable places.
I hope that's helpful
Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.
You say you're not in a rush so I would suggest leaving things much as they are through the summer and identify any plants you want to keep for the raised beds. Then you will be in a much better position to make the changes and at the same time save yourself money by not having to buy so much for your new raised beds.
I fully appreciate why the current garden doesn't suit your requirements when you have young children and need something low maintenance.
Last year we completely gutted our garden and are starting again from scratch. Many of the plants in our garden were very old and woody having been planted by our predecessors.
Be aware - starting from scratch is not a cheap job. We have spent literally hundreds of pounds on plants alone so far. Our garden is pretty big but we are enjoying the experience.
Mr Toast, there might be some local people who would like the plants you are getting rid of, they might even come and dig them up if they can have them A shame to just destroy them.
Posts
It looks quite a charming garden and just in need of a little bit of maintenance. It will look terribly bare with just grass. I would have no compunction in getting rid of that brown conifer and that grassy hump at the middle of the top bit. The lawn would look a lot better if it was edged properly.
However, back to your plan. I don't think you will need to put more topsoil on. Dug, levelled, raked and turfed would be the way to go. The gravel will be a bummer to lift unless it's on a membrane...............
just think of the education having a well stocked garden will be to your young children. Watching the development through the seasons and wildlife it'll attract. You have help them identify birds and bugs etc, More so than a football pitch can ever do.
The gravel is on membrane. I do not just want a square patch of grass with bland fence panels, I do want to add some raised borders ect. The garden in its current state is just not our pup of tea.
keep us posted Mr Toast.
MrToast, you may not get the answer you want here. This forum is filled with people who love gardens and gardening. You, yourself, said that the garden would suit someone who loves gardening. We love gardening and you are asking our advice on how to dig it all up.
Can't believe I'm reading this, Mr. Toast. What you are planning is sacrilege, sorry!
Well, it's Mr Toast's garden and he wants to put his mark on it and has asked for advice - my advice is to do it bit at a time - divide the garden into small areas and decide how you want each area to look then tackle them one at a time.
Doing the whole job at once would undoubtedly result in loads of mud whenever it rained, and with a family about that would get carted indoors and would cause loadsa stress.
While you're working on one area give the children free rein to play in the rest of the garden - my children would be building camps behind some of those shrubs, son would have been playing cowboys, leaping out on us from behind a bush and daughter would've been in a Fairy Dell, wearing an old bridesmaid dress and having a fairies' picnic with her toys. (Quite gender stereotypical my two, until daughter learnt how to climb trees then she turned into a tomboy
)
Then, bit by bit you'll have worked around the garden, changing the borders and making raised beds and a place for a climbing frame and a sitting out area etc until it's as you want it - then you can lay a new lawn and it will unite the whole garden - doing the lawn last will mean it doesn't get messed up by all the other work you're planning to do.
When you turf a lawn you have to keep off it for quite some weeks, even little people's feet will damage it and you'll have to do it all again - so the longer you can manage with that lawn while they're growing a little older, the better it will be for everyone's stress levels.
Some of the plants you've got will probably be fine where they are, they'll just need an occasional prune once a year and a bit of fertiliser. If you can show us pics we'll tell you what they are and when and how to prune them. If you prune shrubs at the wrong time of the year you risk losing all the flowers. If you get it right the garden will look a picture.
If you show us pictures we'll also tell you which plants are past their best and might as well be scrapped, and which ones you could dig up and replant in more suitable places.
I hope that's helpful
Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.
You say you're not in a rush so I would suggest leaving things much as they are through the summer and identify any plants you want to keep for the raised beds. Then you will be in a much better position to make the changes and at the same time save yourself money by not having to buy so much for your new raised beds.
I fully appreciate why the current garden doesn't suit your requirements when you have young children and need something low maintenance.
Last year we completely gutted our garden and are starting again from scratch. Many of the plants in our garden were very old and woody having been planted by our predecessors.
Be aware - starting from scratch is not a cheap job. We have spent literally hundreds of pounds on plants alone so far. Our garden is pretty big but we are enjoying the experience.
I'd be loathe to go about spraying weedkiller or anything if there are children getting out and about in fresh air.
Mr Toast, there might be some local people who would like the plants you are getting rid of, they might even come and dig them up if they can have them
A shame to just destroy them.