Hi Berghill - yes we are finding that out. Thanks for the tips - I'll pass them onto my husband.
Re: depth - if we can make the flower bed area at least 12" deep does this give the plants a good chance of success?
I'm also going to replace the existing soil in the area with a high quality top soil, lay weed membrane and mulch. I'm also thinking of potting up the acid-loving plants in a pot with appropriate soil first before I 'plant' them in the flower bed to mix in with the other plants. This may sound a bit crazy to somepeople but I really want the flower border to have the ' planted' look rather than pots everywhere. Not that I'm against container plants in any way I do plan to have some at the doorway, I just don't want pots everywhere. I suppose its got something to do with years of living in flats and yearing for a garden to plant things in and then finally getting a house with a garden and then finding out that I can't plant after all and have to go back to pots!
!2 inches of good soil would be sufficient for most herbaceous things, but probably not shrubs or trees. You might find that they dry out more quickly though, so you would need to keep an eye on that.
Our soil is so contaminated with lime mortar that we have never bothered trying to grow acid loving plants so cannot help on that score.
I moved into a house with all concrete, gravel & decking at the back about 4 years ago. I felt desperate to get some real garden asap but didn't have much time! I got rid of a lot of the concrete, but underneath was a lot of rubble and sub soil. However, I just tossed some shetts of cardboard and then several bags of compost on top and planted some (cheap) fruit trees (using a pick axe to make a hole big enough for the roots). They have all taken well and grown substantially and almost all flowered this year and the apple tree that was planted just 2 years ago fruited. I've been delighted and amazed.To cover the ground at the rough edges of the concrete I planted alpine strawberries that have gone mad!
In the centre of the back garden is a large square of old timber, like railway sleepers but maybe 10" deep. I can't shift these and am wondering if I can build a raised bed on top with some of the decking that has come up (& still more to come!) I would like this area to be a bit decorative, so any ideas what would do well in it, anyone? I love rhododendrons and azaleas, too, but maybe alkaline drought tolerant plants would be best? I have plenty of old gravel also dug out from elsewhere. Would this be a useful base or would the wood base have enough drainage of its own do you think?
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Hi Berghill - yes we are finding that out. Thanks for the tips - I'll pass them onto my husband.
Re: depth - if we can make the flower bed area at least 12" deep does this give the plants a good chance of success?
I'm also going to replace the existing soil in the area with a high quality top soil, lay weed membrane and mulch. I'm also thinking of potting up the acid-loving plants in a pot with appropriate soil first before I 'plant' them in the flower bed to mix in with the other plants. This may sound a bit crazy to somepeople but I really want the flower border to have the ' planted' look rather than pots everywhere. Not that I'm against container plants in any way
I do plan to have some at the doorway, I just don't want pots everywhere. I suppose its got something to do with years of living in flats and yearing for a garden to plant things in and then finally getting a house with a garden and then finding out that I can't plant after all and have to go back to pots!
!2 inches of good soil would be sufficient for most herbaceous things, but probably not shrubs or trees. You might find that they dry out more quickly though, so you would need to keep an eye on that.
Our soil is so contaminated with lime mortar that we have never bothered trying to grow acid loving plants so cannot help on that score.
I moved into a house with all concrete, gravel & decking at the back about 4 years ago. I felt desperate to get some real garden asap but didn't have much time! I got rid of a lot of the concrete, but underneath was a lot of rubble and sub soil. However, I just tossed some shetts of cardboard and then several bags of compost on top and planted some (cheap) fruit trees (using a pick axe to make a hole big enough for the roots). They have all taken well and grown substantially and almost all flowered this year and the apple tree that was planted just 2 years ago fruited. I've been delighted and amazed.To cover the ground at the rough edges of the concrete I planted alpine strawberries that have gone mad!
In the centre of the back garden is a large square of old timber, like railway sleepers but maybe 10" deep. I can't shift these and am wondering if I can build a raised bed on top with some of the decking that has come up (& still more to come!) I would like this area to be a bit decorative, so any ideas what would do well in it, anyone? I love rhododendrons and azaleas, too, but maybe alkaline drought tolerant plants would be best? I have plenty of old gravel also dug out from elsewhere. Would this be a useful base or would the wood base have enough drainage of its own do you think?