Designing from scratch
Trickydicky2
Posts: 3
Hi all,
I've finally decided to make a start on my garden!
It's still at the early stages but I'm really enjoying building all the hard landscaping, it's hopefully going to be a sort of "contemporary Japanese" style, which in my head, means modern looking landscaping filled with acers, bamboos, wisteria and any plants that look remotely oriental (suggestions more than welcome)!
Here's a few photos of the garden beginning 14/02/2008 until now. I ripped out the old greenhouse, shed, concrete post and some horrid trees! to create a blank canvas. Since then I have built a summer house (named the Wendy House!), had new fencing put in and conservatory and now built a decking area and started on some raised planting areas! It's deffinately still at the "before" stage 
Untouched by human hands for some years!!!
The Wendyhouse was the first thing I built at the bottom of the garden. My girls live beside it quite happily in the coop and run I also built.
I then learnt how to build the decking area outside the conservatory. It is angled to match the angle of the Wendyhouse, so hopefully the whole garden will be designed on diagonals.
Then I started work on the first of the concrete block planters I have planned. Hopefully I'll then try and learn how to render them smooth on the outside so I can then paint them.
Well that was a sage but at least it ended up looking straight and level!
I'm quite pleased with my garden so far, considering I've never done woodwork or bricklaying before now, fingers crossed I don't run out of energy before the planting fun begins 
Watch this space for updates for anyone that's at all interested...
Happy gardening to all,
Rich
Posts
love the chickens.
In the sticks near Peterborough
Will be watching with interest, we moved in to our house last year and inherited a completely paved over 'garden' three skips later we have a lovely lawn, plenty of flowering plants and shrubs and very little paving!!
Hard work but well worth it! Also lovin' the chickens.
Yes it's hard work doing all that hardlandscaping stuff before the plants go in, lovely when you see it taking shape though.
I've got eight chickens and most of them love a cuddle now and again, the blonde one at the back of the queue is a buff orpington, she is so tame she comes up and stands on my shoes until I pick her up and cuddle her, then she usually goes to sleep in my arms lol
Bump re spam
Well done Rich - you've achieved a huge amount and it's so satisfying when you do it yourself isn't it? Love the decking on the angle - much harder to do than a square or rectangle . I bet you enjoy the rendering. Practice icing cakes - it's the same idea!
Cute chicks too
I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...
It's going to look amazing, please keep posting pics of progress, are you having any water?